Hypothetical scenario: What language would you like to know for just seven days?

[Interrobang]

@jtur88

OK, I’d go there and spend $49K on Krugerrands.

Expense request denied.

[Interrobang]

@Inner_Stickler

PIE

And I’ll spend that 50 grand on some recording equipment and try to get as complete a grammar and glossary down as I can in 7 days.

Someone I was talking to off board mentioned this. It’s a great idea.

[Kiyoshi]

I’d pick Ancient Egyptian. A huge amount of the language has been decyphered, but no-one knows how it was pronounced. So I’d record myself reading lots of stuff, write plenty of dialogue that I could include in a mummy movie, and use the $50,000 as a deposit on a house

[Yllaria]

Even if dead languages are legal for this thread, I’d look for a dying language and spend the money to visit the remaining speakers. I’d record it if they were interested.

I remember hearing of one language that was down to two known speakers - but they had had a falling out and refused to speak to each other any more. Unfortunately, I don’t know if I’m remembering it from an article or from a short story.

[Atomic_Mama]

Japanese. Rural Japan plus two nights in Kyoto.

[Arrendajo]

Italy. I’d tour Italy on a Vespa.

[scootergirl]

I’m with Arrendajo on this. It would be fantastic.

[ILikeForeignLanguages]

@Interrobang

Here’s the situation:

You’re offered the chance to become fluent in any language that you don’t already know. This won’t work for a language that you can already speak, but poorly. (How? Genie. Or Matrix-style insta-upload. Or both.)

The catch: You’ll retain that fluency for just seven days. After 168 hours, you’ll revert back to your current ignorance of how to speak that language.

The bonus: You get a budget of up to $50,000 and a free week of vacation to make the most of your temporary skill.

What language do you choose, and how do you spend your seven days of fluency?

Ooo, that’s hard. Okay, let me see: I would choose Irish Gaelic and visit a Gaeltacht for a week.

[RivkahChaya]

It would be interesting to say “The language of the Voynich manuscript” just to find out whether it’s a real language or not.

[Springtime_for_Spacers]

@Northern_Piper

Etruscan. I’d spend the week and the money talking to a video, creating as large a deposit of Etruscan words as possible, and explaining the grammar and meaning as much as possible. Probably would want pictures to point at and talk about for the video, so there’s a correlation that Etruscan scholars can use to reconstruct the language after my week is up.

On the same track I’d go for Linear A (Minoan) and use my 50 grand (OK, 50,000 dollars) to go to Crete along with the Minoan scholar of my choice. I have studied the Minoans myself but it would be good to have an up to date expert in tow.

[installLSC]

Whatever language the Indus script was.

[Northern_Piper]

@Inner_Stickler

PIE

And I’ll spend that 50 grand on some recording equipment and try to get as complete a grammar and glossary down as I can in 7 days.

@Northern_Piper

Etruscan. I’d spend the week and the money talking to a video, creating as large a deposit of Etruscan words as possible, and explaining the grammar and meaning as much as possible. Probably would want pictures to point at and talk about for the video, so there’s a correlation that Etruscan scholars can use to reconstruct the language after my week is up.

Interesting simul-post, Inner Stickler!

You obviously think bigger than me!

[amarinth]

Russian & I’d take the trans-siberian railway from Vladivostok to Saint Petersburg.

That takes seven days non-stop, and I would want to stop along the way, so I’d only be able to speak the language for the middle section of the trip.

[JustinC]

Italian. Tour Italy in a rented Ferrari and eat and drink very, very well.

[TheSeaOtter]

@Springtime_for_Spacers

On the same track I’d go for Linear A (Minoan) and use my 50 grand (OK, 50,000 dollars) to go to Crete along with the Minoan scholar of my choice. I have studied the Minoans myself but it would be good to have an up to date expert in tow.

I, too, immediately thought of Linear A, but the idea of bringing an actual expert along is a good addition. Clearly taking this chance to read some previously undeciphered script would be the correct choice. I can always learn Japanese or German the old fashioned way if I really need to, but no amount of study is going to make me fluent in Cretan Hieroglyphics or Olmec.

[Doctor_Jackson]

@Arrendajo

Italy…Vespa.

@JustinC

Italian…Ferrari.

Sorry, looks like you two already speak the language!

I think I would go with Portuguese and spend the time and money in and around Rio. Festival, anyone?

[Arrendajo]

@scootergirl

I’m with Arrendajo on this. It would be fantastic.

When do we leave?

[ZipperJJ]

Slovak. I’d like to travel to Slovakia and talk to some people who maybe are as old as or older than my grandparents, and get to know about the country and where my grandparents came from.

Granted, I’m sure I could accomplish a lot of this in English but it’d sure be fun in Slovak. Also I’d need the $50k for the trip anyway

[OldGuy]

I’d go with Indo-European or some other dead language and record it for future use. IE would be fascinating, but it might be better to opt for a language with a lot of untranslated documents. If I actually had the offer, I’d want to study up on which language I should opt for.

[Hari_Seldon]

Either Japanese or Italian. And I would really live it up for that week.