In many European languages, the name for Tuesday comes directly from Mars , the Roman god of war.

In Latin, the day was called “dies Martis,” meaning “day of Mars.” This Roman naming system spread widely across Europe and remains visible in Romance languages today.

For example:

In northern Europe, however, the story took a different turn.

Germanic cultures adopted the Roman calendar but replaced some Roman gods with their own deities in a process historians call interpretatio germanica.

Instead of Mars, they used Tyr (or Tiw), the Norse god of war and justice. The English word Tuesday comes from the Old English “Tiwesdæg,” meaning “Tiw’s day.”

Similar patterns appear across Germanic languages:

In parts of eastern Europe , the name for Tuesday has nothing to do with gods at all.

Several Slavic languages instead use a numerical system based on the order of the week.

For example:

Both words derive from an Old Church Slavonic root meaning “the second.” This reflects a different cultural tradition where weekdays were numbered rather than named after mythological figures.

The map breaks down the phrase “Bad Bunny” into local equivalents, often translating both “bad” and “rabbit” directly.

Some standout examples include:

The variations are more than just translations. They show how different cultures express the idea of “bad” with words ranging from mischievous to cheeky, rather than simply evil.

Europe is home to over 200 languages and dialects, and translation is part of everyday life across the continent. Linguists have long noted that names and phrases often shift meaning when adapted into new cultural contexts.

As the British Council explains, translation is never purely word-for-word. It involves tone, cultural framing, and local expression, which is exactly what makes the above map so entertaining.

“Bad” becomes:

And “bunny” becomes everything from conejito to kouneláki .

Bad Bunny is not just a Latin music star anymore. He has become one of the most listened-to artists on the planet.

According to Spotify, Bad Bunny was the platform’s most-streamed artist globally for three consecutive years between 2020 and 2022 and then 2025, marking a historic breakthrough for Spanish-language music in the mainstream.

His albums, including Un Verano Sin Ti, have topped charts far beyond Latin America , proving that language is no barrier in the streaming era.

Billboard has also credited Bad Bunny with helping push reggaeton and Latin trap into a new commercial and cultural space worldwide, with sold-out tours across the US and Europe.

Because scores are not curved, unexpected spikes in difficulty can significantly affect university admissions outcomes.

A ministry investigation found that 19 English questions were rewritten shortly before the exam, limiting time for proper difficulty assessment. Only 33% of English item writers were active teachers, below the cross-subject average, weakening alignment with classroom learning levels.

What will change

Under the overhaul, at least half of English test writers will be practicing teachers, screening of expertise will be tightened, and an integrated review committee will oversee difficulty calibration. 

Artificial intelligence tools will also be introduced to assist with passage generation and difficulty prediction, with pilot use planned for 2028.

Where South Korea lies in global English proficiency

The reforms come as South Korea’s English proficiency faces global comparison. 

According to the State University of New York’s (SUNY) South Korean arm, the country placed a lowly 49th in the  EF English Proficiency Index 2023. South Korea scored 525 — classified as “moderate proficiency” — down 13 spots from the previous year.

EF English Proficiency Index 2023 ranked the Netherlands first with a score of 661, followed by Singapore at 642, with other top performers concentrated in Northern Europe . 

Despite early exposure to English and widespread private education, only a minority of Korean learners attain strong conversational fluency, according to SUNY Korea’s analysis. 

“The reasons seem to stem from cultural and social differences, the significant differences between the two languages: Korean and English, and the Korean Educational System,” the university noted. 

With the planned overhaul of Suneung’s English section, officials hope the reforms will restore fairness and ensure the exam reflects realistic learning outcomes rather than magnifying systemic gaps.

In English and many other languages, Germany comes from the Latin Germania, a term used by the Roman Empire to describe the lands east of the Rhine inhabited by Germanic tribes. Roman writers such as Julius Caesar and Tacitus helped popularise the name, which later spread through Latin-based and international usage.

From Alemania : naming the neighbours

In Spanish, French, Portuguese, and Arabic, Germany is known as Alemania or similar variants. This name comes from the Alemanni, a powerful Germanic confederation that lived near what is now southwestern Germany and Switzerland. Because the Alemanni were the first Germanic group many Romance-language speakers encountered, their name became shorthand for the entire region.

From Sachsen : the Saxon legacy

In Finnish and Estonian, Germany is called Saksa, derived from the Saxons, another influential Germanic tribe. Saxon traders and settlers played a major role around the Baltic Sea during the Middle Ages, which explains why their name stuck in northern Europe. Linguists note that trade routes often mattered more than political borders when names spread.

From Deutsch and Niemcy : identity and language

In German itself, the country is Deutschland, from the Old High German word diutisc, meaning “of the people ”, a way to distinguish the local language from Latin.

Meanwhile, in many Slavic languages, Germany is called Niemcy, a term linked to an old Slavic word meaning “mute” or “unable to speak”, referring to people who did not speak Slavic languages. While the term sounds harsh today, historians explain that it reflected linguistic differences rather than insult.

Washington’s departure follows a formal notification of intent submitted by President Donald Trump one year earlier, as required under U.S. law. The move makes the U.S. the first country in WHO history to withdraw its membership.

The Trump administration justified the exit by citing disagreements with the WHO’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, accusations of political bias, and dissatisfaction with pandemic policies.

Senior U.S. officials argued the country would continue to engage in global health through bilateral agreements and existing partnerships outside WHO structures.

"The Trump Admin is working to make sure that we have those bilateral agreements in place for that kind of health cooperation — but we don't need the WHO as an intermediary essentially to push Chinese interests on the American people," National Institutes of Health's Director Jay Bhattacharya told Fox News.

That rationale echoes what Argentinian President Javier Milei has stated in his decision to also withdraw Argentina from the WHO , a move scheduled to take effect on March 17, 2026.

The Milei government has framed its exit as a defence of national sovereignty and a response to what it describes as “deep differences” with WHO policies, especially concerning the management of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Argentina’s annual financial contributions to WHO have been comparatively small , and Buenos Aires has claimed that its withdrawal will not disrupt domestic health services.

Critics, however, warn that leaving a global coordination platform could limit access to information sharing, vaccine procurement mechanisms and technical cooperation that support responses to outbreaks and endemic diseases.

Why WHO matters

The World Health Organisation is the specialised health agency of the United Nations. Its core mission includes:

Nearly all United Nations member states have traditionally been members of the WHO. As of early 2026, with the U.S. exit complete, the organisation retains 193 members, the vast majority of the world’s nations.

According to official results from Portugal’s Ministry of Internal Administration, only António José Seguro of the Socialist Party and André Ventura, leader of the right-wing Chega party, finished first or second in every region of the country, locking in their places in the runoff.

Seguro, the centre-left Socialist candidate aligned with the S&D group in Europe, finished first overall with 31% of the national vote , leading in almost every municipality and all but two regions. His support base stretches across much of mainland Portugal, reflecting the continued strength of the Socialist Party in both urban centres and large parts of the interior.

Ventura followed in second place with 24%, marking another breakthrough for Chega. The party won outright in two regions and placed second everywhere else, confirming its transformation from a protest movement into a nationwide political force.

Liberal Initiative candidate João Cotrim Figueiredo also secured 16%, placing third in most autonomous regions, while Henrique Gouveia e Melo, running as an independent backed by the conservative PPM, finished with 12%, also claiming third place in several areas.

Neither came close to challenging the two front-runners nationally, underscoring how polarised the race has become.

The upcoming runoff will determine who succeeds President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa, whose role, while largely ceremonial, carries significant influence through veto powers and the ability to dissolve parliament.

With Portugal facing economic pressures and broader European uncertainty, the second round is expected to draw sharp contrasts between Seguro’s institutional continuity and Ventura’s populist challenge.

That moment says a lot about how English really works.

English spread through colonisation: through schools, churches, government, and media. But once it arrived, people didn’t just copy it. They adapted it, mixed it with local languages, humour, food, music, and everyday life. Over time, those local versions became the most real forms of English in those places.

We’ve seen this before. Words from Latin America and Asia have been part of English for years: macho, gringo, taco, guacamole, ceviche, reggaeton, cartel. These words stayed because English needed them. There was no better way to say what they meant.

In March 2025, the OED leaned fully into this idea with a “World English” update . It added everyday words like gigil from the Philippines, which means the urge to squeeze something cute, and alamak from Malaysia and Singapore, an expression of surprise or frustration. English didn’t have words for these feelings, so it borrowed them.

Then came December 2025, and a big moment for West Africa. The OED added words people already use daily: abeg and biko for polite requests, amala and moi moi for staple foods, mammy market for women-run community markets, and Ghana Must Go.

These words carry stories of migration , survival, humour, and community. And once they’re in the dictionary, no one can say they’re “not proper English.”

What’s changing is power. English is no longer shaped by one centre. It’s shaped by how people live. For years, speakers from the Global South were told their English was wrong. Now the same institutions are saying: this is English too.

Maybe English was never really “king.”Maybe it’s just a shared language constantly remade by the people who speak it. Global South isn’t just speaking English anymore. It’s rewriting it.

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World Reframed is produced in London by Global South World, part of the Impactum Group. Its editors are Duncan Hooper and Ismail Akwei.

ISSN 2978-4891