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 Language Learning Forum : Advice Center |  | |
| Hungringo Triglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 3841 days ago 168 posts - 329 votes  Speaks: Hungarian*, English, Spanish Studies: French | Message 1 of 24 27 December 2013 at 11:12pm | IP Logged |
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I would appreciate your advice about which language should I learn. I am considering the following four languages: French, German, Portuguese and Indonesian. I am a native Hungarian speaker and I also speak English and Spanish. Currently, I live in the UK, and have strong ties to my native country and to the Southern Cone (Chile, Argentina).
French: I spent some time in France when I was a university student and then I reached a good intermediate (B2) level. However, more than a decade on I probably couldn't pass a B1 exam. I still understand about 60-70 per cent of a newspaper's content, can follow a political debate and, to a somewhat lesser extent and with more concentration required, a movie. I get by in typical tourist situations, but I find it very difficult to express myself and struggle to find the right words. My spelling is not very good either. Perhaps it would seem just natural to choose French, however the very reason of forgetting it, is that I haven't had any opportunity to speak it for more than 10 years and this situation is unlikely to change in the next future. Portuguese : Having a good command of Spanish, Portuguese would seem very easy. Without ever studying it I can read Portuguese newspapers and books. On the other hand I find it hard to understand spoken Portuguese. To be honest I don't particularly like the language and choosing it would be entirely a rational, utilitarian decision given its closeness to Spanish, my interests in South-America and having Portuguese and Brazilian neigbours. German : In my native Hungary German is really important, very often being more useful than English. German is sought after in the UK too. I studied some German at school, but it was worth nothing and now I hardly know more than 150-200 German words, just enough to buy a train ticket or order a beer. I have some German ancestry and German language and culture had a huge impact on Hungary's history and culture. Indonesian: A cuckoo's egg! I have bought Colloquial and TY Indonesian and looked into these books. I have a vocabulary of about 100 words and a basic understanding of the grammar. I would learn Indonesian to gain insight into a totally different culture without facing the hurdles of Chinese, Japanese etc. Also, Indonesian would make me stand out of the crowd in a job interview or similar situations. Obviously, French, German, or even Portuguese are more on demand, but at the same time there are much more people who can speak them, whereas Indonesian might open up unique opportunities. Many thanks for your help and advice. Edited by Hungringo on 27 December 2013 at 11:14pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Jeffers Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 4762 days ago 2151 posts - 3960 votes Speaks: English* Studies: Hindi, Ancient Greek, French, Sanskrit, German | Message 2 of 24 28 December 2013 at 8:31pm | IP Logged |
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If you have once attained a B2 level in French, then you wouldn't really be learning it, in my opinion. Whatever else you do, it would be worth spending 10-15 minutes a day a few times a week reading articles or listening to podcasts. It would be a shame to lose a language you were so strong in at one time. Doing so shouldn't prevent you from learning another language.
3 persons have voted this message useful | |
| culebrilla Senior Member United States Joined 3850 days ago 246 posts - 436 votes Speaks: Spanish | Message 3 of 24 28 December 2013 at 8:58pm | IP Logged |
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Do you need any of these languages for work or are they just for fun and personal growth?
If they are indeed just for fun, I wouldn't go into Portuguese since you said that you don't even like it. If you don't like it, it would be very hard getting advanced in the language unless you needed it for work. You say that you haven't had a chance to use French in 10 years. However, French is the number one foreign language that the British study by number of people. It is the most mainstream and traditional language that the English study so it would logically be the easiest to find language partners to practice with. If you can't find people to practice French with, how likely would you be to find speakers of the other languages? I know you said that you have Portuguese-speaking neighbors, but I'm sure there are at least a few advanced French speakers close by. Even if there aren't any, France is very close and skype is even closer. To me it sounds like French or German would be the best languages to relearn, learn, or practice since they are both utilitarian and also German has some personal meaning for you. If you had a B2 level in French in the past and a current low B1 level now, it shouldn't be too hard to reactivate your latent skills and then reach a C1 level with moderate work. Good luck in your choices and enjoy the ride. 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| Hungringo Triglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 3841 days ago 168 posts - 329 votes Speaks: Hungarian*, English, Spanish Studies: French | Message 4 of 24 28 December 2013 at 9:37pm | IP Logged |
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Thank you. At the moment, I don't need any of these languages for work, but I'd like to spend the next year kind of reinventing myself professionally and give a boost to my employability. I have a not too useful degree, which I never actually used, I have no employment history or references because until now I've always run some small business on my own. In the next future, however, due to different personal reasons, I will need a steady job, and apart from the languages I have no special skills.
1 person has voted this message useful | |
| culebrilla Senior Member United States Joined 3850 days ago 246 posts - 436 votes Speaks: Spanish | Message 5 of 24 28 December 2013 at 11:10pm | IP Logged |
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I honestly don't think that learning several languages to an intermediate or low-advanced level would add much to your employability.
The few uses I can actually see for languages helping in a job are being a secretary, interpreter, or translator. However, the position of secretary is usually a very low-paid position and just going back to school for a professional degree would yield a much better ROI than knowing some languages. There are a few other fields where languages can help but not that many; they really have to be combined with something else to be economically worthwhile. And in the interpreter and translator examples, you have to be REALLY good at it. No intermediate or low-advanced level will cut it. Let's say that you were an engineer. Each hour devoted to improving your CV and your professional expertise in the field of engineering would be much more efficient than each hour spent with a foreign language. Unless there are a LOT of jobs in a certain country, say Germany, I don't see how it would help much to learn a random language to an A2 or B1 level. How advanced are your English and Spanish? I assume that your English is VERY advanced due to you living in Great Britain and by the few English posts you have here. I also assume that your Spanish is advanced enough for you to work in the language; could you find work in South America? Could you prepare for and pass a C1/C2 official test in English and Spanish for your CV? I really think quality is much more important than quantity in terms of languages helping your CV. Good luck. 3 persons have voted this message useful | |
| Hungringo Triglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 3841 days ago 168 posts - 329 votes Speaks: Hungarian*, English, Spanish Studies: French | Message 6 of 24 28 December 2013 at 11:30pm | IP Logged |
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Thanks again. Neither my English nor my Spanish is perfect. Although I have passed C1 exams in both languages with good results I don't think I have acquired all the skills that are listed in the description of C1. I have some black spots in both languages (mostly sports and technology related vocabulary). I tried to deal with these specific fields too, but I had to realize that it is absolutely pointless to spend hours swotting expressions like "ball bearing" or "diving header" when I haven't got a clue about their meaning even in my native tongue. Edited by Hungringo on 28 December 2013 at 11:32pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| culebrilla Senior Member United States Joined 3850 days ago 246 posts - 436 votes Speaks: Spanish | Message 7 of 24 28 December 2013 at 11:53pm | IP Logged |
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Do you feel like you would get any more benefit in improving your English and Spanish? I would personally be more impressed if I saw somebody put C2 in two languages aside from their native language on their resume than a bunch of intermediate level languages. I don't really see the economic benefit of being "ok" in a bunch of languages. Maybe secretary or selling things in a store.
Was "ball bearing" used in a soccer game? I've never heard of it; are you referring to mechanical applications? I'm assuming you know what a "header" is, right? You really wouldn't need to spend that much time to learn basic sports terminology in a lot of sports. Don't know how efficient that is for you unless a coworker or boss is a sports nut. What exactly is your work in? That may make it easier for us to recommend a language to you. If you were a scientist, for example, French or German would be great. Although English has destroyed pretty much all other languages in publications. :( 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Hungringo Triglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 3841 days ago 168 posts - 329 votes Speaks: Hungarian*, English, Spanish Studies: French | Message 8 of 24 29 December 2013 at 12:08am | IP Logged |
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I constantly work on my English and Spanish, this is given. I was thinking about adding a third language while maintaining and improving the ones I already speak.
I have a degree in political science, which - without postgraduate training - is pretty much just a piece of paper. I run a second-hand bookstore. Aren't I hopeless? :-( Edited by Hungringo on 29 December 2013 at 12:24am 1 person has voted this message useful |
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