Cross-Cultural Com 2015 reduced memfiles.ctctcdn.com/9a69fb8e201/8a9f617e-cf0f-44cc-96d1-69162ed9e… · 9/30/15 1 CrossCulturalCommunicaon* Region’V’Leadership’and’Professional’

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Cross-‐Cultural Communica/on

Region V Leadership and Professional Development Conference Tuesday, October 13th, 2015

Presented by members of the Cross-‐Cultural Team of Parents In Community AcIon (PICA), Inc.:

Yusuf Abdurahman, Ilyas Afrah, Willie Dominguez, Brian Kendall, & Kayeng Vang

SKIT 1

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Notes about the Skit ENGLISH People who don't know English well can easily be confused by certain words and habits of naIve English speakers: •  Using slang like "Cool," "Take a load off," "your John Hancock," and "in a jiffy."

•  Saying "er" instead of her, "em" instead of them, and other shortened words.

•  Speaking fast. •  Not giving much explanaIon and assuming the other person understands.

Notes about the Skit SPANISH •  Este... is a word you may hear a lot from a confused

Spanish-‐speaker. It's like "Um..." in English. •  ¿Cómo estás? ("How are you?") and tú ("you") are used

when speaking to friends, family members, and children; they are not the best choice for a professional relaIonship. It is be]er to say ¿Cómo está usted? ("How are you, sir/ma'am?") and usted ("you, sir / you, ma'am").

•  Embarazada doesn't mean "embarrassed". It means "pregnant".

•  Fresa means "strawberry" in Spanish, but in Mexican slang it means "superficial, materialisIc person" or "spoiled rich kid".

•  Groserías sounds a lot like "groceries", but it means "dirty words".

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Notes about the Skit

BODY LANGUAGE •  Beckoning with one finger is not how people signal "Come here" in Mexico; in Somalia, it is disrespecaul. In those countries, to signal for someone to come, people use four fingers at once – in Mexico, with the palm toward the ground.

•  The "OK" sign does not mean "good" in all cultures. In some places it is used to make reference to the anus; in other places it indicates the gesturer thinks the other person is a "zero" -‐-‐ worthless.

•  Poin/ng the soles of the feet toward someone else is offensive in various cultures.

SKIT 2

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Gestures IllustraIng the Spoken Word

& CommunicaIng Without Words

Nonverbal CommunicaIon

Nonverbal communica/on refers to all forms of expression that are not linguisIcally based. It is used by people of every naIon, culture, race, and language. However, every culture's nonverbal communicaIon is different. Here are some examples of gestures you may see from Mexican families.

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Mexican Gestures

Hello. / What’s happening?

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What happened? / Where were you?

Really Crowded People packed together as Ight as my fingers

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$$ Money $$

SIngy / Tightwad

A codo (“elbow”) is a sIngy person.

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A li]le. / Please wait a li]le bit.

Angry

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No.

Go Ahead / Come In. “Pásale.”

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Computer TranslaIon

Proof that people really are smarter than machines.

Imagine… You get a le]er from your child’s school that includes this advice:

Not to give to children.

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Not to give to children.

The above translaIon was done in August 2015 by a free internet translaIon service (h]p://www.freetranslaIon.com/). The original text (from a PICA advocate’s handout) was:

If you use computer transla/on soZware to convey a message,

some of the translated material will probably not say what you meant to say.

Do NOT give up on any child.

Try it yourself! (It’s easy.) 1.  Choose a normal, perfectly logical paragraph in

English. 2.  Copy it to an internet translaIon site

(or to translaIon sorware on any computer). 3.  Tell the machine to translate it into the

language of your choice. Once it gives you the results, …

4.  Copy & paste the newly translated text back into the translaIon program. Ask the computer to translate it into English.

Results will range from understandable to bizarre.

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For example:

Original text -‐-‐ from PICA’s calendar: What if my infant or toddler is in diapers? Your child's primary caregiver will change diapers only in the diapering areas and on changing tables. PICA staff members will use liquid soap and single-‐service paper towels. With parental permission they may use diaper wipes. With medical permission, they may use skin care items.

Bing Translator (h^p://www.bing.com/translator)

English -‐> Spanish -‐> English, August 2015

What happens if my baby or toddler is in its infancy? Primary caregiver of the child will change only in the areas of changing diapers and diapers on tables change. The PICA staff members will use liquid soap and single paper towel -‐ service. With parental permission, you can use wipes for diaper. With medical authorizaIon, they may use the skin care items.

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Example: A Health Alert from Hennepin County

English Original: Possible Measles Exposure A second case of measles occurred in a baby who was at the PICA Project Secure daycare on April 8 and 11. You may have been exposed if you were at PICA Project Secure daycare on those dates.

Google Translate, August 2015

English: Possible Measles Exposure A second case of measles occurred in a baby who was at the PICA Project Secure daycare on April 8 and 11. You may have been exposed if you were at PICA Project Secure daycare on those dates.

Spanish: Sarampión posible exposición Un segundo caso de sarampión ocurrió en un bebé que estaba en la guardería Secure PICA proyecto el 8 de abril y 11. Es posible que haya estado expuesto si estuviera en PICA Proyecto guardería seguro en esas fechas.

Google translate says:

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Google Translate, August 2015

English: Possible Measles Exposure A second case of measles occurred in a baby who was at the PICA Project Secure daycare on April 8 and 11. You may have been exposed if you were at PICA Project Secure daycare on those dates.

Spanish: Sarampión posible exposición Un segundo caso de sarampión ocurrió en un bebé que estaba en la guardería Secure PICA proyecto el 8 de abril y 11. Es posible que haya estado expuesto si estuviera en PICA Proyecto guardería seguro en esas fechas.

English: Measles Possible Exposure A second case of measles occurred in a baby who was at the daycare Seguro PICA project the 8th of April and 11th. It is possible that (he/she has OR you have) been exposed if (he/she/you) were in PICA Project secure daycare on those dates.

Google translate says:

Their transla/on means:

WHY IS COMPUTER TRANSLATION OFTEN INACCURATE?

OrenImes, the meaning of a word or phrase changes when it is used in different contexts – for example:

•  in describing different situaIons, •  in different parts of a sentence, or •  in conjuncIon with certain other words.

People are much be^er than computers at taking into account the context of a word and correctly iden/fying its intended meaning.

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1. Same Word, Different Meanings: •  The ball missed the ba]er by a few inches. •  I forgot to add baking soda to the ba]er.

•  The wound was deep and required sItches. •  Mr. Jones wound the fishing line onto his reel. •  He didn’t catch any fish, so he wound up having peanut bu]er & jelly for supper.

•  The teacher passed out the tests. •  The teacher passed out in front of his students.

When there are several meanings to choose from, transla/on programs will oZen pick

the wrong one.

2. Not Enough Informa/on

SomeImes one sentence by itself doesn’t give all the informaIon needed to understand what is being said; some of it is explained in other places. TranslaIon sorware oren doesn’t connect the dots.

“The doctor told the teacher that the child was sick.” à Are these people male or female? In Spanish, the gender of each person is specified.

“The boys hit each other all the Ime.” à Is the speaker talking about the present or the past? The past & present forms of this verb are different in Spanish.

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2. Not Enough Informa/on (con/nued)

“Le dijo que tenía que comer más.” By itself, this sentence could mean: à He told her that she had to eat more. à He told her that he had to eat more. à She told him that he had to eat more. à You told him that I had to eat more…

(among other opMons).

A human being would pay a]enIon to the context of this sentence, would know who it referred to, and would choose the correct pronouns (he, she, you, him, her, etc.). TranslaIon programs oren don’t recognize or remember what (or whom) the author is wriIng about.

3. Same Meaning, Different Words Different languages oZen express the same idea

with different words. Spanish Word for Word TranslaIon What it means Tengo frío. ( I ) have cold. I feel cold. Ana le cae bien a Janet. Ana falls well on Janet. Janet likes Ana. Les encanta el fútbol. The football enchants them. They love soccer. Se le cayó el vaso. The glass fell from him. He dropped the glass.

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So… What should I do?

•  If you don’t speak a parent’s language, get help from an adult who does.

•  Learn another language – or at least a few useful phrases. Materials can be found in bookstores, and classes are available in the community.

LaIno Surnames

How do they work?

La/no names, Part 1:

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No Rule Is Always Followed (as much as we might like for reality to be that convenient)

We can honestly speak about pa]erns that are seen more or less frequently in the passing on of surnames, but there are excepIons to every rule.

Nevertheless, the paOern shown on the following slides is sMll very common.

A Common LaIno Pa]ern of Surname Inheritance

Man Woman José López Guamán Teresa Ruiz Paredes a.k.a. José López a.k.a. Teresa Ruiz •  People have two surnames (family names):

•  The first comes from their father. •  The second comes from their mother.

•  People use both surnames in formal situaIons and on important

documents. •  In less formal situaIons, many people use only their paternal

surname (i.e., the surname they got from their father).

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Husband Wife

José López Guamán Teresa Ruiz Paredes José López Teresa Ruiz

Teresa Ruiz Paredes de López Teresa Ruiz de López

When a woman gets married, she keeps the surnames she was born with – though she may choose to iden/fy herself as being “of” (de) her husband.


Father Mother

José López Guamán Teresa Ruiz Paredes

Child: Felipe ________ ________

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Father Mother


Child: Felipe López Ruiz


Father Mother


Children: Felipe López Ruiz Marta _____ _____ Marcela _____ _____

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Father Mother


Child: Felipe López Ruiz Marta López Ruiz Marcela López Ruiz



Felipe López Ruiz Linda Tajonar Sinchi Roberta ________ ________ Miguel ________ ________

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Felipe López Ruiz Linda Tajonar Sinchi Roberta López Tajonar Miguel López Tajonar



Felipe López Ruiz Linda Tajonar Sinchi Roberta López Tajonar Juan Maldonado Huerta Eva ________ ________

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Felipe López Ruiz Linda Tajonar Sinchi Roberta López Tajonar Juan Maldonado Huerta Eva Maldonado López



Felipe López Ruiz Linda Tajonar Sinchi

Roberta López Tajonar Juan Maldonado Huerta

Eva Maldonado López Manuel Cortez Cervantes Pablo ________ ________

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Felipe López Ruiz Linda Tajonar Sinchi

Roberta López Tajonar Juan Maldonado Huerta

Eva Maldonado López Manuel Cortez Cervantes Pablo Cortez Maldonado

How do you solve a problem like María?


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María: an excep/onally popular name for women in Spanish-‐

speaking countries

•  The Spanish StaIsIcal Office reported in 2013 that 26.7 percent of the female populaIon had “María” as one of their given names.

•  In LaIn America too, María is an extremely popular name.

María doesn’t always go by “María”

•  It is very common for women with compound names that include “María”, such as “María Teresa” or “María del Pilar” to be known by their “non-‐María” name, or by a nickname derived from it: María de Guadalupe è Guadalupe / Lupe María Teresa è Teresa / Tere María del Pilar è Pilar / Pili

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Are we talking about the same person?


Nicknames

Nicknames

Those of us who grew up speaking English know that many of our given names have short forms:

Charles è Charlie, Chuck Robert è Rob, Bob, Bobby William è Will, Willie, Bill, Billy Elizabeth è Beth, Be^y, Liz Margaret è Peg, Peggy, Marge, Meg, Daisy Barbara è Barb

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Spanish Nicknames

In Spanish also, many names are shortened or altered:

Men’s names Nicknames

Alberto Beto, Tito, ...

Eduardo Edu, Lalo, Yayo, Guayo, Wardo

Francisco Paco, Pancho, ...

Ignacio Nacho, Igna, ...

José Pepe, Joche, ...

Jesús Chucho, Chuy, ...

Spanish Nicknames

In Spanish also, many names are shortened or altered:

Women’s names Nicknames

Carolina Carol, Caro, Carito, ...

Gabriela Gabi, Gabina, Babi, ...

Guadalupe Lupe, Lupita, ...

Cris/na Cris/, Cris, Tina, Tinita, Ti/, ...

Verónica Vero, Nica

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Spanish Names: Diminu/ves

It is very common in Spanish to add –ito, –ita, –cito, or –cita to the end of a name to show that someone is small or beloved.

Juan è Juanito (li]le Juan / dear Juan) Teresa è Teresita (li]le Teresa / dear Teresa) hermano = brother Abuela = Grandmother hermanito = li]le brother Abuelita = Grandma

Cross Cultural Communication

Customs and Culture of Somalis

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Presented by

Yusuf & Ilyas

WELCOME SOO DHOWOOW

AHLAN WASAHLAN

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Somalia

Culture Mankind’s Method of Adapting

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“CULTURAL SHOCK” Cultural Change

"   Cultures change because of internal forces such as discovery and innovation. "   Cultures change because of external forces such as diffusion and borrowing.

English -‐ Somali Miscommunica/on

Hot dog -‐-‐-‐ spicy dog meat

Smoke Free -‐-‐-‐ you can smoke, no problem

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Language

Ø Level of Communication (Formal, Informal)

Ø Idioms, Metaphors, Slang

Common Cultural Contrasts: How Somalis Communicate

Children address adults by their posi/on rather than by name:

•  Dad -‐-‐-‐ Aabo •  Mom -‐-‐-‐ Hooyo •  Teacher -‐-‐-‐ “Teacher” (not the teacher’s name)

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Eye contact: •  If a woman blinks repeatedly at a man, she is thought to be flirIng with him.

•  Children are taught not to make eye contact with adults; to do so would be considered disrespecaul.

Common Cultural Contrasts How Somalis Communicate

Names: •  Somalis have no last name. They list their ancestors’ names: Yusuf son of Adam son of Ali son of Mohamed son of Elmi son of Du’ale son of Samatar…

• Women keep their own name when they marry.

•  People oren use descripIve nicknames (Baldy, One-‐eye, etc.). They are not concerned with poliIcal correctness.

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Personal space: We talk loud and rough with lots of gestures, so we stand apart.

Politeness: •  “Thank you” and “Excuse me” exist, but they are not used much.

•  If you tell someone her child is beauIful, she may say “Yahuu,” “Asbax,” “Isha baxarka,” etc., to ward off a curse.


•  Date of birth & birthdays: Most Somalis don’t record or celebrate their birthday.

•  Date: The day precedes the month (13/10/2015).

Many people use the Islamic calendar; we are now in the year 1436, in the month of Zul-‐Hijjah (30/12/1436).

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When you meet Somalis or visit their homes:

Shoes: •  Be willing to remove your shoes. •  Cultural Healing: coining, fire, recitaIon, etc. Husband & Wife: •  Male advocates might not be allowed in if the husband is not at home.

•  The husband is tradiIonally considered the head of the household; if he is present, include him in the conversaIon.


If a Somali uses one finger to beckon someone, it is to insult him.

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Common Cultural Contrasts When you meet Somalis or visit their homes:

Gree/ngs are long.

Hand shaking: Don’t extend your hand to a member of the opposite sex unIl that person offers their hand.


•  Time: The hours are counted from sunrise.

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Common Cultural Contrasts

When you meet Somalis or visit their homes:

•  Ea/ng customs: Somalis usually eat with their hands.


When you meet Somalis or visit their homes: Language Difficul/es:

•  They laugh or giggle when they don’t understand what you say.

•  InterpretaIon by children may be inaccurate and may disrupt family power structure.

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When you meet Somalis or visit their homes: •  Kissing: o  Friends and family someImes greet each other with a kiss.

o  Children may kiss your hand as a sign of respect.


Word order doesn’t ma^er as much in Somali:

•  book check = checkbook •  King Burger = Burger King •  Bananas eat Ramon. = Ramon eats bananas.

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Ha, ha, ha! -‐-‐-‐-‐ Yes, yes, yes!

Example: Head Start, Head Start, yes, yes, yes!

TranslaIon: Head Start, Head Start, ha, ha, ha!

(People think it’s sarcasIc.)

Words that are hard to translate: The word “Advocate” was already hard to translate; then the “Home Visi/ng Advocate” was introduced.

Ac/vi/es Disabili/es Special Aid Literacy Emo/onal Development Awareness Cereals Head Start

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More words that are hard to translate: Development: Somali has a word for the development of a country; it sounds strange to use that word to talk about human development (physical / emo/onal / cogni/ve development, etc.). Cookies: In English, there are chocolate chip cookies, ginger snaps, Oreos, vanilla wafers, animal crackers, etc. In Somali, we call them all “biscuits.” Flowers: In English, there are tulips, roses, daisies, daffodils, etc. Somali has only one word for flowers. Dogs: In English, there are beagles, poodles, German shepherds, etc. Somali has only one word for dogs. Horses: In English, there are Arabian horses, thoroughbreds, Clydesdales, hackneys, etc. Somali has only one word for horses.

Etiquette:

Ø Acting and Dressing Professionally

Ø Listening More than Talking

Ø Paying Attention to People’s Mannerisms

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Any ques/ons?

Ka Yeng Vang

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Hmong History and Culture

Courtesy of the University of Texas Libraries, The University of Texas at AusIn

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Language

Hmong wri]en language disappeared thousands of years ago, but we do not remember exactly when it was lost. We have used oral language to

keep our culture alive.

Hmong wri]en language is new, so there are variaIons in spelling.

• There are two dialects: Green and White Hmong (similar to American English and BriIsh English).

• The Romanized Hmong alphabet was developed in the mid 1950s by a Catholic priest and group of six intelligent Hmong people.

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Not Every Word Can Be Translated. Examples:

•  Allergy •  Computer •  Eligible •  ApplicaIon •  Form •  Apply •  WaiIng list •  Emergency •  Parent Lounge

•  Qualify •  Fill out •  Income Guidelines •  RegistraIon/Enrollment •  Sliding Fee/Co-‐Pay •  Benefits •  Zip code •  Fitness, Exercise: “Twist your body.” •  Dance: “Move around.”

Communica/on Strategies

•  Speak slowly and clearly. •  Ask for an interpreter or translator. •  Older children may interpret at home but should not do so in public, especially in a medical clinic or hospital.

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Culture

•  Hmong people believe in spirits and ancestor worship.

•  We believe in curses. •  We respect elders and cannot argue with them. •  Men usually do not shake hands with women. •  We don’t look straight into another person’s eyes.

•  We don’t touch a man’s or boy’s head.

At home: •  Some clans have restricted areas that the daughter-‐in-‐law and/or older brothers can’t climb above or pass through.

•  Fruits cannot be served with meals on the table. •  It is believed that bad luck or problems will come if someone enters restricted areas. If these rules are broken, an older person or head of household needs to appease the spirits with something.

Banned / Restricted Areas

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•  People with the same last name cannot date or marry each other. We have to marry someone with a different last name.

•  Children have to carry dad’s last name. •  TradiIonally, a wife kept her own last name, but nowadays some wives change theirs to their husband’s last name.

Da/ng and Marriage

Cultural Considera/ons in Health, Medica/on and Treatment •  When someone is sick, we call a shaman.

Photo from h]p://hilltribeart.com/wordpress/?paged=5

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Cultural Considera/ons in Health, Medica/on and Treatment •  Spirit calling

Photo from h]ps://twi]er.com/DoualyX/media

Cultural Considera/ons in Health, Medica/on and Treatment •  Herbs •  Coining •  Tying a string/bracelet on the neck, wrist, or ankle

Home Visits: When you see something on the door such as green leaves, red cloth, or string, that means you cannot go in.

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Educa/on

•  In most Hmong families, the parents do not have much formal educaIon.

•  Hmong parents think educaIon is very important, but they don’t really understand how school or the educaIon system works.

•  Parents don’t take Ime at home to talk with their children about school.

•  Every day Hmong kids must face the stress of balancing two life learning styles.

Family Values •  In our community, elders need to be respected no ma]er what.

•  When children only speak English at home, they will lose their own language.

•  Parents feel sad that their children will lose their language and culture. The old family values are lost.

•  Parents don’t feel respected anymore; they lose hope.

•  Nowadays, children will not call older people uncle, aunt, grandfather, or grandmother as they are supposed to.

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Service Strategies…

•  Parental support: Acknowledge the parents’ feelings.

•  Dual language classes, which PICA already has in place.

•  Staff can learn a few words of Hmong and try to be aware of cultural differences.

•  We have the Cross-‐Cultural Phrase Book, which you can use to learn a few words as Ime allows.

Break

Documents

Cross-Cultural Com 2015 reduced memfiles.ctctcdn.com/9a69fb8e201/8a9f617e-cf0f-44cc-96d1-69162ed9e… · 9/30/15 1 CrossCulturalCommunicaon* Region’V’Leadership’and’Professional’