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Luso’s Silk Thread - Yürükler, TAC Rare

 Language Learning Forum : Language Learning Log Post Reply
162 messages over 21 pages: << Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ... 20 21 Next >>
Luso
Hexaglot
Senior Member
Portugal
Joined 5820 days ago

819 posts - 1812 votes 
Speaks: Portuguese*, French, EnglishC2, GermanB1, Italian, Spanish
Studies: Sanskrit, Arabic (classical)

 
 Message 153 of 162
09 January 2015 at 10:38pm | IP Logged 
Chung wrote:
How do you find Lewis' book? I've never read it, but do have an older edition of it on my shelf just in case I can't figure something out with my more contemporary resources.

Up until this moment, it's very enlightening, but I'm only scratching at the surface. I like the very simple examples, which don't assume a previous knowledge of the language.

For now, that's all I can honestly say. I'll make a more complete comment further down the line.

I read some excellent reviews about its clarity, notwithstanding being an academic work. I also read that it explains quite well concepts alien to English speakers (and, I'm sure, Romance ones).

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Anya
Pentaglot
Senior Member
France
Joined 5552 days ago

636 posts - 708 votes 
Speaks: Russian*, FrenchC1, English, Italian, Spanish
Studies: German, Japanese, Hungarian, Sanskrit, Portuguese, Turkish, Mandarin
Studies: Ancient Greek, Hindi

 
 Message 154 of 162
10 January 2015 at 3:38pm | IP Logged 
नमसतो
Namaste!

Good luck with your studies! I am looking forward to follow your progress in Sanskrit, Turkish and Italian!
1 person has voted this message useful



Luso
Hexaglot
Senior Member
Portugal
Joined 5820 days ago

819 posts - 1812 votes 
Speaks: Portuguese*, French, EnglishC2, GermanB1, Italian, Spanish
Studies: Sanskrit, Arabic (classical)

 
 Message 155 of 162
10 February 2015 at 12:56am | IP Logged 
Italian

Today I had my C.2.2 written exam. It happened after the individual presentation of a book (at the end of January) and the listening comprehension (last Wednesday).

This concludes the formal part of my studies, after a period of four years. I can say this because there's no real risk of not passing.

In any case, it's not a certification exam. Those are, as is usually the case, a lot tougher.

The practical consequence is that now I'm free to pursue my other objectives for this year, that is, the Asian languages: Arabic, Sanskrit and Turkish.
1 person has voted this message useful



iguanamon
Pentaglot
Senior Member
Virgin Islands
Speaks: Ladino
Joined 5021 days ago

2237 posts - 6731 votes 
Speaks: English*, Spanish, Portuguese, Haitian Creole, Creole (French)

 
 Message 156 of 162
10 February 2015 at 1:55am | IP Logged 
Que legal! Parabéns meu amigo!!! Tá no começo da Rota da Seda agora com o Italiano. Pode começar na Itália, depois pode viajar à África do norte com seu árabe, segue, segue, segue até (infelizmente) deve dar um desvio à Síria para chegar na Turquia, então segue, segue, segue... Estou muito contente para ti!


Edited by iguanamon on 10 February 2015 at 2:21am

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Luso
Hexaglot
Senior Member
Portugal
Joined 5820 days ago

819 posts - 1812 votes 
Speaks: Portuguese*, French, EnglishC2, GermanB1, Italian, Spanish
Studies: Sanskrit, Arabic (classical)

 
 Message 157 of 162
10 February 2015 at 2:53am | IP Logged 
Thank you, my reptile friend. Segue, segue, segue...

Actually, no detour is needed: you just have to switch from Italian to Turkish, then Arabic, then back to Turkic languages, then something else.

Your post reminded me of one of my favourite movie quotes, from Kingdom of Heaven:
"Jerusalem is easy to find, go to where the men speak Italian, then continue until they speak something else."
2 persons have voted this message useful



Luso
Hexaglot
Senior Member
Portugal
Joined 5820 days ago

819 posts - 1812 votes 
Speaks: Portuguese*, French, EnglishC2, GermanB1, Italian, Spanish
Studies: Sanskrit, Arabic (classical)

 
 Message 158 of 162
21 February 2015 at 3:28pm | IP Logged 
Italian

I got 17/20 in my exam. Now, after 4 years of formal classes, comes the laid-back learning part. Books, audio, films, and stuff. Great!

One thing I've been doing is to throw out old materials: you know, the Nth photocopy where you have some piece of grammar, giving away stuff, etc. It's actually quite liberating. When I mentioned it for the first time in 2013, some people seemed to relate to the feeling.

Yesterday I went to a local restaurant (iguanamon knows the place). There was a group of Italians. Relaxed but still very noisy. I struck up a conversation. In the beginning, I was struggling to find the right words, and thinking: I can't tell these guys I just finished my C2 in their language.

Eventually the conversation started to flow and I relaxed. Well, there was wine involved. And some beer, too. Maybe that had something to do with it. What a wonderful way to keep languages active. The conversation, not the wine. Well, the wine too.

Sanskrit

Yesterday, I sat in a back row in my teacher's (I should probably say "tutor", because we have private classes, but I prefer "teacher") Hindi class, doing my Sanskrit homework.

I thought of that as a "mandatory concentration" tactic: I don't get to stop whenever I want to, because I'm in his class. Furthermore, there's this pervading presence of the Devanagari alphabet and Indo-Iranian sounds. Since I know his Hindi students from other activities, I'm at ease with the group. I'm just the guy that learns the cool, useless language.

Turkish

I tried to enroll in a "free" course at a local University (you only pay a symbolic value). They had Turkish (along with Catalan and Hindi), but unfortunately we are in the middle of the school year, and there's no course beginning in the second semester. It's a pity, because it would have been quite the finding.

I guess it's going to have to be self-study.
2 persons have voted this message useful



Luso
Hexaglot
Senior Member
Portugal
Joined 5820 days ago

819 posts - 1812 votes 
Speaks: Portuguese*, French, EnglishC2, GermanB1, Italian, Spanish
Studies: Sanskrit, Arabic (classical)

 
 Message 159 of 162
22 April 2015 at 5:08pm | IP Logged 
It's been a while.

Arabic

I have decided that, when I resume my Arabic studies, it will be with "All the Arabic...". I think this is the best bet for someone that already has some strong, half-forgotten bases. However, the moment is not yet arrived.

In the mean time, I've been reading tales, as told by storytellers (translated). While abhorring the extreme poverty usually associated with such professions, I think that it's a pity that such millenary traditions are disappearing from our world.

Sanskrit

Due to a health (physical) problem, I skipped a few Sanskrit sessions with my teacher. Nothing serious, but I really want to get back in the saddle as soon as possible.

In the mean time, we've been analysing a tale regarding the poet Kālidāsa. It's interesting to see how similar these stories are to Persian, Arab and (even) Western traditions. I understand that some of them are indeed universal.
1 person has voted this message useful



Luso
Hexaglot
Senior Member
Portugal
Joined 5820 days ago

819 posts - 1812 votes 
Speaks: Portuguese*, French, EnglishC2, GermanB1, Italian, Spanish
Studies: Sanskrit, Arabic (classical)

 
 Message 160 of 162
21 June 2015 at 8:45am | IP Logged 
It's been a while (again).

Sanskrit

Progressing. I don't know how to assess my level right now, but I'm not worried, either.

Even though my teacher tries to include fun stuff every once in a while, it's still mostly a lot of grammar. There's no way around it, apparently.

Spanish

I'm now learning Spanish formally, and at an intensive pace (150 hours in little more than one month). Being thematic, the course does not have a CEFR level objective, but my teacher has told me that we're supposed to reach an overall B1.

Up until now, it's going very well: I don't feel like I needed it, but it's always nice to revisit some features of a language.


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