how many foreign languages you can speak ?

[fresh]

i know a lady who started learning Italian at the age of 38 and German 5 years later. She can speak both foreign languages very fluently now. She is so awesome ! it proves it is always not too late to learn a foreign language.

 

how many foreign languages you can speak ?

which language do you think is relatively easier to grasp ?

and which language is most similar to English ?

 

share your thoughts.

 

 

 

 

 

[pwagen]

I've had run-downs with both Spanish and German, but can barely say hello in either language. So now I'm stuck with English and my native tongue.

[Externet]

I speak only 3 languages fluently, plus can half understand italian, portuguese, a bit of french and read some russian. Zero german, polish, greek...

Edited May 7, 2013 by Externet

[Ringer]

I know some Japanese and learning more. I'm actually attempting to get into a Japanese graduate program after next year.

[chris logan]

english is my native language (although it's hard to believe if you check out some of my spelling mistakes ) I did Spanish in school for 3 years and i know this guy who failed english (his native language) but passed spanish....go figure! I picked up more Spanish from Madonna's La Isla Bonita than in Spanish class!

[fresh]

english is my native language (although it's hard to believe if you check out some of my spelling mistakes ) I did Spanish in school for 3 years and i know this guy who failed english (his native language) but passed spanish....go figure! I picked up more Spanish from Madonna's La Isla Bonita than in Spanish class!

i dont feel surprised to see a guy who failed his mother tongue -- english but passed spanish. The reason is quite simple, because these two different languages are not tested on same level. it is very clear that english is on level A or B whereas spanish is on level D or C.

common sense.

[swansont]

I can say "I do not speak your language" in three languages.

[CaptainPanic]

I speak Dutch and English rather well, and French and German at a level good enough for holidays and pub talks, but not sufficient for a professional conversation.

 

The language that is closest to English is probably French? The structure is quite different, but at least they share some of the vocabulary (albeit with a different pronunciation).

 

If you want to learn a language for fun, and for holidays, then it may be easier to find a language that is closer to what you already know. However, if your aim is to become fluent, and to use it for work (for example), then it doesn't really matter. You basically have to be able to think, and even dream, in that new language. You have to 'disconnect' the knowledge you have of your own native language and the new language you are learning. When you speak this new language, you should not translate it anymore, but instead you just think in that language. Since you sort of disconnect it from your current knowledge, it does not matter if it resembles your current knowledge. All that matters then is motivation and lots (really lots) of practice.

[fresh]

I can say "I do not speak your language" in three languages.

 

and quote from Captainpanic: All that matters then is motivation and lots (really lots) of practice.

Good point. I think the easiest way is to get a girlfriend/boyfriend who speaks the foreign language you want to learn.

[CaptainPanic]

I think the easiest way is to get a girlfriend/boyfriend who speaks the foreign language you want to learn.

 

This is a good point: you need someone who already speaks the language to practice with on a very regular (i.e. nearly every day) basis... It needs to become a habit to practice, and it needs to become a habit of someone else to correct you and help you. It's a pretty big thing to ask from anyone, so a girlfriend/boyfriend may be someone who is ready to invest such time.

 

In certain cases, like when you move abroad, you will be forced to practice, because nobody speaks English... but even in certain countries (e.g. Netherlands) the locals will just switch to English so you really need to find a place/person to practice regularly. Preferably some place where it does not take any extra time, like at lunch, at your sports club, or during the daily commute in the train.

[fresh]

This is a good point: you need someone who already speaks the language to practice with on a very regular (i.e. nearly every day) basis...

Some lucky kids live in a family with complex language background : mother speaks English&Italian, father speaks Spanish&English, and grandparents speak French&English&Italian.

what a U.N. !

easy to practice every day !

But most of learners are not so lucky. They can read and write but can not speak(nobody is often around to speak with).

[John Cuthber]

Not that I speak either of them, Scots and Frisian are probably the most similar to English.

 

Here's the Lord's prayer in a few languages so you can look for similarities + differences.

 

Latin

PATER noster, qui es in caelis,

sanctificetur nomen tuum.

Adveniat regnum tuum.

Fiat voluntas tua, sicut in caelo et in terra.

Panem nostrum quotidianum da nobis hodie,

et dimitte nobis debita nostra sicut et

nos dimittimus debitoribus nostris.

Et ne nos inducas in tentationem,

sed libera nos a malo. Amen

French

Notre Père, qui es aux cieux,
Que ton nom soit sanctifié,
Que ton règne vienne,

Que ta volonté soit faite

sur la terre comme au ciel.

Donne-nous aujourd'hui notre pain de ce jour.

Pardonne-nous nos offences
Comme nous pardonnons aussi à ceux qui nous ont offensés.

Et ne nous soumets pas à la tentation,

mais délivre-nous du mal,

Amen

 

Frisian

Us Heit, dy't yn de himelen is
jins namme wurde hillige.
Jins keninkryk komme.
Jins wollen barre,
allyk yn 'e himel
sa ek op ierde.
Jou ús hjoed ús deistich brea.
En ferjou ús ús skulden,
allyk ek wy ferjouwe ús skuldners.
En lied ús net yn fersiking,
mar ferlos ús fan 'e kweade.
"Amen"

 

English

Our Father, which art in Heaven
Hallowed be thy Name.
Thy Kingdom come.
Thy will be done,
in earth as it is in Heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive them that trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
But deliver us from evil.
Amen

 

To me the Frisian looks more like the English than the French version does.

 

(Oh, btw, I speak French: badly.)

Edited May 13, 2013 by John Cuthber

[pwagen]

Frisian

Us Heit, dy't yn de himelen is

jins namme wurde hillige.

Jins keninkryk komme.

Jins wollen barre,

allyk yn 'e himel

sa ek op ierde.

Jou ús hjoed ús deistich brea.

En ferjou ús ús skulden,

allyk ek wy ferjouwe ús skuldners.

En lied ús net yn fersiking,

mar ferlos ús fan 'e kweade.

"Amen"

To me, that looks A LOT like Dutch. I'd probably have mistaken it for some old form of Dutch had you not given it away. Also, looks so similar to the Scandinavian languages, I could probably almost work out what it says. Interesting stuff.

[John Cuthber]

To be fair, it is a lot like Dutch.

My mother, who also spoke Afrikaans, said that old English was very similar to Dutch.

If you want to check there are lots of versions of the same text (including old English) here

http://www.prayer.su/other/all-languages.html

[StringJunky]

To be fair, it is a lot like Dutch.

My mother, who also spoke Afrikaans, said that old English was very similar to Dutch.

If you want to check there are lots of versions of the same text (including old English) here

http://www.prayer.su/other/all-languages.html

 

Interesting JC. You can see the transition from unrecognisable (10th C.) to just recognisable (14th C.) to modern (16th C.)

 

 

.Lord's Prayer (10th century)

1 [....]g fæder, þu þe on heofonum eardast,

2 geweorðad wuldres dreame. Sy þinum weorcum halgad

3 noma niþþa bearnum; þu eart nergend wera.

4 Cyme þin rice wide, ond þin rædfæst willa

5 aræred under rodores hrofe, eac þon on rumre foldan.

6 Syle us to dæge domfæstne blæd,

7 hlaf userne, helpend wera,

8 þone singalan, soðfæst meotod.

9 Ne læt usic costunga cnyssan to swiðe,

10 ac þu us freodom gief, folca waldend,

11 from yfla gewham, a to widan feore.

Oure fadir (14th Century)

Oure fadir þat art in heuenes halwid be þi name;

þi reume or kyngdom come to be.

Be þi wille don in herþe as it is doun in heuene.

yeue to us today oure eche dayes bred.

And foryeue to us oure dettis þat is oure synnys as we foryeuen to oure dettouris þat is to men þat han synned in us.

And lede us not into temptacion but delyuere us from euyl.

Our Father (16th Century)

Our Father which art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come.

Thy will be done in earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread.

And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us.

And lead us not into temptation. But deliver us from evil.(

[Ringer]

Structurally, and with small regularly used words, English will seem more like Dutch or German because they're all Germanic languages. English just happens to be have words bastardized form Romance languages because English speakers tended to believe Latin, French, and the like were more sophisticated. Not to mention the Nordic mixing with Middle English changed the language quite a bit. But it's still a good old Germanic subject-verb-object structure. Knowledge from having a wife that studies language and literature.

I can say "I do not speak your language" in three languages.

In case Japanese isn't one of them here's one more, "Nihongo o hanashimasen" or for don't understand, "Nihongo o wakarimasen".

 

[edit] I didn't put I because it's assumed, but you could put 'boku wa' in front of those if you want to say I [/edit]

Edited May 14, 2013 by Ringer

[EdEarl]

I am an ignorant American, who has difficulty with English and knows no other spoken language.

 

Although, I have developed code in a dozen different programming languages.

[chris logan]

Although, I have developed code in a dozen different programming languages.

that makes up for everything

[fresh]

how do you remember the new words ?

i write them on post-it note. not very effective.

[CaptainPanic]

how do you remember the new words ?

i write them on post-it note. not very effective.

 

Practice, practice, practice, practice, practice, practice, practice, practice...

If you use the new words several times in a sentence, you will remember it easily.

[Ophiolite]

To my great shame I speak only one. I have attempted to learn and failed at the following languges:

 

French, German, Italian, Spanish, Norwegian, Danish, Finnish, Dutch, Russian, Japanese, Chinese, Indonesian and Malay.

 

I was able to stumble through schoolboy French at one time. I had a low grade conversational grasp of Spanish. I used to be able to talk Indonesian, but it only worked when I was actually in Indonesia. When I was lost on the Moscow Metro the only two phrases I could remember meant "I do not speak Russian" and "There is an American worker." (These were of no value to me.)

 

I judge the difficulty of a language by how much alcohol you have to drink in order to believe you are speaking it fluently. Thus Spanish, a straighfroward lanaguage, is a three pints of lager lanaguage. In contrast Chinese requires two bottles of Jack Daniels and is therefore potentially lethal.

[fresh]

I judge the difficulty of a language by how much alcohol you have to drink in order to believe you are speaking it fluently. Thus Spanish, a straighfroward lanaguage, is a three pints of lager lanaguage. In contrast Chinese requires two bottles of Jack Daniels and is therefore potentially lethal.

 

How about Arabic ?

[Ophiolite]

How about Arabic ?

Well, it is interesting that you should ask. Arabic was my only language success. When I moved to Cairo I resolved, based on my previous experience of failing to learn lanaguages, that I would not learn Arabic. When I left Cairo four years later I had achieved my goal! Apart from thank you and good morning I could speak no Arabic at all.

[fresh]

Parrot, Alex, can speak English. His vocabulary is 150 words.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_(parrot)#Death

 

'Alex (1976 – September 6, 2007)^[1] was an African Grey Parrot and the subject of a thirty-year (1977–2007) experiment by animal psychologist Irene Pepperberg, initially at theUniversity of Arizona and later at Harvard Universityand Brandeis University.'

'Alex had a vocabulary of about 150 words.......'

 

Besides that, our best friends, dog&chimp, can understand our language, such as , hello, go, come over, stop, no, bad, good, take it, love you, run, jump, eat, etc.

 

Not only our human but also animals can learn foreign language.

Any animal i missed ? cat ?

Edited May 17, 2013 by fresh

[EdEarl]

A cat can learn a few words, but they forget you taught them, and think you learned their language.

Edited May 17, 2013 by EdEarl