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Problems with Spanish dialects- normal? | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Specific Languages |  | |
| jtmc18 Diglot Senior Member United States Joined 7027 days ago 119 posts - 140 votes  Speaks: English*, Spanish | Message 1 of 14 04 July 2006 at 5:56pm | IP Logged | ||
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I just spent two months in Mexico studying Spanish and reached what I thought was a fairly advanced level. By the time I left I could basically converse with anyone about anything, although I still made a few grammatical mistakes. I even managed a 45-minute phone conversation in the language. Now I'm in Spain for two weeks and hardly understand anything. I'm wondering if maybe I was wrong and am not really at an advanced level. Even understanding simple directions here is difficult. Is this normal? Are the dialects of Mexico and Spain so different that I should have such difficulty? I feel really discouraged having already invested so much time and effort into learning this language and I'm not sure what to do now. Edited by jtmc18 on 04 July 2006 at 5:58pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| Alfonso Octoglot Senior Member Mexico Joined 6643 days ago 511 posts - 536 votes Speaks: Biblical Hebrew, Spanish*, French, English, Tzotzil, Italian, Portuguese, Ancient Greek Studies: Nahuatl, Tzeltal, German | Message 2 of 14 04 July 2006 at 8:46pm | IP Logged | ||
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Don't worry too much about that. I think I would have the same problem than you if I'd go to England, Ireland, Australia or South-Africa. I learned English in Canada (I stayed there for two years) and when I listen to the BBC news from England I hadly understand a word.
I don't think European Spanish and Mexican Spanish are so different from each other. If you read a Mexican newspaper and compare it with a newspaper from Spain you won't have problem to understand them. The problem is the pronunciation, I believe. You have to get used to European Spanish in order to feel at ease speaking Spanish there. Maybe two weeks is not enough after all. We Mexicans have a little trouble (at first) when talking with people coming from Spain, Cuba, Argentina, Venezuela, etc. mainly because of the speed. For people usually speak with foreigners as fast as if they're speaking with their own compatriots, because we all speak the same language. That's true, but we usually don't know which words, structures, idioms, slang, elisions, as well as entonation, rythm, pitch, etc. are used regionally and which are not. Edited by Alfonso on 04 July 2006 at 8:50pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| lady_skywalker Triglot Senior Member Netherlands aspiringpolyglotblog Joined 6672 days ago 909 posts - 942 votes Speaks: Spanish, English*, Mandarin Studies: Japanese, French, Dutch, Italian | Message 3 of 14 04 July 2006 at 8:51pm | IP Logged | ||
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The Mexican dialect, to me, has some different vocabulary to Spanish, most likely an influence from the pre-Columbian languages spoken there. One thing I do find different between Spain's Spanish and that spoken across Latin America is that the latter is spoken much slower. I actually find it hard to follow as I keep trying to anticipate what the next word will be.
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| patuco Diglot Moderator Gibraltar Joined 6797 days ago 3795 posts - 4268 votes Speaks: Spanish, English* Personal Language Map | Message 5 of 14 05 July 2006 at 2:04am | IP Logged | ||
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I agree with the posters above.
As Alfonso mentioned, it's not only restricted to Spanish. When I was in university, I remember having great trouble understanding students from the north of England or from Scotland. It's a perfectly normal occurrence and it should ease as you spend more time in the environment. Edited by patuco on 05 July 2006 at 2:05am 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| lady_skywalker Triglot Senior Member Netherlands aspiringpolyglotblog Joined 6672 days ago 909 posts - 942 votes Speaks: Spanish, English*, Mandarin Studies: Japanese, French, Dutch, Italian | Message 6 of 14 05 July 2006 at 2:37am | IP Logged | ||
Very true! I remember having to ask this poor man at the Leeds Market to repeat what he was saying...3 times no less. I felt like such an idiot. I think this is bound to happen any time you encounter a non-standard accent. This happens to me with Dutch and Mandarin. My partner's father speaks Dutch with a strong Utrechts accent so I usually don't follow him as well as my partner's mother, who speaks clear standard Dutch. As for Mandarin, I'm still trying to get my head around Mandarin spoken with a Taiwanese accent! I think that most language programmes focus on the standardised language and thus leave you unprepared for the real world and its myriad of accents. 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| Andy E Triglot Senior Member United Kingdom Joined 6885 days ago 1651 posts - 1939 votes Speaks: English*, Spanish, French | Message 7 of 14 05 July 2006 at 2:44am | IP Logged | ||
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JT,
I'm curious to now whereabouts you are/were in Spain. From personal experience I have trouble with the Argentinian accent and I well remember asking directions a few years ago in Vélez-Málaga in Andalucía from a group of old boys sitting outside a bar - I didn't understand a single word of their replies, but just thanked them profusely and drove around aimlessly until we found the correct road. I also remember a relative of my Dad's from deepest Glasgow who had a totally impenetrable accent - my Dad had to act as interpreter which was slightly odd since we allegedly spoke the same language. Andy. 1 person has voted this message useful | |||
| Sinfonia Senior Member Wales Joined 6526 days ago 255 posts - 261 votes Speaks: English* | Message 8 of 14 05 July 2006 at 7:22am | IP Logged | ||
Or maybe not quite. Some linguists consider 'Scots' to be a different language. It's certainly similar to English on the page, but not when it comes straight from the mouth of an old Glaswegian! 2 persons have voted this message useful |
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