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 Language Learning Forum : Specific Languages |  | |
| lollardy Diglot Newbie United Kingdom Joined 6351 days ago 3 posts - 3 votes Speaks: French, Latin Studies: German | Message 1 of 11 13 April 2010 at 10:40pm | IP Logged | ||
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Hi everyone.
I was wondering what you all thought about learning German and Dutch together at the same time. Do you think this is likely to simply confuse me (with the languages being so similar) or do you think that the similarities could actually help in learning them? Has anyone learnt two similar languages from scratch together and if so, how did you find it. Thanks. 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| tracker465 Senior Member United States Joined 5352 days ago 355 posts - 496 votes  Speaks: English* Studies: German, Spanish, Dutch | Message 2 of 11 14 April 2010 at 12:24am | IP Logged | ||
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I think that this is a really bad idea. I have studied German for about three years or so, and have dabbled with Dutch off and on. I would not suggest working both together, as the vocabulary can be very similar at times, and this can make it very hard as to which word goes to which language. I started dabbling with Dutch after learning German for several years, and I still sometimes have problems with the vocabulary, despite having a strong foundation in German. I would definitely choose one or the other, and after a few years, deal with the other.
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| Smart Tetraglot Senior Member United States Joined 5339 days ago 352 posts - 398 votes Speaks: Spanish, English*, Latin, French Studies: German | Message 3 of 11 15 April 2010 at 4:49am | IP Logged | ||
I really agree. Too similar to learn at the same time. It's like learning Spanish and Portuguese at the same time. 2 persons have voted this message useful | |||
| William Camden Hexaglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 6272 days ago 1936 posts - 2333 votes Speaks: English*, German, Spanish, Russian, Turkish, French | Message 4 of 11 15 April 2010 at 4:53pm | IP Logged | ||
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They are close, especially in the written language. Phonetically, they are different, just as Spanish and Portuguese are. Often when I try to say something in Dutch, I think in German, and then try to make the appropriate sound or vocabulary changes to turn Gerolstein into Gouda. This is of course not fluency in Dutch.
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| josht Diglot Senior Member United States Joined 6446 days ago 635 posts - 857 votes Speaks: English*, German Studies: French, Spanish, Russian, Dutch | Message 5 of 11 15 April 2010 at 9:14pm | IP Logged | ||
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I agree with the above posters that said it's a bad idea. I've studied both, but I started Dutch long after I was fairly advanced with German. The written language is similar in many ways, and confusion may pose a major problem if you tackle both as a beginner at the same time.
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 Fasulye Heptaglot Winner TAC 2012 Moderator Germany fasulyespolyglotblog Joined 5847 days ago 5460 posts - 6006 votes 1 sounds Speaks: German*, DutchC1, EnglishB2, French, Italian, Spanish, Esperanto Studies: Latin, Danish, Norwegian, Turkish Personal Language Map | Message 6 of 11 15 April 2010 at 9:41pm | IP Logged | ||
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In my case German is my native language and I started learning Dutch when I was older than 20.
At university I managed sucessfully studying Spanish and Italian simultanously on the same level in a classroom situation. In my opinion German and Dutch are as close as Danish and Swedish. But I myself wouldn't feel capable of starting as a beginner simultanously in self-study with Danish and Swedish together. I would rather recommend you to start with one language to get a foundation of let's say one-two study years and then start the other of the two Germanic languages. Fasulye 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| Leisesturm Newbie United States Joined 5336 days ago 1 posts - 1 votes | Message 7 of 11 16 April 2010 at 3:23am | IP Logged | ||
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This is fascinating. I actually Googled this a couple of days ago and my search led me to this site. The founder of this site has a heading with this very topic and it was a 'hit' on Google. Another linguist website does not agree btw, she feels it is perfectly ok to learn two languages at once. Maybe she is the exception that proves the rule? My question is this: I am an American contemplating a move to the Netherlands. That is a recent decision and it may not happen and even if it does, not for a year or more. German is the more important language internationally and I would like to learn it. I have dabbled on and off, more off than on. There is more material available to learn German but I am not planning to live there. Does learning Dutch first, then German work as well as learning German first, then Dutch? What does learning Dutch get you if you never move to the Netherlands? I am not trying to be a wiseguy, I am serious. Learning German would allow me to enjoy Johann Sebastian Bach in his native tongue but I don't have a year in which to learn German first and then start learning Nederlands. I hope this is clear and there might be some suggestions. Especially good tape or CD courses for learning Dutch.
H 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| Quinn Senior Member United States Joined 6323 days ago 134 posts - 186 votes Speaks: English* Studies: French, Italian, Spanish | Message 8 of 11 16 April 2010 at 3:58am | IP Logged | ||
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Hi and welcome to the site, H.
I speak neither Dutch nor German, but if you are fairly certain you'd like to move to the Netherlands, I'd recommend focusing your studies on Dutch. If/when you live there, you will have an ideal immersion environment to perfect the language and I expect it wouldn't take you long to be speaking at or near fluency. Once you speak Dutch at that advanced level, you'll have a great head start for learning German. In my own case, I studied French for several years in college and decided I wanted to "finish" the language, but put it aside after I moved to California, as Spanish is more practical here and I have more opportunities to practice. Once I get Spanish down, I plan to resume my study of French and anticipate it will be easier than before. Edited by Quinn on 16 April 2010 at 3:58am 2 persons have voted this message useful |
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