Next language to study

Which of the following languages should I study next?

Korean
12
21%
Arabic
7
12%
Finnish
14
25%
Hungarian
10
18%
Russian
6
11%
Dutch
8
14%
 
Total votes: 57

User avatar
Lietmotiv
Posts:1658
Joined:2008-06-09, 9:47
Gender:male
Country:DEGermany (Deutschland)
Re: Next language to study

Postby Lietmotiv » 2008-12-21, 6:55

I'd choose Finnish.I think it's a very difficult language,but it's 'exotic' ,very few people know it. In Romania,the translators of rare languages(what we consider Finnish,Danish,Arabic,Portuguese) are the best paid

I voted for Russian. It's easier than German (the gender is usally obvious instead of arbitary) and once you know it, Polish, Czech and the other Slavic languages won't be that hard to understand


It depends . I am not sure how easy Russian is. I cannot believe one who starts learning it at 20 could every speak it like a native. P.S. I am fluent in Russian and I don't unerstand Polish,Czech or other Slavic language

User avatar
Formiko
Posts:13388
Joined:2008-01-25, 10:21
Real Name:Dosvdali
Gender:male
Location:Ashghabat
Country:TMTurkmenistan (Türkmenistan)

Re: Next language to study

Postby Formiko » 2008-12-21, 7:08

AndreiB wrote:
It depends . I am not sure how easy Russian is. I cannot believe one who starts learning it at 20 could every speak it like a native. P.S. I am fluent in Russian and I don't unerstand Polish,Czech or other Slavic language


Really? Well, I can understand a good amount of Polish (backwards Russian) if I listen very carefuly, and quite a good amount of Bulgarian. I don't have enough contact with Czechs or Serbs to test my theory though. I had a Ukrainian student once who told his Ukrainian friend before class about his "sexual escapades" the night before. I know exactly what they did, where and for how long. (90% of it being lies ;) )I figured it out just from my knowlege of Russian.
Cherokee Indian STILL improving German.
Getting reacquainted with Swahili Msaada!
In no particular order
[flag]eo[/flag][flag]de[/flag][flag]es[/flag][flag]yo[/flag][flag]chr[/flag][flag]ru[/flag]

User avatar
Lietmotiv
Posts:1658
Joined:2008-06-09, 9:47
Gender:male
Country:DEGermany (Deutschland)

Re: Next language to study

Postby Lietmotiv » 2008-12-21, 7:22

Formiko wrote:
Really? Well, I can understand a good amount of Polish (backwards Russian) if I listen very carefuly, and quite a good amount of Bulgarian. I don't have enough contact with Czechs or Serbs to test my theory though. I had a Ukrainian student once who told his Ukrainian friend before class about his "sexual escapades" the night before. I know exactly what they did, where and for how long. (90% of it being lies ;) )I figured it out just from my knowlege of Russian.

Usually all the Russians I know don't even understand Ukrainian(or at least this is what they say). I can say I am able to understand a certain % of written Ukrainian,or even Slovak,but when it comes to listening I don't understand a thing.

User avatar
Formiko
Posts:13388
Joined:2008-01-25, 10:21
Real Name:Dosvdali
Gender:male
Location:Ashghabat
Country:TMTurkmenistan (Türkmenistan)

Re: Next language to study

Postby Formiko » 2008-12-21, 8:22

AndreiB wrote:
Formiko wrote:
Really? Well, I can understand a good amount of Polish (backwards Russian) if I listen very carefuly, and quite a good amount of Bulgarian. I don't have enough contact with Czechs or Serbs to test my theory though. I had a Ukrainian student once who told his Ukrainian friend before class about his "sexual escapades" the night before. I know exactly what they did, where and for how long. (90% of it being lies ;) )I figured it out just from my knowlege of Russian.

Usually all the Russians I know don't even understand Ukrainian(or at least this is what they say). I can say I am able to understand a certain % of written Ukrainian,or even Slovak,but when it comes to listening I don't understand a thing.


Here are some sample words I heard him say: рудий жиру which sounds like рыжий жира,
He was also saying кричала and шлепок жир дупа or something similar, жири сиси, шлюха, хуи, жиру червона пизда and other colorful terms. Just from those words and expressions like
три години, I KNEW he wasn't talking about studying :)

I do remember that one of the guys was Russian, who spoke Ukrainian, so he may have been code switching back and forth. I couldn't give you every word they said, but I knew certain details.
Cherokee Indian STILL improving German.
Getting reacquainted with Swahili Msaada!
In no particular order
[flag]eo[/flag][flag]de[/flag][flag]es[/flag][flag]yo[/flag][flag]chr[/flag][flag]ru[/flag]

User avatar
Sean of the Dead
Posts:3884
Joined:2008-10-11, 17:51
Real Name:Sean Jorgenson
Gender:male
Location:Kent
Country:USUnited States (United States)

Re: Next language to study

Postby Sean of the Dead » 2008-12-21, 21:51

TaylorS wrote:Once I've gotten competency in Spanish I might try a Germanic language, perhaps German (again) or Norwegian (since I'm of Norwegian ancestry


Please start with Norwegian first, then move your way to German, unless you want to cry like I did when I found out how super freaking easy Norwegian is compared to German., AFTER I had been studying German for 7 months. :yep:

Also I would recommend starting with an easier Slavic language than Russian, say Macedonian or Bulgarian. ;)
Main focuses: [flag]kw[/flag] [flag]he[/flag]
Sub focus: Plautdietsch
On my own: [flag]is[/flag]

User avatar
Schultz
Posts:131
Joined:2008-12-17, 14:52
Gender:male
Country:GBUnited Kingdom (United Kingdom)

Re: Next language to study

Postby Schultz » 2008-12-21, 21:55

Have to agree with Sjheiss. German is the language I absolutely love above any other, but Norwegian (i've just started learning, about a month ago) is a lot easier to get to grips with. It's a great language too, I'm really enjoying it. Start with that, then try German later. :)

User avatar
Lietmotiv
Posts:1658
Joined:2008-06-09, 9:47
Gender:male
Country:DEGermany (Deutschland)

Re: Next language to study

Postby Lietmotiv » 2008-12-21, 21:57

I voted for Finnish

User avatar
Sean of the Dead
Posts:3884
Joined:2008-10-11, 17:51
Real Name:Sean Jorgenson
Gender:male
Location:Kent
Country:USUnited States (United States)

Re: Next language to study

Postby Sean of the Dead » 2008-12-21, 22:00

Schultz wrote:Have to agree with Sjheiss. German is the language I absolutely love above any other, but Norwegian (i've just started learning, about a month ago) is a lot easier to get to grips with. It's a great language too, I'm really enjoying it. Start with that, then try German later. :)


Glad someone agrees with me. :D
I think just about every single aspect of Norwegian is easier than German. Verbs don't conjugate for person, no cases (except pronouns, same as English), most nouns have regular plurals, unlike Germans 12 different ways to make a plural, only 2 genders, and most are of the common gender. :y:

And FYI, I voted for Hungarian, because it seems cooler to me than Finnish. :partyhat:
Main focuses: [flag]kw[/flag] [flag]he[/flag]
Sub focus: Plautdietsch
On my own: [flag]is[/flag]

User avatar
ILuvEire
Posts:10398
Joined:2007-12-08, 17:41
Gender:male
Location:Austin
Country:USUnited States (United States)
Contact:

Re: Next language to study

Postby ILuvEire » 2008-12-22, 0:50

sjheiss wrote:
TaylorS wrote:Once I've gotten competency in Spanish I might try a Germanic language, perhaps German (again) or Norwegian (since I'm of Norwegian ancestry


Please start with Norwegian first, then move your way to German, unless you want to cry like I did when I found out how super freaking easy Norwegian is compared to German., AFTER I had been studying German for 7 months. :yep:

Also I would recommend starting with an easier Slavic language than Russian, say Macedonian or Bulgarian. ;)


I agree, Norwegian is a good precursor, especially to get you into the mind-set of a real Germanic language (because English is a bit different). It's always hard to start on another language family (or branch).

And while I'm thinking about this, check out a Polynesian language (Hawai'ian if you're in the USA, Maori if you're in NZ/Australia, Samoan if you are anywhere else.) They are pretty easy, but still VERY non-IE. Switching from Italian to Japanese will make you cry. Sorry, that has nothing to do with the topic, or what I was replying to. >.<
[flag]de[/flag] [flag]da[/flag] [flag]fr-qc[/flag] [flag]haw[/flag] [flag]he[/flag] [flag]es[/flag]
Current focus: [flag]ga[/flag] [flag]ar[/flag]
Facebook | tumblr | Twitter
“We need to make books cool again. If you go home with somebody and they don't have books, don't fuck them.” —John Waters

User avatar
loqu
Posts:11891
Joined:2007-08-15, 21:12
Real Name:Daniel
Gender:male
Location:Barcelona, Catalonia

Re: Next language to study

Postby loqu » 2008-12-22, 1:46

I'm interested in Polynesian stuff, but why Samoan in particular?
Нека људи уживају у стварима.
Let people enjoy things.

User avatar
ILuvEire
Posts:10398
Joined:2007-12-08, 17:41
Gender:male
Location:Austin
Country:USUnited States (United States)
Contact:

Re: Next language to study

Postby ILuvEire » 2008-12-22, 2:05

loqu wrote:I'm interested in Polynesian stuff, but why Samoan in particular?


It has the largest amount of native speakers. Hawai'ian only has 25,000 native speakers, and Maori has 150,000. Samoan on the other hand has 550,000. I just assumed that it would be more available for other countries. I think Hawai'ian is only popular here because it's spoken here. Manx has a similar amount of speakers, but it's impossible to find info to learn it.

There are Hawai'ian materials in Japanese, English, and Tagalog. I assume the same languages are true for Maori (in addition to Indonesian, possibly). Those are the only places you can find resources.
[flag]de[/flag] [flag]da[/flag] [flag]fr-qc[/flag] [flag]haw[/flag] [flag]he[/flag] [flag]es[/flag]
Current focus: [flag]ga[/flag] [flag]ar[/flag]
Facebook | tumblr | Twitter
“We need to make books cool again. If you go home with somebody and they don't have books, don't fuck them.” —John Waters

User avatar
TaylorS
Posts:1013
Joined:2008-10-30, 13:56
Real Name:Taylor Selseth
Gender:male
Location:Moorhead-Fargo
Country:USUnited States (United States)

Re: Next language to study

Postby TaylorS » 2008-12-22, 5:15

sjheiss wrote:
TaylorS wrote:Once I've gotten competency in Spanish I might try a Germanic language, perhaps German (again) or Norwegian (since I'm of Norwegian ancestry


Please start with Norwegian first, then move your way to German, unless you want to cry like I did when I found out how super freaking easy Norwegian is compared to German., AFTER I had been studying German for 7 months. :yep:

Also I would recommend starting with an easier Slavic language than Russian, say Macedonian or Bulgarian. ;)


Thanks for the advice! Norwegian it is, then!
Native: English
Learning: Spanish, Latin

Linguistic Interests: Historical Linguistics, Typology, Phonology, Phonetics, Morphology.

Travis B.
Posts:2019
Joined:2005-06-13, 6:35
Real Name:Travis Bemann
Gender:male
Location:Maryland
Country:USUnited States (United States)

Re: Next language to study

Postby Travis B. » 2008-12-22, 5:30

Heh - German is not that hard - unless you have to remember the gender and plural of any given word... heh
secretGeek on CodingHorror wrote:Type inference is not a gateway drug to more dynamically typed languages.

Rather "var" is a gateway drug toward "real" type inferencing, of which var is but a tiny cigarette to the greater crack mountain!

User avatar
Formiko
Posts:13388
Joined:2008-01-25, 10:21
Real Name:Dosvdali
Gender:male
Location:Ashghabat
Country:TMTurkmenistan (Türkmenistan)

Re: Next language to study

Postby Formiko » 2008-12-22, 5:59

Travis B. wrote:Heh - German is not that hard - unless you have to remember the gender and plural of any given word... heh


Actually, German is pleasant as long as you don't mind sounding like a foreighner. Keep everything masculine, and remember separate the auxiliary verbs, and you're fine. :)
Cherokee Indian STILL improving German.
Getting reacquainted with Swahili Msaada!
In no particular order
[flag]eo[/flag][flag]de[/flag][flag]es[/flag][flag]yo[/flag][flag]chr[/flag][flag]ru[/flag]

User avatar
ILuvEire
Posts:10398
Joined:2007-12-08, 17:41
Gender:male
Location:Austin
Country:USUnited States (United States)
Contact:

Re: Next language to study

Postby ILuvEire » 2008-12-22, 7:16

Travis B. wrote:Heh - German is not that hard - unless you have to remember the gender and plural of any given word... heh


Have you tried Norwegian? Much easier.
[flag]de[/flag] [flag]da[/flag] [flag]fr-qc[/flag] [flag]haw[/flag] [flag]he[/flag] [flag]es[/flag]
Current focus: [flag]ga[/flag] [flag]ar[/flag]
Facebook | tumblr | Twitter
“We need to make books cool again. If you go home with somebody and they don't have books, don't fuck them.” —John Waters

User avatar
Smitty
Posts:381
Joined:2008-05-28, 7:47
Real Name:Matthew Smith
Gender:male
Country:GBUnited Kingdom (United Kingdom)

Re: Next language to study

Postby Smitty » 2008-12-22, 10:32

I voted Finnish purely on the languages appearance.

Korean would have been my second choice on the list.

User avatar
Formiko
Posts:13388
Joined:2008-01-25, 10:21
Real Name:Dosvdali
Gender:male
Location:Ashghabat
Country:TMTurkmenistan (Türkmenistan)

Re: Next language to study

Postby Formiko » 2008-12-22, 17:12

ILuvEire wrote:
Travis B. wrote:Heh - German is not that hard - unless you have to remember the gender and plural of any given word... heh


Have you tried Norwegian? Much easier.


Why not Swedish, which has 3 times the speakers?
Cherokee Indian STILL improving German.
Getting reacquainted with Swahili Msaada!
In no particular order
[flag]eo[/flag][flag]de[/flag][flag]es[/flag][flag]yo[/flag][flag]chr[/flag][flag]ru[/flag]

User avatar
Sean of the Dead
Posts:3884
Joined:2008-10-11, 17:51
Real Name:Sean Jorgenson
Gender:male
Location:Kent
Country:USUnited States (United States)

Re: Next language to study

Postby Sean of the Dead » 2008-12-22, 20:49

Formiko wrote:
ILuvEire wrote:
Travis B. wrote:Heh - German is not that hard - unless you have to remember the gender and plural of any given word... heh


Have you tried Norwegian? Much easier.


Why not Swedish, which has 3 times the speakers?


Because everyone knows Swedish looks ugly (especially with their umlauts) and they sound funny. :silly:
Main focuses: [flag]kw[/flag] [flag]he[/flag]
Sub focus: Plautdietsch
On my own: [flag]is[/flag]

User avatar
TaylorS
Posts:1013
Joined:2008-10-30, 13:56
Real Name:Taylor Selseth
Gender:male
Location:Moorhead-Fargo
Country:USUnited States (United States)

Re: Next language to study

Postby TaylorS » 2008-12-22, 20:53

Formiko wrote:
ILuvEire wrote:
Travis B. wrote:Heh - German is not that hard - unless you have to remember the gender and plural of any given word... heh


Have you tried Norwegian? Much easier.


Why not Swedish, which has 3 times the speakers?


Because, as I stated above, I'm of Norwegian ancestry.
Native: English
Learning: Spanish, Latin

Linguistic Interests: Historical Linguistics, Typology, Phonology, Phonetics, Morphology.

User avatar
Kasuya
Posts:1008
Joined:2008-11-14, 7:31
Country:USUnited States (United States)

Re: Next language to study

Postby Kasuya » 2008-12-23, 4:13

ILuvEire wrote:I agree, Norwegian is a good precursor, especially to get you into the mind-set of a real Germanic language (because English is a bit different).


What makes English an atypical Germanic language (if that's what you're saying)?


Return to “General Language Forum”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 5 guests