# culture générale



## annep70

MODERATOR NOTE: This thread is now merged to contain several similar threads

NOTE DE LA MODÉRATION : Nous avons fusionné plusieurs fils traitant de ce même sujet

wildan1, Moderator/modérateur


Pardonnez l'ironie de la question, mais cela m'échappe: quelqu'un connaît-il la traduction de "culture générale"?

Merci d'avance!


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## Cath.S.

General knowledge.


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## sparkey

Hi,

This phrase came up in a job description under the 'connaissances' title, 

-bonne culture *générale*

*I would translate culture générale as general knowledge but in english this phrase would look out of place on a job description.*

*Can anyone think of a better translation?*


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## franc 91

Do you mean the heading on the form or what the person in question possesses?


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## sparkey

It is what the candidate should possess...


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## Quaeitur

_Culture générale_ is indeed general knowledge, which means in French: good knowledge of history, politics, geography, world and current affairs, etc. Roughly, the kind of things that allow you to win at Jeopardy or Trivial Pursuit 

 So depending on the type of job you're talking about, you can adapt the type of knowledge


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## franc 91

well educated, culturally aware, interested in the arts?


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## sparkey

Well yes that's what general knowledge means in english. But it seems ridiculous to require a candidate for a job to have 'a good general knowledge'!

It is for a manager's assistant!


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## franc 91

oui mais ce qu'ils cherchent, c'est quelqu'un de cultivé, ouvert d'esprit - bref intelligent quoi


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## sparkey

so 'well-educated' would probably work best I'd imagine.

Thanks


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## PtiFutee

Greetings,

I'm helping a student translate a cover letter into English. The context:

_Ma formation en sciences politiques m’a permis d’acquérir une solide culture générale, ainsi qu’un ......_

I read in another thread that _culture générale_ means "general knowledge" but in English: "My studies in political science have allowed me to acquire a solid general knowledge..." begs the question knowledge of what.

I thought about "acquire a solid educational background" or a "well-rounded education" but I still feel it's missing something that the French words imply. Maybe the equivalent relates to a liberal arts background?

As an aside, should I have posted this question under culture générale, an existing thread? It hasn't been active since 2006, so I hesitated.

Thanks,
PF


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## joaopaolo

This is a difficult concept with no direct equivalent in English IMO. 

I like your "well-rounded education"

How about:

Have provided me with a well-rounded education 

if you wanted, you could add later in the sentence s/t like
wide-ranging general knowledge.

I think this is one of the rare occasions where English will be longer than the French. Good luck!


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## PtiFutee

Thanks--you gave me another idea, which is spelling it out, such as "a solid background in history, math, English, etc." e.g., those subjects typically included in "_culture générale_."  Thoughts?


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## Marcus Agrippa

Ayant moi-même eu de la difficulté à traduire en anglais de manière satisfaisante ce concept de _culture générale_, je me permets d'ajouter mon grain de sel a cette discussion.

La banque de données Termium suggère une traduction toute littérale: _*Culture générale*_ = _*general culture*_.
http://www.termiumplus.gc.ca/tpv2alpha/alpha-fra.html?lang=fra&i=1&index=frt&srchtxt=CULTURE%20GENERALE

La consultation des résultats d'une recherche dans Google ne m'a toutefois pas convaincu que c'est bel et bien la meilleure manière de traduire _culture générale_.


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## wildan1

I'm afraid _general culture_ doesn't really mean anything in the English I use and hear around me by well-educated people who you could say have _une bonne culture générale._

_well-rounded, well educated, well read, articulate, savvy_ all could be used in different contexts. But I don't think we have a standard catch-all phrase that one hears in France.


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## Marcus Agrippa

wildan1 said:


> I'm afraid _general culture_ doesn't really mean anything in the English I use and hear around me by well-educated people who you could say have _une bonne culture générale._
> 
> _well-rounded, well educated, well read, articulate, savvy_ all could be used in different contexts. But I don't think we have a standard catch-all phrase that one hears in France.



Oh, I fully agree. I just meant to point out that a usually reliable source such as _Termium _can't come up with a satisfying answer in this case. I would not use _general culture_ myself even though some people do, as Google made it clear.


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## Flavour

Comment est-ce que on peut dire en anglais _ culture générale?  _Par exemple: Il a une vaste culture générale. 


merci d'avance!


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## Chimel

A broad general knowledge?

J'aimerais bien qu'un anglophone confirme, car cette question m'intéresse aussi.


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## misterk

I don't know if one would spontaneously say "He has a broad general knowledge"  _tout court_. And I don't think there is an English phrase as succinct as _culture générale_.
Some possibilities:
He's knowledgeable about a broad range of topics.
He's well-read / well-informed on many subjects.
His intellect is both broad and deep.

I'm confident that other forum members will propose other ideas...


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## Chimel

The trouble (also with my "general kwowledge") also is that usually it doesn't concern _any _topic or subject: when you speak of "culture générale" in the French culture, you rather think of "Who wrote Don Quixote?" than "What is a carburator?" or "Who is now the coach of Chelsea? if you see what I mean. The emphasis is on a specific type of knowledge, rightly or wrongly considered as being "culture", so I wonder if a translation can do without "culture" or "cultural".


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## KaRiNe_Fr

Salut,

Cette question m'intéresse aussi, et je suis d'accord avec la pertinente remarque de Chimel.
J'ajoute qu'en France, on pense souvent aussi à son "education" quand on parle de la culture générale d'un _individu_... Mais quelqu'un qui n'a que peu ou pas fait d'études peut également avoir une grande culture générale. Alors ?
Question pas facile (et culturelle !) mais on n'est certainement pas les premiers à se la poser ! 
Je me demande aussi comment le thème dit "culture générale" est traduit dans les jeux de type quiz... Sans doute ici "general knowledge" convient-il ?


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## EmmanuelM

KaRiNe_Fr said:


> Je me demande aussi comment le thème dit "culture générale" est traduit dans les jeux de type quiz... Sans doute ici "general knowledge" convient-il ?


"Geography, History, Arts and Literature" ? 
Oui ce serait un long débat de savoir si ca peut vraiment se définir ainsi... Mais pour ma part j'ai toujours ressenti que la "culture générale" s'opposait un peu à la "culture scientifique". Par exemple, une bonne "culture générale" permet de savoir ce qu'à découvert Pasteur, une bonne "culture scientifique" permet de l'expliquer (un peu).


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## Wordsmyth

KaRiNe_Fr said:


> _[...]_ Je me demande aussi comment le thème dit "culture générale" est traduit dans les jeux de type quiz... Sans doute ici "general knowledge" convient-il ?


 C'est tout à fait ça, Karine.


misterk said:


> I don't know if one would spontaneously say "He has a broad general knowledge"  _tout court_.


 I wouldn't, but not because there's anything wrong with "general knowledge" – only because I see _knowledge_ as a mass noun in that context. "He has *a* good knowledge of modern history' (or whatever specific subject), but "*a* general knowledge" sounds odd. I'd happily say "His general knowledge is very broad" (_tout court _).

-------------------------------

If _culture générale_ is taken to refer to "culture" in a 'culture vulture' sense (as mentioned by Chimel and Karine), then "Il a une vaste culture générale" might be translated as "He is very cultured".

There's also the expression "connaissances générales" (no risk of nuance there, I suppose): that would pretty obviously be "general knowledge". 

Nonetheless I've often come across "culture générale" with no "Art & Lit" overtones, so that would also be "general knowledge": I guess it depends on context.

Ws


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## bing181

Surely, someone with _une vaste culture générale_ is someone who is "cultured", or even "well-cultured".


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## Chimel

Thanks a lot !

Donc, on avance: Il a une bonne/vaste/large culture générale = he is (very) cultured, he is well-cultured. 

Ou aussi, un peu moins connoté "culture classique": His general knowledge is very broad.

Reste à savoir comment résoudre certains cas particuliers, comme: "L'examen comprendra aussi des questions de culture générale".


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## Wordsmyth

bing181 said:


> Surely, someone with _une vaste culture générale_ is someone who is "cultured" _[...] _


 ... as I said. 

Though I don't think I'd say "well-cultured", as the only verb 'to culture' that I know is in a biological context. To my ear, a 'well-cultured' person sounds like someone who has spent time languishing in an oversized Petri dish!


Chimel said:


> _ [...] _Reste à savoir comment résoudre certains cas particuliers, comme: "L'examen comprendra aussi des questions de culture générale".


 Peut-être la même solution que pour le cas evoqué par Karine (#21 et 23): 
- Le thème dit "culture générale" ... dans les jeux de type quiz = a general knowledge round.
- L'examen comprendra aussi des questions de culture générale = The exam will also include general knowledge questions.*

* Pourtant, si la "culture générale" dans cet examen se limite à la "culture classique" (Who wrote Don Quixote?, etc ), ce n'est plus "général", mais plutôt "spécifique". Il ne s'agit donc pas de la "general knowledge". Je ne connais pas un terme en anglais pour les connaissances générales qui ne sont pas générales. On pourrait peut-être dire "questions on literature and the arts", qui couvrirait, je suppose, une bonne partie de la "culture classique" ("the arts" ayant une définition très large).

Ws


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## Hildy1

I agree with bing about "cultured" (and about "general knowledge), and with Wordsmyth about the fact that "well-cultured" is not normally used, though one could say "well-informed".


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## KaRiNe_Fr

Wordsmyth said:


> [...] Though I don't think I'd say "well-cultured", as the only verb 'to culture' that I know is in a biological context. To my ear, a 'well-cultured' person sounds like someone who has spent time languishing in *an oversized Petri dish*! [...]


Thanks a lot Wordsmyth for your precious answers and especially for this one!


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## Wordsmyth

Pas de quoi, Karine. It must have come from my vast general knowledge! 

Ws


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## Chimel

Wordsmyth said:


> ... as I said.
> 
> Though I don't think I'd say "well-cultured", as the only verb 'to culture' that I know is in a biological context. To my ear, a 'well-cultured' person sounds like someone who has spent time languishing in an oversized Petri dish!


I'm afraid I don't quite understand this. You seem to accept "He is cultured" but not "well-cultured". If the verb "to culture" has only a biological meaning, why do you make this difference? Or have I missed something?

By the way (about the second issue): When a company asks "questions de culture générale" in a test, it's not limited to literature and arts. They also want to be sure that they recruit someone who knows who is the president of Russia or that Venezuela is not in Africa, just to say something. So "general knowledge" will usually fit, I guess.


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## djweaverbeaver

Chimel said:


> I'm afraid I don't quite understand this. You seem to accept "He is cultured" but not "well-cultured". If the verb "to culture" has only a biological meaning, why do you make this difference? Or have I missed something?
> 
> By the way (about the second issue): When a company asks "questions de culture générale" in a test, it's not limited to literature and arts. They also want to be sure that they recruit someone who knows who is the president of Russia or that Venezuela is not in Africa, just to say something. So "general knowledge" will usually fit, I guess.



We say that _*he is cultured*_, but not *he is well cultured*.  One can also say _*he is very/highly cultured*_.  

Also, "culture générale" is a very French concept.  American companies would never you this.  It's not even very important as far as getting into the best schools.  It is seen as quite elitist and many have fought against it.  It's also one of the reasons why we don't have a Ministry of Culture the way most European countries do that defines and promotes at certain type of "culture".


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## Chimel

Thanks a lot! I'll try to remember the thing about "cultured" and well-cultured" although I don't really see the reason for this difference, but as we all know, languages are not always models of logic...

We could have a very interesting discussion about "culture (générale)": yes it can be elitist, but on the other hand it may be a problem if someone (surely for some jobs) is technically OK but has not the slightest idea where is Venezuela (true example!) or who was Benjamin Franklin. But talking about this kind of "cultural" difference would bring us too far, I'm afraid. Thanks again, anyway.


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## Hildy1

As for why "well-cultured" is not used, does it help to think of it this way: 
A person can be well-dressed or badly-dressed, and well-educated or badly / poorly educated, but not well-cultured or badly-cultured.


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## bing181

I'm not sure why the reticence to use well-cultured. A Google search on that exact phrase, throws up a majority of links in reference to someone of culture, and a comparatively fewer number for the "petri dish" meaning.

It also throws up more results than either "highly cultured" or "very cultured".

Not saying it's the best choice here, simply that it is acceptable where applicable.


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## Wordsmyth

Chimel said:


> I'm afraid I don't quite understand this. You seem to accept "He is cultured" but not "well-cultured". If the verb "to culture" has only a biological meaning, why do you make this difference? Or have I missed something?_ [...] _


 Hildy's examples with _well/badly_ provide a good demonstration, and that's probably a good general test for whether "well ..." is appropriate.

As for why, here's what was behind my remark. In the case of "well dressed", "well educated", etc, "well" is an adverb modifying the past participle of a transitive verb.
- We educated him well >> He was well educated _(passive) _>> He is well-educated _(predicative adjective)_ >> He is a well-educated man _(attributive adjective)._
So "well-educated" is an adjective derived from the *verb*_ to educate_, which is something you can do well (or badly).

"Cultured", however, in the sense we're discussing here, is not derived from a verb_ to culture_, but from the noun "culture" (just as "wheeled", as in a "wheeled vehicle", comes from the noun "wheel", not from the verb _to wheel_). We don't say "We cultured him well", so logically we wouldn't say "He is well-cultured". 

If people are cultured, it doesn't mean they have been cultured. It means that they have culture; (just as a wheeled vehicle hasn't been wheeled; it has wheels).

My quip about the Petri dish was recognising that there* is* a transitive verb _to culture_: it's what you might do to cells or bacteria in a lab — and you could do it well (or not). Hence the joke that a well-cultured person might be the product of such a process (but of course jokes are no longer funny when they're explained ).

Hope that helps.

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As for the Google search, bing, of course there are lots of examples, just as there are examples of many linguistic anomalies and inaccuracies. But why the reticence? Well, for me, it's because it doesn't make sense. If I hear a compound adjective of the form "well-...ed", I'm aware that something/someone has been ...ed well.

Perhaps the simplest demonstration is Hildy's 'badly' check. If "well-cultured" is acceptable, then "badly-cultured" should also be acceptable. Well, Google does come up with all of 288 results  (of which some are about crops and vaccines, and some others are from non-native sources) — a bit below the 'acceptable' threshold, I'd say. 

Ws


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## bing181

I'm not so sure that using "badly" is an appropriate test. _Well-known_ is fine, _badly-known_ isn't.

Similar for phrases like: _well-rounded, well-versed,_ etc.

Also, I would have thought that _cultured_ in the sense we're discussing here isn't a noun, but an adjective (or predicate adjective).


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## A-class-act

I asked an american freind about it, and he told me that it depends on the context since they don't have such word, so he uses "I have a good educational background".


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## wildan1

I like misterk's _well-read_ best for this in the AE context. We are not a highly intellectual society in the US--we are more practical and hands-on, so describing someone who reads a lot and therefore is in the know is more descriptive for us than a sense of culture or factual knowledge having been somehow injected into the person in a one-way process.

PS: Compound adjectives with a modifying adverb ending in _-ly _do not take a hyphen: _well-read, little-known,_ but_ highly educated, poorly paid _(no hyphens). The _-ly_ ending makes it clear that it is a modifying adverb and not a noun.
_
Well-cultured_ also takes a hyphen, but I agree that it only sounds natural in a scientific or medical context. 
_Highly cultured_ sounds better (possible translation of _vaste culture générale_), but  it does not take a hyphen.

See more on this point here.


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## Wordsmyth

bing181 said:


> I'm not so sure that using "badly" is an appropriate test. _Well-known_ is fine, _badly-known_ isn't.
> 
> Similar for phrases like: _well-rounded, well-versed,_ etc. _[...] _


I could make an attempt at defending the theory in the case of "well-known" and "well-versed", because "ill-known" and "ill-versed" do exist (where _ill = badly_), even though they're perhaps not in everyone's daily vocabulary — but for "well-rounded", OK, you've got me there. (Exception that proves the rule?)


bing181 said:


> _[...] _Also, I would have thought that _cultured_ in the sense we're discussing here isn't a noun, but an adjective (or predicate adjective).


 Indeed it isn't a noun; it certainly is an adjective (predicate or attributive): "He is cultured", "He is a cultured man". My point (in #35) was that it's an adjective derived from a noun _(culture)_, not an adjective derived from a verb _(to culture)_ — which makes it different from _educated_, which is derived from the verb_ to educate.
_


wildan1 said:


> I like misterk's _well-read_ best for this in the AE context. _[...]_


I also like _well-read _(even in a BE context). I hesitated to suggest it, because it could be taken to refer just to literature, whereas _culture générale_ (even limited to the _'intello' _sense) also tends to cover at least the other arts (art, theatre, etc). But that said, a well-read person may well be considered, by association, to have knowledge of those other things as well.

Ws


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## qusiemargo

Another conundrum concerning this expression: In a list of different types of training courses, under miscellaneous is: "culture générale". "General knowledge" and "general culture" don't seems to say anything.
My best try is "Increased cultural knowledge in general"
Can anyone suggest something better?


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## Kecha

qusiemargo said:


> Another conundrum concerning this expression:  In a list of different types of training courses, under miscellaneous  is: "culture générale". "General knowledge" and "general culture" don't  seems to say anything.
> My best try is "Increased cultural knowledge in general"
> Can anyone suggest something better?


I'm not sure it's "increased". 
I had a _Culture Générale_ course in university and they were basically doing a quick overview of the entire curriculum of middle/high school just to make sure we were all off to the same start, irrelevant of where and how previous education went (which is saying a lot, universities doing middle/high schools work, while middle/high schools become little more than kindergartens...).
This implied stuff like knowing a specific book was from a specific literary movement and therefore important for this or that reason - it wasn't asked to actually read the book! Basically giving students some broad knowledge and references for their essays (and a little "varnish" to shine in society) ...


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## franc 91

I think in English, we would be more specific. I've been looking at examples of biographical details such as given for those who are on the Arts Council of Northern Ireland. This is the kind of language used - she has a wide-ranging interest in the Arts, such as.... or - He has a keen interest in the Arts - His interests are wide-ranging and include the Arts,..... She is a keen theatre goer etc.  As for a title for a course on 'Culture Générale' I suggest 'An Introduction to the Arts and Culture' which is the title of a course offered by Dawson College in Sherbrooke in Québéc.


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## Hamoudbueno

Faison de Culture Genarale an English word it would be simple, since that some expert said that there's no word for that in english!!!


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## Wordsmyth

I follow your logic, Hamoud, but I wouldn't say it was simple. We do have such cases in English (_savoir faire_, for example), but such expressions don't come into the language through any centralised decision. They just become established when they're used often enough. Still, maybe you could start a trend ...

Ws


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## franc 91

I'd like to point out that term 'general knowledge' doesn't really coincide with the French term 'culture générale.' For example, on BBC Radio Four there's what we call a general knowledge quiz programme 'Brain of Britain'. The questions asked of contestants are not only about the field of the arts, but can also be on science, history, politics, economics etc etc which is far wider than 'culture générale', which is why I wouldn't equate the two terms.


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## Mauricet

Les élèves de l'école Polytechnique (un des sommets de l'élitisme à la française) sont ou étaient censés acquérir _une haute culture générale *avant tout scientifique*, les rendant aptes à devenir, après spécialisation, des cadres supérieurs de la nation_. Ceci montre que _culture générale_ peut avoir un sens variable, orienté plus ou moins vers les arts et lettres comme vers toute sorte de connaissances. Je pense que _general knowledge_ convient plutôt bien.


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## Wordsmyth

franc 91 said:


> I'd like to point out that term 'general knowledge' doesn't really coincide with the French term 'culture générale.' For example, on BBC Radio Four there's what we call a general knowledge quiz programme 'Brain of Britain'. The questions asked of contestants are not only about the field of the arts, but can also be on science, history, politics, economics etc etc which is far wider than 'culture générale', which is why I wouldn't equate the two terms.


 But, franc, if you read the preceding 44 posts (and Mauricet's #46) you'll see that _'culture générale'_ can vary in its meaning, according to context. 

The example of quiz subjects was raised in #21; and I've participated in numerous French quizzes with a round entitled _'Culture Générale'_, with questions corresponding exactly to _'General Knowledge' _in English quizzes. 

At other times I've heard and seen _'culture générale'_ used with a certain 'intellectual' nuance, so more restrictively than just 'general knowledge', but still covering a wide range of subjects, including those you mentioned. And on other (probably rarer) occasions, I've come across it being used in the context of 'classical' culture (fine arts, literature, classical music, ...).

So I'd say that the two terms _can _coincide sometimes, when _'culture'_ does correspond to 'knowledge'. On other occasions, English expressions with the word "cultured" might be more appropriate, as discussed earlier in the thread.

Ws


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## qusiemargo

Thank you everyone for the continued discussion. I see I've re-opened a translator's can of worms. 
Sometimes we cannot chunk down categorically, because the source text means to be general.
If "increased cultural knowledge in general" is not quite right, maybe I should go with "extended" or "enhanced" (which I'm beginning to lean toward.


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## qusiemargo

as I juggle all these words, I'm going with "enhancing general knowledge and culture"
Wordy, but I think the idea will get through.
Again thanks for the stimulating input.


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