Interesting Facts - Page 83

411

The Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard is a visa-free zone. Anyone can live and work on Svalbard regardless of their citizenship.

412

English is the only major European language that does not use diacritics. German (Doppelgänger), French (résumé), Italian (città), Spanish (España), and Portuguese (Português) all use them. Dear nitpickers: words adopted from other languages do not count.

413

There's a tribe in Vanuatu that believes Prince Philip was a divine being. The Duke of Edinburgh was aware of the cult, and even sent an official portrait to the villagers. Unfortunately, Philip died in 2021 having never visited his worshipers.

414

There is an island in a lake on an island in a lake on an island. This geographic curiosity can be found on the Philippine island of Luzon, a few miles south of Manila. In 2007, map nerds have found another "sub-sub-sub-island" in the countless lakes of Canada's Victoria Island.

415

If you ever plan to visit Bhutan, be prepared to pay a hefty bill. Bhutanese authorities charge visitors $200 per day in taxes. Spending one month in Bhutan therefore will cost you $6,000 in taxes alone. Depending on the season and number of fellow travelers, charges per day might even be higher.

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Level ∞

Mar 20, 2020

Thanks to Gassu for facts 410-417.

+11

Level 75

Sep 5, 2020

Bhutan tax is now $250, but it also includes accommodation, food, guide, travel... "taxes alone" is disingenuous.

Level 46

Apr 5, 2023

For a contry with that standard of living, 250 bucks per day is outrageous. Even though is an interesting place, it feels like a scam.

Level 79

Mar 31, 2020

Very interesting.

+16

Level 48

Apr 17, 2020

Nitpicker here, if I'm not mistaken English does have some old variations of words where a " diacritic is used, (e.g. naïve, coöperate) which indicate that you pronounce the two vowels separately rather than together

Level 77

May 7, 2020

Yes, it's called a diaeresis.

Level 83

May 17, 2020

I noticed New Yorker uses it

Level 75

Apr 29, 2021

To nitpick even further, the dot above an 'i' or 'j' is a type of diacritic called, very pleasingly, a tittle.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tittle

Level 83

Aug 19, 2022

You also get the poetic use of things like 'belovèd' to emphasise the number of syllables.

+10

Level 68

Apr 25, 2020

For #415, you are excused from the fee if you have a passport from India, Bangladesh or the Maldives.

Level 60

May 1, 2020

Bhutan is the one of the best places to visit on earth, believe me

Level 71

Jul 26, 2020

I've heard really that it's very beautiful and peaceful in Bhutan and I'd really love to go someday--even if it is worth so much!

Level 73

May 6, 2020

#412: Russian is a major European language too and doesn't use any mandatory diacritics, not even in loanwords.

+17

Level 83

May 17, 2020

ё, й

Level 48

Mar 21, 2022

There's also the accent used mostly in dictionaries to mark stress. They're not mandatory, but Russian still uses them.

Level 40

May 12, 2020

As a Filipino, I am satisfied with that fact

Level 65

Dec 9, 2020

same

Level 84

May 27, 2020

Interesting addition to #414: That island is the Taal volcano that erupted in January of 2020.

Level 74

Jun 15, 2020

ä, ö and ü are actually not diacritics, but ligatures. They evolved from ae/oe/ue to a/o/u with the e on top (aͤ), but the e in German handwriting back then looked like two paralel lines and then in print they simplified the lines to dots. Here you can see the old German handwriting small e, (large E) and ä:

Source: German Wikipedia article on the letter ä, the second paragraph:

Level 74

Jun 15, 2020

Here is the translated paragraph:

The A with umlaut was originally written as AE, partly contracted (Æ / æ). Later an A developed with a small E above it (Aͤ / aͤ). The lower case e was written as two vertical lines in the further development of the Kurrent font, as well as the lower case e above the A. This spelling has been preserved to this day in the cursive script (and in Fraktur script). In the antique print, the overwritten e was stylized to two points.

Level 59

Aug 8, 2020

They're still diacritics, even though they evolved from ligatures. They're definitely used as diacritics nowadays.

Level 72

Oct 6, 2020

Unfortunately it seems that #414 is no longer correct, as the 2020 eruption of the Taal volcano (see Moos1005 above) caused the lake to disappear.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recursive_islands_and_lakes

Level 65

Oct 11, 2021

The lake will reappear. The rain will be collected and the lake will rise again.

Level 47

Feb 5, 2021

I think most Russian speakers would disagree with "fact" #412. So would probably anyone else who has any idea of the meaning of "major European language".

Level 71

Apr 13, 2021

Алфавитный суп

Level 38

May 23, 2023

Alphabet soup?

Level 67

May 6, 2021

Я не согласен с вашим мнением, хороший сэр.

Level 57

Nov 4, 2021

из всех фраз ... почему алфавитный суп?

Level 52

May 13, 2021

the island doesnt exist anymore after the explosion of taal volcano

Level 65

Sep 14, 2021

there are also sub-sub-sub islands in UK, New Zealand, and Newfoundland

Level 66

Jul 7, 2022

What a coincidence that I barely ever scroll through the facts, but now when I do, #414 was about the Philippine recursive island, and just a few minutes prior I randomly remembered the fact and checked on the island for the FIRST TIME IN YEARS on Google Maps. And minutes later I randomly see this fact on JetPunk.

Level 70

Oct 25, 2022

ig it's king phillip now

Level 60

Feb 9, 2023

Prince Philip died two years ago.

Level 46

Dec 6, 2022

For Fact 414, you could at least include the name of said island (as far as I can tell, it's named Vulcan Point)

Level 50

Apr 8, 2023

#411 It is illegal to die in Longyearbyen.*

*I have not verified that that is true. Do not write angry replies if it is not.

Level 67

Oct 7, 2023

I don't think an Interesting Facts entry should include nitpicker notes. It seems to controvene the tone of the section and looks unprofessional. I think pinned comments are a better place for such addendums, since it better targets the message and allows for more text.

Level 67

Oct 21, 2023

How generous to give us Svalbard.