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So you want to learn 10... | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : General discussion |  | |
| allesgeht08 Diglot Groupie United States Joined 6745 days ago 42 posts - 44 votes Speaks: English*, German Studies: Russian | Message 105 of 346 16 June 2006 at 7:38am | IP Logged | ||
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For an American English speaker...
English, of course Spanish Mandarin (there are a lot more encounters with Mandarin speakers than one would expect) German French Portugese (?? Maybe? I don't know how useful it would really be, but I'm assuming it would be a good one to know) Gaelic, just because it's fun Italian Something Indian Japanese Wow, that really covers a lot of bases... Think of all the people you could communicate with if you spoke 10 languages! Goodness, I love language. 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| brumblebee Diglot Senior Member United States Joined 6776 days ago 206 posts - 212 votes  Speaks: English*, Spanish Studies: Portuguese | Message 106 of 346 18 June 2006 at 11:07pm | IP Logged | ||
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I have an updated list:
besides English Spanish Mandarin Arabic Russian Turkish French German Hindi Italian and something fun, like Romanian or Icelandic 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| hamiltonguyo Newbie Canada Joined 6700 days ago 21 posts - 21 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Italian, Latin, French | Message 107 of 346 24 July 2006 at 11:57pm | IP Logged | ||
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I would recommend this
English Latin French Italian Portugese Spanish Romanian German Dutch Sweedish of course if he actually had a motive other than just accumulating languages my answer would be different 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| TDC Triglot Senior Member United States Joined 6922 days ago 261 posts - 291 votes Speaks: English*, Mandarin, French Studies: Esperanto, Ukrainian, German, Italian, Spanish, Russian, Persian | Message 108 of 346 26 July 2006 at 3:33pm | IP Logged | ||
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My 10:
French Italian Mandarin Russian Spanish German Japanese Arabic Portuguese Greek Honorable Mentions: Swedish Turkish Polish Finnish Cherokee 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| linguanima Bilingual Tetraglot Senior Member Australia Joined 6719 days ago 114 posts - 123 votes 3 sounds Speaks: English*, Mandarin*, Spanish, French Studies: Italian, Latin, German | Message 109 of 346 04 August 2006 at 4:28am | IP Logged | ||
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Languages that I will seriously study and master:
French (literature, travelling and academic interest) Italian (beautiful sounding, beautiful country, beautiful girls, fashion) German (academic interest, fairy tales of childhood, literature, travelling) Modern Greek (beautiful sounding, beautiful girls, great country, gorgeous literature) Ancient Greek (academic interest) Latin (academic interest) Old English (academic interest) Russian (literature, beautiful country) Languages that I will pay intensive attention or curiosity: Turkish (music, travelling, exotic grammar) Finnish (beautiful sounding, beautiful writing, and beautiful country) Spanish (music, literature) Portuguese (music:fado - it is gorgeous) Arabic (my ancestors 40 generations ago were from Arabia) Irish (music, travelling) Icelandic (philological interest, beautiful sounding) Swedish (closeness to German, sweet sounding) Bulgarian (relatively easy among all the Slavonic languages, beautiful country) Persian (they've told me that Persian romantic poems are gorgeous) Edited by linguanima on 04 August 2006 at 4:46am 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| lady_skywalker Triglot Senior Member Netherlands aspiringpolyglotblog Joined 6891 days ago 909 posts - 942 votes Speaks: Spanish, English*, Mandarin Studies: Japanese, French, Dutch, Italian | Message 110 of 346 04 August 2006 at 5:07am | IP Logged | ||
I'm curious as to how you know this. I can barely trace my family tree back a century or two, let alone 40 generations! If we all look far back enough, I'm sure we all have fairly interesting roots. Edited by lady_skywalker on 04 August 2006 at 5:08am 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| linguanima Bilingual Tetraglot Senior Member Australia Joined 6719 days ago 114 posts - 123 votes 3 sounds Speaks: English*, Mandarin*, Spanish, French Studies: Italian, Latin, German | Message 111 of 346 04 August 2006 at 5:15am | IP Logged | ||
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I know that clearly because my dad's told me that his, therefore my, background is not Chinese Han nationality, which is the ethnic majority in China and Taiwan. Nearly 90% of the population belong to this group. I know that in China 'Chinese' is called 'Han Yu', which means 'the language (yu) of Han'. The rest consists of people like Tibetans and Eastern Turkistan folks, and of course, including the Hui group to which I belong. Hui people were formed during the Middle Ages when Arab merchants sailed to China for trading and settled down and mixed with the locals. Islam was brought to China during that period. But of course i'm not muslim anyway. Edited by linguanima on 04 August 2006 at 5:17am 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| lady_skywalker Triglot Senior Member Netherlands aspiringpolyglotblog Joined 6891 days ago 909 posts - 942 votes Speaks: Spanish, English*, Mandarin Studies: Japanese, French, Dutch, Italian | Message 112 of 346 04 August 2006 at 6:03am | IP Logged | ||
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Actually, it's been a while since I made my list so here's my revised list :
1) English (if you don't already know it) - Literature, world language and *the* language you need for business and employment opportunities at the moment. 2) Spanish - Literature, travel and business in Spain and Latin America. It's also the USA's second language. Knowing Spanish will also give you access to the vast library of books written about the Pre-Columbian civilizations (many of which haven't been translated). 3) French - Literature, business opportunities (esp. in Europe), gastronomy and spoken in several European countries and the overseas departments. 4) German - Not my personal favourite but it is an important language in central Europe. German would be useful for business opportunities in Europe as well as giving learners access to the vast literature (academic and otherwise) that has been published in the language. It might also be considered a good stepping-stone for moving on to the other Germanic languages (esp. Dutch). 5) Mandarin - Learning Mandarin will not only boost your career prospects but also open up a new culture before your eyes. Anyone who is passionate about Chinese history or classical literature would do well to learn the language. It is also becoming an important language in the Asia-Pacific region so anyone interested in working in the region should seriously consider learning at least the basics. 6) Japanese - While its importance is in decline thanks to the rise of Mandarin, it is still an extremely useful language for business and gives learners access to Japan's traditional culture and history. Those who enjoy manga, anime, untranslated computer games or Japanese movies might benefit from learning Japanese. 7) Turkish - It's not only spoken in Turkey but also within communities in central Europe (esp. Germany and the Netherlands) and is the official language of a possible future EU member-state. Turkey has a rich cultural history and Turkish is a perfect first step for anyone wanting to study other Turkic languages in future. 8) Hindi/Urdu - It may not rival English or even Mandarin in terms of 'world language' but it is still spoken by a large number of people and is one of the main languages of India. Like many of the languages above, it will give learners the chance to delve into India's culture and history as well as allow learners to move on to other Indic languages. 9) Swahili - I think that adding an African language to your collection is a good idea as you can't neglect a whole continent so Swahili is the perfect candidate. It's a lingua franca in East Africa and is a good language to consider learning if you ever want to do business in that area. Swahili also has a few interesting features for those who have an interest in linguistics. 10) Arabic - Last but not least, Arabic is something of a 'world language' and one which is becoming increasingly important these days. While you would likely have to focus on a particular dialect, learning Modern Standard Arabic also has its advantages as it is understood by so many and is the language of literature (and the Koran). And for those not interested in learning the major languages, I would recommend : 1) Romanian - A fun Romance language with a Slavic flavour. A nice break for those who are bored with Spanish, French and Italian. 2) Georgian - A Caucasian language with a fairly complex grammar and stunning script. This is one you might want to consider if you really want to impress fellow linguists. 3) Tibetan - A beautiful language with a beautiful script and one which brings with it such a rich cultural heritage. Ideal for anyone interested in Tibet and/or Buddhist history. 4) Indonesian/Malay - Learning one or both of these related languages would be very useful if you plan to work in the Asia-Pacific region as they are spoken in Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore and Brunei. The relatively simple grammar might attract those who feel grammar is their weak point and there's no need to learn a new alphabet or deal with tones. Lots of history and culture to explore, too. 5) Basque - One of Europe's oldest languages and one which has enough grammar to keep the average linguist occupied for some time. While not one of the most commonly spoken languages, it certainly has a chic factor and your efforts will almost certainly be admired by any Basque native. Certainly one for those with a taste for the exotic and mysterious. 6) Greek - Not spoken in too many countries (other than Greece, Cyprus and the Greek diaspora) but it's certainly a great language to learn if you love Greek history and mythology or simply love modern-day popular culture. Admittedly, Ancient Greek would be of greater benefit if you were solely interested in the Classical Era but the modern language will still allow you to enjoy that as well as communicate with present-day Greeks. Like Basque, it has a certain chic factor to it and the Greek script is too attractive to be ignored. 7) Quechua - Spoken in Peru and Bolivia, Quechua is a descendant of the language of the Inca and is spoken quite widely in these two countries. Another language with a chic factor and one that derives from South America's ancient past. 8) Hausa - Another lingua franca of Africa, spoken in several West African nations (including Ghana and Benin). It belongs to the Afro-Asiatic language family and is written with a modified Arabic script. Another interesting feature of Hausa is that it is a tonal language. 9) Thai - Beautiful script and tonal, Thai is a fascinating language and one tied to such a long and colourful history. Those who are passionate about Thai movies or cuisine might benefit from learning the language. 10) Persian - Persian and its various dialects are spoken throughout Central Asia, from Iran to Afghanistan, and can be considered as one of the more exotic Indo-European languages. Persian literature and poetry are absolutely beautiful and historians will find plenty to marvel over. Certainly a useful language if you are interested in Persian history or want to pursue a job at an intelligence agency! Edited by lady_skywalker on 04 August 2006 at 6:03am 1 person has voted this message useful |
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