Archive news from across the online press (including BBC News) on language, accents and dialects.

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	Improve your Singlish English is the global language that unites us all. Or is it? In reality local slang rules. Take 'Singlish' for a start. (Times Online, 12th March 2005)

	Chinese is the language to learn Cantonese and Mandarin are the languages children should be learning at school if we are to capitalise on the future business potential of China, say experts. (BBC News, 11th March 2005)

	£115 million to boost language learning The government is to spend another £115m on providing foreign language teaching in England's schools. (BBC News, 11th March 2005)

	Winnie the Pooh show uses Welsh Disney is to use the Welsh language in a live show for the first time when Winnie the Pooh takes to the stage at the Wales Millennium Centre. (BBC News, 10th March 2005)

	School calls for 'corridor' Welsh One of Wales' oldest Welsh-medium schools is urging parents to encourage their children to speak more of the language in the corridors. (BBC News, 8th March 2005)

	Dialects are sign of times Deaf people who use sign language 'talk' with regional dialects, experts revealed yesterday. (Daily Record, 5th March 2005)

	Verbal identity 'remains strong' The north-east of England has retained more of its verbal identity than most of the rest of the country, according to an online archive. (BBC News, 2nd March 2005)

	Posh accents 'a hindrance' to business Nearly half of company directors and senior managers believe that a posh accent is a hindrance rather than a help when it comes to succeeding in business, a survey has revealed. (Daily Mail, 29th March 2005)

	Internet dialect files expanded A database chronicling changes in England's accents and dialects over the last 50 years has been expanded. (BBC News, 1st March 2005)

	Latvian lessons irk Russians In Russian school number 22, in the Latvian capital Riga, Natalia Skestere is quietly breaking the law. Under legislation which came into force last September, 60% of lessons in the final three school years must be taught not in the students' native Russian but in Latvian, the state language. (BBC News, 29th March 2005)

	Irish language law takes effect New legislation has come into force in western parts of the Irish Republic to promote the use of the Irish language. (BBC News, 28th March 2005)

	Language protest at castle tower Members of the Welsh Language Society climbed a tower of Caernarfon Castle in a protest calling for a housing act to protect Welsh-speaking communities. (BBC News, 28th March 2005)

	Police launch a talking website Cleveland Police has become the first among the north-east of England forces to set up a talking website. (BBC News, 24th March 2005)

	Doric literature 'neglected' in favour of Gaelic Leading Scottish writers and politicians have called for an Aberdeen literary festival to give as much prominence to the Scots language - especially the Doric dialect - as it currently gives to Gaelic. (Sunday Herald, 20th March 2005)

	Try taking a craic at this lingo Hundreds of recordings of people from Northumberland to Cornwall have been put online by the British Library Sound Archive in a new website designed to preserve the country's diverse regional accents. (The Journal, 18th March 2005)

	Sign language interpreters needed A conference is being held in Devon to raise awareness about sign language. (BBC News, 18th March 2005)

	Primary school goes bi-lingual A primary school where children have lessons in French and English is being set up in south-west London. (BBC News, 17th March 2005)

Wersia Scouse? In Liverpool, of course Shortly after Rafael Benítez, a Spaniard, took over as coach of the Liverpool soccer team last year, he gushed about this northern city's spirit and congeniality, before acknowledging sheepishly that he had encountered one complication: "I can't understand your accent," he told reporters here. "It sounds like Russian." (International Herald Tribune, 15th March 2005)

	Searching for the Welsh-Hindi link A BBC journalist is urging helpful linguists to come forward to help solve a mystery - why the Hindi accent has so much in common with Welsh. (BBC News, 14th March 2005)

	Hearing babies use sign language A group of mothers have started their own sign language group for hearing babies to try to communicate with them before they learn to speak. (BBC News, 1st March 2005)