your month ahead - March
1 Mar - Ramadan begins, Islam
The Holy Month of Ramadan celebrates the Islamic holy book, the Qur’an, being revealed to the Prophet Muhammed. Observant Muslims (excepting children under 14, the elderly and those who are pregnant, menstruating or travelling) will fast from dawn to dusk and engage in more prayer and charitable giving than usual.
3 Mar - World Hearing Day
The World Health Organization’s is an annual event, raising awareness of deafness prevention and promoting ear and hearing care. The theme for 2025 is Changing Mindsets: Empower Yourself. This encourages us all to learn about looking after our hearing and reducing harmful behaviours.
March dates at a glance
Religious/cultural
1 – St David’s Day, Christian
1 – Nineteen-Day Fast begins, Baha’i
1 – Saturday of Souls, Orthodox Christian
1 – Ramadan begins, Islam
2 – Cheesefare Sunday, Orthodox Christian
3 – Great Lent begins, Orthodox Christian
3 – Shrove Monday, Christian
4 – Shrove Tuesday, Christian
5 – Ash Wednesday, Christian
8 – Saturday of Souls, Orthodox Christian
9 – Feast of Orthodoxy, Orthodox Christian
13 – Holika Dahan, Hindu
14 – Nanakshahi (New Year), Sikh
14 – Purim, Judaism
14 - 16 – Hola Mohalla Sikh
15 – Holi, Hindu
17 – St Patrick’s Day, Christian
19 – Feast of Saint Joseph, Christian
20 – Ostara, Wicca and Pagan
20 – Nowruz (New Year), Persian and Zoroastrian
20 – Naw-Rúz, Bahá’í
25 – Annunciation to the Theotokos, Orthodox Christian
25 – Annunciation of the Virgin Mary, Christian
26 – Khordad Sal, Zoroastrian
26 – Laylat Al-Qadr, Islam
30 – Chaitra Navratri begins, Hindu
30 – Ugadi (New Year), Hindu
31 – Eid Al-Fitr, Islam
Awareness and Events
1 – Zero Discrimination Day
1 – Self-Injury Awareness Day (SIAD)
1 – International Wheelchair Day
3 – World Hearing Day
5-7 – TUC's Women's Conference
8 – International Women’s Day
17 - 23 – Neurodiversity Celebration Week
20 – Spring Equinox
20 – International Day of Happiness
21 – International Day for the Elimination of Racial Discrimination
21 – World Down Syndrome Day
24 – World Tuberculosis (TB) Day
25 – International Day of Remembrance of The Victims of Slavery and The Transatlantic Slave Trade
30 – Mother’s Day
30 – World Bipolar Day
31 – International Trans Day of Visibility
31 Mar - 6 Apr – World Autism Acceptance Week
language fact file: Albanian
Albanian is mainly spoken in: Albania, Kosovo, North Macedonia and Montenegro.
Number of native speakers: 7.5 million
Learn some: Here’s something we can all master: In Albania, you can express thanks by placing your hand on your chest.
Fast facts:
More Albanian speakers live outside Albania than inside. This is because the country has an uncommonly large diaspora.
The Albanian alphabet is unique. It has 36 letters and words are written exactly as they are pronounced, which is very helpful if you are learning it!
If you are stubborn, in Albania they might say your head is full of garlic. This is an idiom that is thought to derive from the strength and toughness of garlic, which is a deeply rooted theme in Balkan tradition.
Linguist story - February
Every month, we get to know a bit more about one of our linguists. This month, meet Dorina Ndreu, an interpreter working in Albanian.
Tell us about the work you do for TLS.
I interpret for the Albanian community for a variety of services. My role as an interpreter is bridging communication between the professional and the client. Whether is in a medical, social or legal setting, I must ensure people understand and are understood. This could be hospitals, GP practices, schools, workplaces and conferences, which can be face to face but also from the comfort of my own home.
What's been your favourite project at TLS?
To be honest it is just interpreting for the Albanian community - it’s difficult to choose which is my favourite project as I love my job very much. It’s seeing my community happy, being able to explain and express what they want despite their difficulties in communication.
What has been your biggest challenge?
My biggest challenge is travelling into the city when having face to face assignments is that sometimes you are stuck in traffic.
Can you tell us about a time your work has made a difference to someone’s life?
I have made a big difference to a client who is blind and the mother of five children. All the social workers she has had, as well as the current one, try to book me whenever we can arrange the time, especially when she has conferences and parents’ meetings. This makes me feel not only proud of myself but spiritually fulfilled that my everyday job makes such a difference.
Tell us something interesting about you
Since I was a child I have been a very sociable person. I studied grammar and literature in Albania alongside the English language, which I loved more than my French, which I cannot make any sentences in anymore – haha!
I find myself really happy with my job as an interpreter, compared to what I did in my past. In my long-term future I would like to see myself working as a social worker to be able to help my community more.
Children’s Mental Health Week: Know Yourself, Grow Yourself
Children’s Mental Health Week ran from 3 to 9 February this year.
At TLS, we work with many NHS trusts to provide qualified healthcare interpreters. The skills, experience and expertise that these professionals bring to the work help to ease the stress that your service users can be going through.
This can be especially acute when working with children and young people, who are navigating a system in a language they don’t understand.
We are proud to be part of the essential work that so many of our customers do.
Read more about Children’s Mental Health Week here: Place2Be's Children's Mental Health Week - Official site
TLS portal: much more than bookings
Have you explored our portal yet?
As well as being a one stop space for managing bookings, it has all kinds of information, training and insights that could help you to get the absolute best from your experiences with us.
Catch our guides and videos on how to access our various services, such as our telephone or video interpreting, which could save you time and money. Find out best practice on working with different groups of service users or in a variety of interpreting scenarios.
Got suggestions for anything you would like to see on the portal? Contact enquiries@languageshop.org
Your month ahead - important dates for February
14, Lailat al-Bara’ah, Islam
Lailat al-Bara’ah translates into English as ‘night of forgiveness’ and marks an evening in which many Muslims pray for forgiveness and fast. Some believe that your destiny for the year ahead is determined by God on this night. The occasion usually falls roughly two weeks before the start of Ramadan, the Holy Month.
23, Meatfare Sunday, Orthodox Christian
This is the third Sunday in the three-week pre-Lent period, and from this point until the end of Lent, observant Orthodox Christians refrain from eating meat (though they can still eat dairy and eggs for the final week until Lent begins). The day focuses on Christ’s final judgement, aiming to focus followers’ minds on good deeds.
January’s dates at a glance
Religious/cultural
2 Imbolc/Candlemas, Wicca and Pagan
2 Vasant Panchami, Hindu, Sikh and Jain
2 Zacchaeus Sunday, Orthodox Christian
3 Setsubun-sai, Shinto
9 Triodion begins, Orthodox Christian
10 Guru Harrai Jayanti, Sikh
11 Thaipusam, Hindu
13 Magha Puja, Buddhist
13 Tu Bishvat, Judaism
14 Valentine’s Day, Christian
14. Lailat al Bara’ah, Islam
15 Nirvana Day, Buddhist
16 Sunday of the Prodigal Son, Orthodox Christian
22 Feast of the Chair of Saint Peter, Catholic Christian
22 Saturday of Souls, Orthodox Christian
23 Meatfare Sunday, Orthodox Christian
25-28 Intercalary days, Baha’i
26 Maha Shivratri, Hindu
28 Losar begins, Buddhist
28 Ramadan begins (subject to moon sighting), Islam
Awareness and Events
1 World Hijab Day
1-7 World Interfaith Harmony Week
3-9 UK Race Equality Week
3-9 Children’s Mental Health Week
4 World Cancer Day
6 Time to Talk Day
6 International Day of Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation
11 Safer internet Day
11 International Day of Women and Girls in Science
12 Red Hand Day for Child Soldiers
15 International Childhood Cancer Day
17 World Human Spirit Day
20 World Day of Social Justice
Language fact file: Tamil
Tamil is mainly spoken in: the Indian state of Tamil Nadu and territory of Puducherry, Sri Lanka and Singapore
Number of native speakers: more than 80 million
Learn some: ‘Vanakkam’ is a very useful Tamil greeting, which can be used at any time of day, in person, over the phone or online!
Fast facts:
Tamil is thought to be one of the world’s oldest living languages, with records dating back as far as the 3rd century BC.
The language is worshipped! Tamil Thāi Temple in Karaikudi, India, is dedicated to the Tamil language. Outside the main shrine are statues of Murthis of Oli Thai (Goddess of Sound) and Vari Thai (Goddess of Letters). The Tamil festival of Pongal on 14 January also celebrates the language.
Tamil has 12 vowels, more than double the number in English. The alphabet contains 247 letters in total – compare that to 26 in the Roman alphabet!
Meet the team at tls (January)
This month, instead of introducing one of our linguists we are meeting a member of the TLS team: Stephanie Bright is our recruitment lead, responsible for attracting and hiring our wonderful legion of linguists.
“A bit about me: I am based in West Yorkshire, working from our northern location. I’m the mum to a soon-to-be teenage boy, and recently acquired puppy."
“My journey into recruitment started in my early 20s. I started working for a well-known leading recruitment agency and for many years to follow, I progressed my career, whether this was working within other business sectors or career advancements. 2021 was the year I joined TLS as our internal lead for recruitment, however I had already worked with TLS as the preferred external recruitment agency contract for the previous 3 years."
“Freelance recruitment is our busiest recruitment area and currently we are on the hunt for face-to-face interpreters to support assignments throughout various boroughs of London, so that is my focus at the moment."
“I’m really looking forward to continuing to grow our bank of interpreters in 2025, so that we can support our customers in their important work.”
Language Fact File: Sylheti
Sylheti is mainly spoken in: the Sylhet region of Bangladesh and the Barak Valley of India
Number of native speakers: Approximately 11 million
Learn some: If you are introduced to some Sylheti speakers, impress them by saying “afnar loge forisito oiya khushi oilam!” This means “nice to meet you”.
Fast facts:
Although it has 11 million speakers and is not fully mutually intelligible with Bengali, it is still considered by many to be a dialect. This has affected efforts to conserve and protect the language.
Sylheti has its own script and folklore tradition. This has been preserved through the centuries in the Sylheti script, Nagri. These stories often reflect Islamic, Hindu and Sufi influences.
Sylheti shares a lot of vocabulary with Fari and Arabic, because of historical trade and interactions between Persia and the nearby Arab countries.
The Linguist Story - December
Every month, we get to know a bit more about one of our linguists. This month, meet Abdus Sattar, who interprets in Bangla and Sylheti.
Tell us about the work you do for TLS.
Most of my interpreting work is primarily within an NHS setting for Bangla and Sylheti speaking patients.
What's been your favourite project at TLS?
I enjoy working within a range of settings such as hospitals, home visits, clinics, social services and mental health. My favourite area to interpret has been Social Services. Using the training I have completed; I have been able to make a real difference in the safeguarding of vulnerable children and adults.
What has been your biggest challenge?
I work for the NHS and The Language Shop, and finding time to support clients who need interpreting has been one of my biggest challenges. I enjoy both roles immensely and use time management and scheduling skills to fulfil bookings for both organisations.
Tell us something interesting about you
Before I completed my training as a professional interpreter, I used to own and run a restaurant, takeaway and grocery shop.