Mihalis Eleftheriou
| Mihalis Eleftheriou | |
|---|---|
| Born | East London, England[1] |
| 💼 Occupation | Language educator; course author; podcast and audio-course producer |
| Known for | Founder of Language Transfer; developer of the "Thinking Method" |
| 🌐 Website | https://www.languagetransfer.org |
Mihalis Eleftheriou is a British-born Cypriot language educator and the founder of Language Transfer, a project of free audio-based language courses. He is the creator and primary instructor of the project's courses and the originator of the pedagogical approach described by the project as the "Thinking Method".[2]
Early life and education
Sources indicate Eleftheriou grew up in East London and spent formative periods living and working abroad, particularly in Argentina and Cyprus, experiences he cites as influential on his approach to language teaching and the development of Language Transfer.[3]
Career
Language Transfer
In 2011 Eleftheriou launched Language Transfer, a not-for-profit project that produces audio courses for language learners and distributes them freely online. The project describes itself as independent (no sponsors or advertisers) and sustained primarily through voluntary donations and a Patreon campaign; the courses are published on the project's website, on YouTube and in mobile app form.[4][5]
The Language Transfer catalogue includes complete and introductory courses across several languages and subjects. The courses currently available as of February 11, 2026 are: Complete Spanish, Complete Greek, Complete German, Complete Swahili, Introduction to Arabic, Introduction to Turkish, Introduction to Italian, Introduction to French, Introduction to English (for Spanish speakers) and Introduction to Music Theory.[6]
Eleftheriou has also uploaded some Tester Material to the Language Transfer YouTube channel, being British Sign Language and Japanese (as of February 11, 2026).[7]
The "Thinking Method"
Eleftheriou frames his pedagogy as the "Thinking Method": an audio-based, dialogic approach that aims to make learners "think through" a language's structure rather than memorise isolated items. Lessons are typically presented as guided dialogues between the instructor and a learner; users are prompted to pause and practise orally. Eleftheriou has described the method and its motivations in multiple interviews and blog posts accompanying the project.[8]
Reception and coverage
Language Transfer and Eleftheriou's teaching approach have been covered by language-learning publications and podcasts. Reviews and feature articles note the project's free model and distinctive audio-driven pedagogy; reviewers have generally described the method as effective for building grammatical intuition and providing a strong foundation while noting limits such as the relative lack of written materials and explicit speaking partners in some courses.[9][10]
The project has also been the subject of interviews (for example, podcast and long-form interviews) in which Eleftheriou discusses his background, motivation and the civil-society aims he attributes to the project's free distribution model.[11]
Other activities
Eleftheriou has produced materials beyond language lessons, including an Introduction to Music Theory course that applies the project's pedagogical approach to music, and a short guidebook describing the Thinking Method.[12]
List of works
- Complete Spanish (audio course) — Language Transfer. Available on the Language Transfer website and YouTube.[13]
- Complete Greek (audio course) — Language Transfer.[14]
- Complete Swahili (audio course) — Language Transfer.[15]
- Complete German (audio course) — Language Transfer.[16]
- Introduction to Music Theory (audio course) — Language Transfer.[17]
- Introduction to Italian (audio course) — Language Transfer.[18]
- Introduction to Arabic (audio course) — Language Transfer.[19]
- Introduction to Turkish (audio course) — Language Transfer.[20]
- Introduction to French (audio course) — Language Transfer.[21]
- Introduction to Music Theory (audio course) — Language Transfer.[22]
- Introducción a inglés (audio course), Introduction to English (for Spanish speakers) — Language Transfer.[23]
- The Thinking Method: Guidebook for Course Writers (online guide / booklet).[24]
- Tester Material, British Sign Language (audio course) — Language Transfer YouTube channel.[25]
- Tester Material, Japanese (audio course) — Language Transfer YouTube channel.[26]
References
- ↑ "About — Language Transfer". Language Transfer. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "About — Language Transfer". Language Transfer. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "FARSANG Interviews: Mihalis Eleftheriou". FARSANG. 9 September 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "About — Language Transfer". Language Transfer. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "language-transfer/lt-app". GitHub. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — README". GitHub. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — YouTube channel". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "FARSANG Interviews: Mihalis Eleftheriou". FARSANG. 9 September 2022. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer Review: Effective Audio Course but No Visuals". FluentU. 24 January 2024. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer Review: Great, but still growing". Actual Fluency. 1 June 2021. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — YouTube channel". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — README". GitHub. Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — Free courses". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — Free courses". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — Free courses". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — Free courses". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — Free courses". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — Free courses". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — Free courses". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — Free courses". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — Free courses". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — Free courses". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — Free courses". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "The Thinking Method — Goodreads". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — YouTube channel". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
- ↑ "Language Transfer — YouTube channel". Retrieved 10 February 2026.
Further reading
- Interview: "FARSANG Interviews: Mihalis Eleftheriou" (FARSANG, 2022).
- Irish Tech News — interview/profile (archival interview).
External links
- Language Transfer — official website.
- Language Transfer — YouTube channel.
- Language Transfer — GitHub repository.
- Mihalis Eleftheriou — public profile on LinkedIn.
This article "Mihalis Eleftheriou" is from Wikipedia. The list of its authors can be seen in its historical and/or the page Edithistory:Mihalis Eleftheriou. Articles copied from Draft Namespace on Wikipedia could be seen on the Draft Namespace of Wikipedia and not main one.
