I was considering taking some foreign language classes to meet some general education elective requirements. I am an English-speaking American. I took 3 semesters of Spanish in high school, but I remember very little and since I’ve already taken some, they’d probably want to put me in a non-introductory class, and I don’t know if I could handle that. (And I still can’t roll Rs).
I have been trying to decide between Russian, German, and Italian, so I need some opinions, preferably from English-speakers who learned one or more of them. Which language is the most difficult, and why? Which is easiest, and why?
Also, if you have any other thoughts on reasons to take one or another, let me know. I’ve never been off of this continent and would like to visit other countries some day. I’d like to be able to better appreciate their literature, music, etc. (Say, understanding opera a little better, perhaps).
My Spanish teacher way back in high school spoke 13 languages and she told us that for an English speaker, Russian was hell, especially on the vocal cords(English, she said, was the most difficult for the non-native speaker to learn).
Go with Italian. Very sexy. Everything sounds romantic in Italian, unless you’re yelling it, then even the wine list sounds like you’re cussing someone out.
Oh, and I don’t know about anyone else, but having some Spanish in my background when I went to learn Italian (beyond the colorful phrases used by my father’s family), made it a bit easier for me.
It is a little difficult in the beginning, but once you see the logic behind the language, it makes it a lot easier. (Once you learn the basics, you can easily spell and pronounce every word!)
Of course, if you are thinking in terms of using a language for bettering your earnings…well, Chinese or Arabic would be good (both, IMHO. very hard to learn).
But to be honest, any second language will help you in life.
They say the best way to learn a language is in bed.
So…if you would like someone in bed with you, which language would you like them to speak, other than English?
Towards betterment of your earnings - spanish or russian, IMO. They’re the two most widely spoken languages (aside from english) in the world - spanish in all of Latin America, and russian in all of central and eastern Europe. These are some of the regions with the greatest scope for economic development, and knowing either or both languages will be a huge advantage for you.
German is kinda easy - at least, I found it easy enough. I learnt it in India for about 6 months, and after spending 3 months in Germany, I speak it like a german! Dmark is right about it being a logical language… there are lots of basic rules, but once you know them, it’s easy sailing.
Of the three you mentioned, go for Russian. Never hurts to know a different alphabet.
I was taught Korean while in the service. You probably don’t have a teacher for that, but I would recommend an Asian language if you can get it, and Korean has an alphabet that’s easy to learn. It’s all phonetic, so if you see a word you can pronounce it.
I highly doubt that they will require you to skip a semester - in fact you would probably have a hard time convincing them to let you take anything but the introductory course without a placement exam. Also, (at least when I was in school) the rule was 2 semesters of HS language equalled one semester of college. I took 3 years of Spanish in high school and still started over in college.
Also, don’t worry about rolling your Rs. I went to Cabo San Lucas a couple of years ago. Ordering a meal, I diligently rolled my Rs where I was supposed to. Then the waiter repeated the order back to me without a rolled R in range. And gave me that “Silly American” look. Lesson: Rolled Rs are regional and not a requirement.
The Spanish you took in high school will probably come back once you start taking it again, even if you don’t think you remember much now. I’d vote for building on what you’ve already got, and taking either Spanish or Italian. (Spanish would be a more useful language for general travel, unless of course you’re particularly interested in Italy.)
well, depending on where you live in the US, Spanish might be something you can use on a regular basis. God knows I wish I had taken spanish instead of french in high school. I would have learned just as little, but actually used it ever since instead of never using french.
I learned it in high school - once you master their alphabet, you can say ANYTHING in their language, it’s so incredibly phonetic.
Also, Russian only has three verb tenses. A bunch of cases, but only three verb tenses. Russian is very easy to translate into English, not to mention that it’s also very impressive to fellow Americans.
If you decide not to go for Russian, then I’d say Italian. Probably not as useful as German, but you’ll definitely have a far easier time learning it with the Spanish background.
I recommend American Sign Language (ASL). There are tons of uses for it (you can talk across a room; you can talk to a friend in the next car without rolling your windows down; if you lose your hearing due to illness, accident, or age, you already have a built in way to communicate; the deaf community lacks an abundance of doctors, lawyers, mechanics and other professionals with whom they can comfortably communicate - so you have a built in clientele for whatever field you chose; tons of other reasons).
Its relatively easy to learn if you have a good teacher, although becoming fluent takes a lot of practice. Also, if you can’t remember a word, you can fingerspell it. (Try doing that with a spoken language!)
I’d learn German. It’s incredibly easy. I got a higher at the highest level of it without any effort whatsoever! Most of the words are very simular to English so it is easy to take educated guesses at what German speakers are saying. Not only is it easy but it is widey used and could come in very handly.
Of the three you mentioned, I’d go with Spanish. Hispanics are becoming a huge section of the US workforce and customer base. Being able to clearly communicate with Spanish speaking people will have many benefits. Plus, you get hella better service in Mexican restaurants if you can speak Spanish.
As to other languages, I’d say Farsi or Chinese. These will be two of the highest demand languages in the near future.
