Do you wish you could speak a 2nd language?
By Jewels
@Tetchie (2932)
Australia
July 10, 2008 1:43am CST
I admire people who can speak more than one language and I wish when I was at school there was more emphasis put on it. It is said that if you want to do good brain gym work, learn another language. I'm choosing Spanish though I'm not sure I have the will to master it.
Can you speak more than one language? Would you like to, which one and why?
5 people like this
17 responses
@ElaanR2 (277)
• United States
10 Jul 08
Well... I speak four languages and I was surprised tonight when I heard Lou Dobbs condemning Obama for suggesting that people should let their children learn a second language. Sometimes I walk into a group of French speaking people who do not know that I understand their language. It helps me to know whether they like me or not. Knowing more than one language can save your life.
2 people like this
@Tetchie (2932)
• Australia
10 Jul 08
There was a mylotter condemning Obama for the same thing. That's what prompted my post. I couldn't believe that someone would discourage anyone from learning to speak another language. Why would being taught a second language be a wrong thing. But I didn't buy into that post because I knew it was an Obama hate site.
Particularly in Europe - not to speak a 2nd language would make you somewhat of an outcast. I so admire the attempt (in some cases necessity) to communicate with neighbors. Not unlike speaking Spanish/Mexican to your southern friends.
1 person likes this
@ElaanR2 (277)
• United States
10 Jul 08
Indeed, at a time when the threat of terrorism is high on this earth, the more languages our children can speak, the better. I can't, for the life of me, understand why anybody would think that any form of education is bad. Or, is it just because the suggestion is coming from Obama? Or, is it just because America hates foreigners from Spanish-speaking countries?
2 people like this
@Tetchie (2932)
• Australia
10 Jul 08
No, I think these people are hell bent on spewing hate toward Obama personally and trying to put his campaign off the tracks. But in the process they are saying some pretty stupid things. It does not give the USA a very good reputation because of it so they are doing more harm than good. I think the majority of intelligent Americans would like to broaden their language skills. I was in Texas for a few months earlier this year. Was wonderful to see so many speaking Mexican, even though there are quite a few from further south! But this aside, there were many natural born americans who could speak spanish and this can only be a positive. Obama is right on the mark when he says it should be encouraged. There is no longer a global tolerance for the US appearing to be 'better than' and it's no longer acceptable to go over to Europe and expect the Italians, and French and Danish to speak the same language - although allot of them do to their credit. This is one point Obama was making, that it's a norm in Europe and UK to have a 2nd language but in the US (and in Australia too) there is a complacency about not having to because of the thought English is the dominant language and there should be no reason to learn another. That's narrow thinking and it's really a disservice to education and communication at large.
1 person likes this
@SolarSystem110 (69)
• China
10 Jul 08
Now I own two languages, Chinese and English. But I still want to learn another language in the future. Likewise I choose Spanish too, because some small towns in Spain are so fascinating, especially Toledo. So I'm wondering if I could have a chance to visit it personally.
2 people like this
@kevsgirlalways (5883)
• Malaysia
10 Jul 08
I can only speak two languages. I wish I could speak another language- mandarin! I don’t understand the language but I love to watch some of the mandarin series that's shown on tv. Also some of the songs are quite nice too ;)
2 people like this
@fiona08 (454)
• United States
10 Jul 08
I wish so much that I had taken advantage of Spanish speaking classes in high school. I want to learn Spanish now, because I think Spanish, in particular will be very useful to know, as a school teacher in the United States. I really think we should teach Spanish as part of the elementary school curriculum. When a language is taught in younger years, it comes more naturally. Being multi-lingual is a valuable asset for anyone. Communication is so important. The more people we can communicate with, the better. I know there are some bilingual programs in elementary schools now, and I think they are a fabulous idea. Students spend part of the day in Spanish only classes, and part of the day in English only classes. Every child would benefit from a program like that.
2 people like this
@Tetchie (2932)
• Australia
10 Jul 08
Totally agree with you fiona. Language not only gives knowledge but broader people skills as well. There are so many countries that have Spanish as their foundation language even though there are dialects of it - South America, Portugal, Spain, Cuba, Mexico. It would be a good language to know.
1 person likes this
@buzzmehere (743)
• Singapore
10 Jul 08
well in india our first language in school is english. then v have second language. so tht is something people take of their choice if they want to know more, their mother tongue or another language. so i learnt hindi. but i can speak tamil as i m from the south. so i knw 3 languages.
english, tamil and hindi.
but i always wanted to learn german. so dunno when i vil. its tuf to learn a foreign language as the ascent is diff.
@magojordan (3252)
• Philippines
10 Jul 08
Hi Tetchie here in our country of course we learned English and we speak our native language Filipino. During college I took up European Languages as my degree and I have graduated as French major and minor in Spanish. I think you could master Spanish very well. If you want to learn French you could look at one of my blogs http://learn-frenchnow.blogspot.com also if you want to learn Spanish just leave a comment at my profile page.
Regarding your post it is true that for your brain to be in top condition one of the recommended things to do is to learn a new language. Right now I'm still studying German and Japanese(all self-study). I would like to learn Greek and to brush up again my Latin because I would like to learn the classical languages.
@Tetchie (2932)
• Australia
10 Jul 08
How wonderful to speak so many languages. You must have a young agile mind. And now you could be employed in so many places. Does this mean you will travel and work outside the Philippines? I think Latin is a great idea, you get that foundation for botanical names and derivatives, same with Greek. I take my hat off to you.
1 person likes this
@magojordan (3252)
• Philippines
10 Jul 08
Thanks for the comment! Actually I could work outside but I would prefer to travel there. Well I actually took up Latin during my third year and I barely passed it. I'm studying it again becasue I think I'll learn more if there isn't too much pressure from teachers.
2 people like this
@James72 (26790)
• Australia
13 Jul 08
Oh I wish that I too could be fluent in MANY languages! It would make my life SO much easier. My mother tongue is of course English; I know a good number of words in Tagalog and can work my way around a basic conversation in the Philippines like asking directions or ordering food etc; but nothing too detailed! I can speak and understand a handful of Hindi words and the same goes for Arabic. French, German and Spanish I know a handful of words for too; but not anywhere near as many as I do with Tagalog. I tend to understand more of a foreign language than I have ever been able to speak actually. I am certainly no liNguist and have learned the hard way.
And I am proud to say that outside of French, German and Spanish; the very first words I learned in Arabic, Tagalog and Hindi are unrepeatable in public! lol
1 person likes this
@MsTickle (25180)
• Australia
22 Jul 08
I learned a little French at school and tried to teach myself German and Greek but found it too hard and didn't continue. I'd love to learn another language. It was said when I was at school that French was the most widely spoken language after English but now I'm not sure that is true.
@Tetchie (2932)
• Australia
22 Jul 08
I sometimes wonder about that, I think my teachers might have said that too but I doubt it was true then, it certainly isn't now. These are the top 10 languages in the world today:
1. Mandarin Chinese - 882 million
2. Spanish - 325 million
3. English - 312-380 million
4. Arabic - 206-422 million
5. Hindi - 181 million
6. Portuguese - 178 million
7. Bengali - 173 million
8. Russian - 146 million
9. Japanese - 128 million
10. German - 96 million
French doesn't get a mention even though it's spoken in France and Canada and some island nations. And you can see the above ratings are in line with the populations of certain countries with Spanish covering Spain of course, Mexico, Sth America, spoken in different dialects but close derivatives. If I was to learn another language it would be Spanish as I'm likely to visit there more than a few times before I leave the planet! Tks for responding Ms Tickle you made me look up these statistics.
@liranlgo (5752)
• Israel
12 Jul 08
hi tetchie, here in israel the first language we speak is Hebrew and the second one is English.
we learn English in school and a third language which is Arabic.
every israeli has to speak a bit of English, it is elementary.
we also have the hi- tech industry here, and most of it is in English, so we do not have any other choice:)
but i wish i could speak a few more languages.
i understand a bit german and Romanian but that is all.
@mummymo (23706)
•
12 Jul 08
I adore languages and wish I was able to speak more than one fluently! I can speak a little German , a smattering of French and a few words of Russian. My brother lives in spain and although my sister in law is taking classes and working hard to learn the language my brother is making no effort and I am very disappointed with him! I am trying to learn some Spanish - at the moment it is only a case of learning a word a day through my email but that is better than nothing - perhaps when my concentration is better I can try and learn the language more comprehensively and speak Spanish next time I get to visit! xxx
1 person likes this
@Tetchie (2932)
• Australia
13 Jul 08
I think of all the people who immigrated to Australia (Italians and Greeks especially) and how they learned the language so living here would be easier. Being immersed in another culture would make it easier to learn language. Your brother is wasting an opportunity, it is he who will be disappointed in the end. Buena suerte con tus lecciones de lengua. Buonas noches mummymo
1 person likes this
@Tammuz (347)
• Romania
17 Oct 08
Hello there..Dear Tetchie..by 'speaking a 2nd language' you mean knowing at least 80% that language or knowing just enough to help you understand what the foreigner sitting right in front of you is rumbbling about?*giggles*
Anyway...I can deal with english,hungarian,some french,some italian and I understand a little spanish also(I never tried speaking spanish..I'm just afraid of my diction and I woudn't want to see an angry Julio chasing me around with a torch for messing up his language).
It crossed my mind to learn Chinese,Finnish(I find fascinating the resemblance with Hungarian),and Swedish-I heard they have sunsets like no other country and I would feel quite dumb not being able to use their interjections like woooo woow uuuhhhhh to describe my opinion about the beauty of nature.
Life is long,who knows what tomorrow brings?Maybe a chinese teacher or a swedish dictionary from fjaril lol.
Lots of hugs
1 person likes this
@lazeebee (5461)
• Malaysia
10 Jul 08
Hi, maybe we were more fortunate. English was the medium of instruction in school during my time, and we also learned the Malay language. I wish I had paid more attention to Mandarin (which is now one of the international languages); so I only manage to understand and speak Mandarin, but not read and write.
@benhilo (871)
• Tripoli, Libya
12 Jul 08
I speak english, japanese, arabic,and french. Currently learning chinese and spanish. I speak a little tagalo, hawaiian, farsi, urdu, korean, german, and portugese. Languages fascinate me. I took a lingistics course in college by a Prof. Donald Topping, from then on I was hooked on languages. It is interesting how many languages are connected, similar in sound and meaning! Where ever I travel I try to learn a little of the language because I find that they appreciate the effort you took to speak their language.
@danishcanadian (28953)
• Canada
12 Jul 08
I think it would be wonderful to know how to speak a second language. I would loe to be able to speak Danish, my mother's native language. My husband speaks Russia, and I absolutely love listening to him speak Russian. It's a beautiful language.
1 person likes this
@r011aka (79)
• India
10 Aug 08
yes i can speak in english,hindi & gujarati. I would like to learn french as it useful.
@TomRandal (2)
• Canada
1 Nov 08
French is my first language,grew up in an English speaking community. Grade 2 and 3 was reprimanded for speaking french. Was constantly reminded " you speak English"!!! Today, I want to get back my native language. Please help. on ne' sais compre" Merci! God Bless. Thanks!
Tom