Which language you want to learn?
By lloydbelleza
@lloydbelleza (1227)
Philippines
February 19, 2013 1:09am CST
Being a Filipino, while growing up I have been speaking three different languages--my native tongue which is Bisaya, Filipino(Tagalog), the country's national language, and English, medium for classroom instruction. Now that I am living and working here in Japan, I had to learn a new language, Nihongo(Japanese). Learning this foreign language was really hard. Up to now, I am still not getting a good grasp of it. I can speak and understand but I can't do fast and formal conversation.
So anyway, aside from the languages I mentioned I am interested in learning Thai, Spanish, Mandarin, French, Italian. I have tried learning Thai before. I even bought a language book package online which included a book, flashcards and an audio CD. It was hard. I couldn't really understand a thing. If indeed I am serious on learning all these language, I really need to start learning them now. But the problem is, I am not good with language. It takes me a lot of time to get a hold of a new language. I may need a language teacher to aid me.
Learning a language foreign to me is hard but fun. The most exciting part was when I got to understand Japanese conversations. And then became able to converse with them. Somehow when you learn the language of a country, you become more understanding of their emotions, and culture. And that's what I am very interested in--meeting people speaking in different languages with various cultural background.
How about you? Is there any language you want to learn? Or are you already satisfied with the language you know?
1 person likes this
19 responses
@extremefun4fun (2908)
• India
19 Feb 13
I love french language and russian too. I love to learn them and speak in those languages. right now I also speak in 4 languages but so inerested for french.
@lloydbelleza (1227)
• Philippines
19 Feb 13
Ohh. Russian. That language is also interesting. What are those four languages you speak if you don't mind?
@buddha3 (1026)
• India
19 Feb 13
I love learning languages. As of now, I can speak four languages - English, Hindi - my national language, Kannada - my regional language, and Thulu - my mother tongue. I knew two more languages - Bengali and Tamil when I was a kid, but I forgot them as I stopped using those languages when I moved to new places.
I now want to learn at least one foreign language, but not specific about any language. When I chat with some foreign friends i try to learn some words :)
@buddha3 (1026)
• India
20 Feb 13
Exactly...it takes time, but it's interesting to learn the language by chatting with them. And it gets more exciting when you teach them ur language and they teach theirs. It's a nice give-and-take affair :)
When you know a few words, you can make many more friends as you can impress new ones with your knowledge of their language :)
@lloydbelleza (1227)
• Philippines
20 Feb 13
It's a good start to learn a new language by chatting with international friends. I really find it also interesting to know different greetings of different countries because that is where your learning starts--from the usual words used by that country.
1 person likes this
@meumeu25 (917)
• United Arab Emirates
19 Feb 13
Hi,
I also know how to speak the 3 languages you mentioned, and I'm also learning Spanish since I can understand the language a little easier because it's related or some of the words are similar to our Bisaya dialect. And I really want to learn Arabic, even though it is so complicated and I only learned so little from it. I am still trying to learn some more, I am taking it one or two at a time, I'm also interested in learning Chinese and Japanese languages.
@lloydbelleza (1227)
• Philippines
19 Feb 13
I think Chinese and Arabic are two very difficult language. Chinese for how the words should be pronounced, a wrong pronunciation could mean a different thing already. Arabic has this weird writing that I don't really have the interest to know. 
@meumeu25 (917)
• United Arab Emirates
19 Feb 13
if you only know understanding how to speak Arabic is as complicated as the writing itself. I havn't really tried Chinese yet. Maybe when I can atleast understand Arabic words without writing it, then I'll start Chinese lessons but then I guess that will take years from now. 
.
@greenthumb018 (595)
• Philippines
19 Feb 13
I want to learn French. We have Spanish class in grade school and high school so I know a little. Japanese language is hard. I took a vacation in Tokyo for three months last year and I find it hard to converse since not all of them speaks English. I can read a little bit of Hiragana but cannot converse. Their accent is also interesting. I also want to learn to speak Mandarin. I hope I'll find time to learn these languages.
@lloydbelleza (1227)
• Philippines
20 Feb 13
Wow! You can read Hiragana? That's so cool! When I was younger I used to like make fun of it because they were just a piece of symbols to me before. And I was like laughing when all these things made sense when I learned Japanese. If you really are dedicated to learn it, you will find time for it. 
@greenthumb018 (595)
• Philippines
20 Feb 13
Yes. It's because I love animes before and I really watch and adore them. I can also understand them but unfortunately, I can't converse. I got tired of reading subtitles. I'm very interested in their culture, food and language that is why I really said to myself that I will visit their country.
@bunnystarr (160)
• Philippines
20 Feb 13
I am learning Japanese right now too. I think it is easier if you are there in Japan since you get to engage in authentic conversations. I learn by immersing myself in Japanese materials - books, manga, anime, dramas and movies.
I am also trying to learn Korean although my strategy has always been to learn about the culture before the language first. I also dream of studying French and Italian.
@lloydbelleza (1227)
• Philippines
20 Feb 13
Wow! That's cool. You really are into Japanese stuff, huh. Are you taking the Japanese Language Proficiency Test? Yes, it is easier to learn the language if you are exposed to the people who are speaking the language. But it still not easy. I guess you would really fast because you have this passion for Japanese stuff. All the best with you! Ganbatte ne!
@jirojoyman (458)
• Indonesia
20 Feb 13
i think the key is "practice makes perfect". i am indonesian i speak with three or sometimes four different languages-My native tongue which is java, and Bahasa Indonesia as national Language and English or Arabic because i am a tourist guide in my country town. in conversation we don't need a perfect grammar we just ned to practice and interact.
@lloydbelleza (1227)
• Philippines
20 Feb 13
Yes, practice makes perfect but of course you should know first if what you're practicing is the right thing because it may end up you are doing and practicing the wrong things. I also believed we don't need perfect grammar if we are doing usual conversation but I work in a company and do some Japanese documents. Grammar and proper way of writing in Japanese is very essential.
@dorannmwin (36392)
• United States
26 Feb 13
Unfortunately, I'm only fluent in my native tongue, which is English. However, I would like to have the opportunity to become fluent in Spanish because that is another language that is commonly used near where I live. I think that the reason that I've had difficulty in learning a second language is because of the fact that I didn't try to start learning a second language when I was very young. My son, on the other hand, is in an immersion kindergarten class and I think that he will easily become fluent in Spanish as he has a lot of exposure to it.
@bryanwmc (1051)
• Malaysia
21 Feb 13
I am curious, how long did it take for you to get a basic grasp of Nihongo and understand what was being said? I suppose that ,you being physically there , you will be forced to adapt quicker and pick up the language because there isn't much choice when everywhere you go people only speak the tonque...
As for me , I am Malaysian Chinese married to a Japanese to whom i speak english and very little Japanese coz there is no need ,been married 13 years and still havent gotten past the stage of Hajimemashite and etc..
My kid is way ahead of me, using exclusively Japanese with her MOM and Grandparents or aunts on the maternal side, english at home with me ,uses Mandarin or english with relatives from Dad's side, Malay with teachers in school, as for languages, i am fluent in mandarin and cantonese and struggling to pick up other Chinese dialects, coz in Malaysia, different parts are made up of different dialect speaking Chinese not very dissimilar to mainland. China. Of course i am also fluent in my national language of Bahasa Malaysia and if there is a language i ll like to learn to speak, it ll be French then Spanish in that order.
@kourdapya (924)
• Philippines
19 Feb 13
Of course I want to learn other languages, but I think I want to master English first before learning any other. I would prefer French and Mandarin. I also think that it's easy to learn the language if you live in the country that speaks it because you can practice it in your day to day life.
@lloydbelleza (1227)
• Philippines
19 Feb 13
Yes, it is easier when you always hear them speaking but still it doesn't mean you get enough practice unless you make friends with people who are willing to speak with you. 
All the best in your English!
All the best in your English! 
@jeanneyvonne (5501)
• Philippines
19 Feb 13
French and German would be the first. And perhaps a variant of English like British English. Spanish might be easier since my country uses a lot of Spanish words in everyday speak. Anyway, I just hope to get the nasal thing right because they are all European languages.
@lloydbelleza (1227)
• Philippines
20 Feb 13
I am bad with nasal thing. That makes it more difficult. I hope you get to learn more languages. Because especially in Europe I think it's fun when you just cross countries and be able to change your language as you wish.
@Pegasus72 (1898)
•
14 Mar 13
I grew up speaking English, learned Spanish and French which I would like to get more fluent in, but I would like to learn German, and Yiddish.
@Janurmas (642)
• Indonesia
19 Feb 13
I would like to learn Japanese. I want to learn Japanese because I want to get a job and live in Japan. I like the Japanese culture and I like their technology. Knowing Japanese language oral and written is required by many companies in my country, because there are a lot of Japanese companies in my country.
@lloydbelleza (1227)
• Philippines
20 Feb 13
It's a must if you really want to live and work here. Although you don't really need to a lot. Just the basic will do. You at least need to know the usual words that will be used in your workplace. And from that, when you get here you will further your learning. I tell you learning Japanese becomes easier when you already get here. All the best.
@ArielAhhhh (126)
• China
18 Mar 13
Italian, i want to learn Itlaian so much. I love its sound, its fantastic but for me now, i get a big headache on how to pronounciate the letter R, I dont know how to roll my tongue and make this sound.
But anyway, i am practice makes perfect.
@lloydbelleza (1227)
• Philippines
20 Feb 13
Yes. This age, learning English is a must. You get more opportunity when you know the English Language. Best of luck to your English learning. I hope you catch English soon.
@sminut13 (1783)
• Singapore
21 Feb 13
Learning a language can be difficult you are doing it by yourself. You need to have people to talk to, or things that you can listen to for you to be able to pick up the language faster. If you have the passion for it, all the more better.
As for me, initially, I was content with what I knew, which was my own national language and english. But recently, I've begun to feel that my family might be in need of a change, or rather, it's my husband's thinking and I agree with him. If it happens, we might be looking at immigration and for that, we need to know the country's language. But knowing another language is always a plus, and so, I'm trying to learn french. It's hard especially when I don't have much to go on except for online and mobile learning. But that can get boring too. And I might not know the grammar mistakes I am making and it will be hard for me to remember the vocabulary, not to mention the pronunciation as it's totally different from english.
But still, I'll keep trying when I'm not lazy. At least, even if I don't progress much, I'll know a little more about the language.
@redredrose (1105)
• United States
20 Feb 13
I have always wanted to learn a new and or different language than just English. Since i am Jewish i want to learn Hebrew or Yiddish. I have always wanted to learn Spanish. I have started learning Dutch because i have a dutch friend. Now my Dutch friend does know English but i thought i'd learn Dutch because of them. yes learning a different language can be hard but fun. I am learning dutch by looking up the Dutch words on the internet. Tho that is kind of hard since i don't know how to pronounce the words and a cd would help me hear how the words are pronounced. So maybe i will get a cd of Dutch language and learn that way as well.
@babyeve (1048)
• Seychelles
20 Feb 13
I would like to learn Italian because I like the sound of it. Right now, the only thing keeping me from learning it is time as I have got a lot on my plate right now. I have got audio CD for Italian language though and I know how to write a little bit of Italian though. Much more, I am able to understand it if I listen to it carefully. I love meeting people and learning their culture as well.
@blackrusty (3519)
• Mexico
19 Feb 13
Spanish is the one that I need to learn as I moved to mexico and don't speak it but a few basic words
@tyleremy (170)
• China
20 Feb 13
Hi there!
I'd like to learn French and Spanish.Let's say I could insist on learning without a teacher.It is no way you can speak fluent laguage just by yourself.I used to learn spanish grammar for 2 weeks and I found what I was doing is meaningless and all of sudden I quit.I swear I'll go back to learn those laguages when I have such kind of friends from France and Spain or to take a class, but it costs too much.
