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TAC 2014 - Rare Languages Team Thread | ||
Tags: Nahuatl | Armenian | Team Thread | Sanskrit | Georgian | Indonesian | Rare Languages | Hebrew | Arabic | Total Annihilation Challenge (TAC) | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Language Learning Log |  | |
| Sprachprofi Nonaglot Senior Member Germany learnlangs.comRegistered users can see my Skype Name Joined 6259 days ago 2608 posts - 4866 votes  Speaks: German*, English, French, Esperanto, Greek, Mandarin, Latin, Dutch, Italian Studies: Spanish, Arabic (Written), Swahili, Indonesian, Japanese, Modern Hebrew, Portuguese | Message 193 of 223 10 September 2014 at 10:27pm | IP Logged |
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I gave a short speech in Indonesian ("How to Learn Languages") after 6 weeks of study. I think my vocabulary was around 300 words, but highly targeted obviously. Plus my
presentation is nowhere near fluent. That was not part of the requirements ;-) I think it's an interesting exercise, forces you to get more comfortable with a limited part of the language. Watch my speech if you like: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CAiVhdt3sW8 Edited by Sprachprofi on 10 September 2014 at 10:29pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Lakeseayesno Tetraglot Senior Member Mexico thepolyglotist.com Joined 4123 days ago 280 posts - 488 votes Speaks: English, Spanish*, Japanese, Italian Studies: Esperanto, French | Message 194 of 223 12 September 2014 at 9:20pm | IP Logged |
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Dear team: I live (barely, but I do).
I'm sorry for having been so absent for the last two months--since I came back from Japan, I haven't stopped working for more than one twenty-four hours in a row, and as though that wasn't enough I'm currently developing a personal project that is very tightly related to languages (several rare ones are being included in it, too!). I'll let you know when it's finally out, but I'm very excited about this. Back to what truly concerns this thread: although I am currently at a standstill with Nahuatl and struggling to keep my vocabulary, I really like the idea of the YT presentation. Potentially, it could be the kick to the arse I need to start giving the language more time and developing writing/speaking skills. 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| Zireael Triglot Senior Member Poland Joined 4440 days ago 518 posts - 636 votes Speaks: Polish*, EnglishB2, Spanish Studies: German, Sign Language, Tok Pisin, Arabic (Yemeni), Old English | Message 195 of 223 13 September 2014 at 9:43am | IP Logged |
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I'll pass - while I could record a presentation, my upload is terrible, so forget about it on YT.
Moreover, I don't think my Arabic is enough for the task, unless the whole presentation was about myself & family. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Luso Hexaglot Senior Member Portugal Joined 5850 days ago 819 posts - 1812 votes Speaks: Portuguese*, French, EnglishC2, GermanB1, Italian, Spanish Studies: Sanskrit, Arabic (classical) | Message 196 of 223 13 September 2014 at 7:11pm | IP Logged |
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Exotic languages are different, not only in terms of difficulty, but also of the perseverance that is needed. Ask anyone that has learned a very different language as an adult, and he will tell you how tough it is: the alphabet, the grammar, the culture.
By now, you must be thinking: "So, what's new? Tell us something that we don't know already." Well, in my experience there are special slump phases when we learn these languages. Those slumps are special because we tend to say: "Oh, I haven't given up on X." We also tend to make bigger intervals, while convincing ourselves that we're going back to learn X soon, just because that's the way it's always happened with our easier languages. But it's different. It's tougher to go back to learning Arabic than it is to learning Italian. This warning is not addressed to anyone in particular (but it's a warning). To be honest, I myself must have posted the "I haven't given up" expression quite a few times in the past. Until now, I've been able to bounce back, but it's not easy. 3 persons have voted this message useful | |
| Lakeseayesno Tetraglot Senior Member Mexico thepolyglotist.com Joined 4123 days ago 280 posts - 488 votes Speaks: English, Spanish*, Japanese, Italian Studies: Esperanto, French | Message 197 of 223 14 September 2014 at 4:18am | IP Logged |
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I don't know about the others, but for me, more than a slump I'd call this an accidental gap. Two months ago I didn't think I'd get this much work, and honestly I'm not in a financial situation where I can refuse it, but by the time I noticed I realized I barely had enough hours in a day to fit in sleeping and eating, let's not mention languages.
That I'm somehow holding on to my other active language (Italian) is because I'm past the point where I need intense, concentrated study and I can do it through other activities, but the same doesn't hold true for Nahuatl, which I'm barely keeping alive because I keep hoping the workload will ease off next week, and next week, and next week... which, being a freelancer, unavoidably happens at some point. On that note, I do agree with what Luso says (I'm afraid the whole tone of my post sounds rather like the opposite). Rare languages are harder to come back to, but I know and appreciate the personal rewards I get from learning a language, so I don't like to go into any language, rare or not, without making the commitment to keep at it when the times get rough. That's why I feel I can say "I haven't given up" without feeling like I'm lying to myself--I may be devoting ten minutes a day to it, but at least I am. 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| Luso Hexaglot Senior Member Portugal Joined 5850 days ago 819 posts - 1812 votes Speaks: Portuguese*, French, EnglishC2, GermanB1, Italian, Spanish Studies: Sanskrit, Arabic (classical) | Message 198 of 223 10 October 2014 at 2:31pm | IP Logged |
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THIRD QUARTER REPORT
1. Purpose and scope of this summary This is a follow-up of the second quarter report. The structure will be more or less the same. 2. Team structure It seems we've managed to keep the cohesion of the team since June. There's one or two members who seem to have abandoned the team (and the forum) but it may have to do with the effect of summer. We'll just have to wait and see. 3. Team progress and cohesion To be honest, I was thinking of skipping this topic, but I'd like to mention the contribution of Expugnator to keeping the team flame alive, so to speak. Well done, mate. 4. Fourth quarter forecast The rentrée is usually the time when people think of updating their logs and setting up teams for the following year. If so, we may expect quite a bit of action in the months to come. Maybe we can even attract new recruits for 2015. When we come to think of it, rare languages can be fun. 5. Final notes As usual, I'll try to keep a close eye on things here. Any suggestions will be taken into consideration. If I don't reply promptly, feel free to send me a PM. I wish a nice fourth quarter to everyone. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Lakeseayesno Tetraglot Senior Member Mexico thepolyglotist.com Joined 4123 days ago 280 posts - 488 votes Speaks: English, Spanish*, Japanese, Italian Studies: Esperanto, French | Message 199 of 223 10 October 2014 at 6:55pm | IP Logged |
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If Rare is still around next year, please count me in. Not only am I planning to keep studying Nahuatl next year, I'm also planning to throw Levantine Arabic into the mix, which I believe somewhat fits in the profile of the team.
Does this mean you're willing to keep captaining the team for a whole 'nother year, Luso? I know I'm among the members who've failed to keep their logs updated (and like I said, it isn't that I've abandoned Nahuatl, but rather, that the amount of work I've gotten lately has put an abrupt end to my habit of studying two languages every day, so Nahuatl is on standby while I wrap up with Italian). However, once October is over I'll officially put an end to my other language project and dedicate the last two months of the year to Nahuatl, concretely developing Sprachprofi's suggested goal of recording a video presentation. 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Zireael Triglot Senior Member Poland Joined 4440 days ago 518 posts - 636 votes Speaks: Polish*, EnglishB2, Spanish Studies: German, Sign Language, Tok Pisin, Arabic (Yemeni), Old English | Message 200 of 223 10 October 2014 at 7:12pm | IP Logged |
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If Rare is still around next year, I will definitely be keeping in touch with my Arabic. It's rather slow as I'm massively busy with my MA (graduating summer 2015)...
1 person has voted this message useful |
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