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Language Resources Online

Did your New Year's resolution list for 2019 include learning a new language, or traveling to a foreign country? The Duke University community has access to a number of online tools that can help you build proficiency in a new (or rusty) foreign language.
  • Mango Languages includes courses for 70 world languages and more than a dozen English as a Second Language/English Language Learner courses. To set up an account, visit Mango Languages while on the Duke network in order to authenticate as a valid subscriber. After your username and password has been created, you can access the site or mobile app without authenticating through Duke first.
    Note: Mango is available through the NC Live consortium, which offers access to more than a hundred subscription databases through a user's "home" public or academic library (meaning that North Carolina residents without a current Duke NetID may also be able to access the site through their public or academic library at https://www.nclive.org/).
  • Transparent Language Learning is available through the Duke libraries. It includes more than 50 world languages as well as English language learning modules designed specifically for native speakers of more than two dozen languages. Like Mango, it requires setup of a unique username and password while connected to the Duke network, and then seamless access via the web or a mobile app.
Of course, these are not the only language-learning tools around. The freemium service Duolingo is a popular, game-based way to learn nearly three dozen languages for English speakers (with many additional options for native speakers of other languages). Duolingo notably includes some unique language options, such as Star Trek's Klingon and Game of Thrones's High Valyrian. The free Duolingo app is available for iOS, Windows, and Android devices, with an ad-free premium upgrade available called Duolingo Plus.

For help with accessing the Duke language resources, or other campus database access questions, be sure to Ask a Librarian.