Hola, Salut, Ciao, Aboutye…

This is Speak the Culture, self-appointed doyen of all things cultural. We’re trying to get to the bottom of national culture. Country by country, jabbing and poking, investigating the things and the people that you, no doubt an enlightened citizen, really should know about. Take the French: all those names lurking in your subconscious – Baudelaire, Pascal, Truffaut. Who were they, what did they do and why are they so important to the dear old French?

Speak the Culture fills in the essential cultural background to learning a new language; works as an amiable companion to travel; and eases you through the culture shock of life in a new land.

It all began with a book, Speak the Culture: France, which rapidly turned into a series of books and now leaks out onto the web, pushing the debate about culture, the arts and identity. Enjoy!