Besides English, What Languages Do You Speak?

[Mr Vim]

I always thought Arabic was one of the more beautiful written languages. When it's written formally that is, the informal not so much.

I took Spanish in high school and I don't speak it...
I took Arabic at the academy and I don't speak it...

I would love to learn German eventually, as my family is German but we'll see.

 

[Widebrim]

But you live in America... How did you learn to speak properly ?

Cor! Very funny, bloke...Or should I say, "Dang! That's a trip, dude," instead?

 

[Harp]

I always thought Arabic was one of the more beautiful written languages. When it's written formally that is, the informal not so much.
I took Arabic at the academy and I don't speak it...

I would love to learn German eventually, as my family is German but we'll see.

How many terms of Arabic did you take? I might be spending some time
in the MidEast next year, a crash course has been recommended, might give it a go.
Und viel gluck mit Deutsch.

 

[Edward]

I always thought Arabic was one of the more beautiful written languages. When it's written formally that is, the informal not so much.

I took Spanish in high school and I don't speak it...
I took Arabic at the academy and I don't speak it...

I would love to learn German eventually, as my family is German but we'll see.

Although, ironically enough, it was French I took for much longer, I now find German the more 'comfortable' language - maybe some sort of ancestral voice? My German and Swiss roots are too far back for anyone living to ever have met them, but I do often think there is something to the notion of inherited memory, albeit in the subconcious. German is a wonderful, rich language, very logical. The only pain is their insistence on having sixteen words for "the". I mea, I've only really ever found a use for one....

 

[hatophile]

I can speak decent Spanish, but tenses still give me a fit. I've had Cuban friends, a Mexican girlfriend (many years ago), visited Argentina and exposed to many South American immigrants, so my accent probably varies depending on who I speak it with.

I know smatterings of other languages just for fun, forgot most of my High School French. I wish I could learn Gaelic, since my mother's grandparents were Irish. I may try someday when I have time.

 

[george]

I speak Greek pretty fluently as a result of my family. My mom's side is all Greek. I can do Spanish as well as a result of having taken five years of it in school, but I'm rusty and not very confident in it. It's good enough that I can communicate using it when I have to.

Would like to learn French because my dad is French Canadian and I think I could appreciate the culture and the language, but I've got other priorities at the moment. If I were ever to visit France I'd at least like the chance to learn the language first.

 

[C-dot]

Would like to learn French because my dad is French Canadian and I think I could appreciate the culture and the language, but I've got other priorities at the moment. If I were ever to visit France I'd at least like the chance to learn the language first.

If you go to France speaking the Québécois dialect, you'll have baguettes thrown at you! I speak Parisian French myself, and I cannot understand the Québécois. It's almost like a patois.

 

[TCMfan25]

I'm very glad of that . I have no problems with Americans speaking American English (in fact I quite like the sound of the accent) but what I really resent is that all over the world people who learn English as a second language speak it with an American pronunciation. I'm not a fan of Top Gear though simply because I can't stand the main presenter .

How can you hate Jezza? Just look at that face...

Or do you hate Hammond? I hate Hammond!

 

[TCMfan25]

I'm very glad of that . I have no problems with Americans speaking American English (in fact I quite like the sound of the accent) but what I really resent is that all over the world people who learn English as a second language speak it with an American pronunciation. I'm not a fan of Top Gear though simply because I can't stand the main presenter .

It will certainly prove useful when I go back to live in "The Fatherland".

 

[V.C. Brunswick]

If you go to France speaking the Québécois dialect, you'll have baguettes thrown at you! I speak Parisian French myself, and I cannot understand the Québécois. It's almost like a patois.

I suspect that Québécois is a form of French that was spoken in France in the 17th and 18th centuries.

 

[Harp]

I speak Greek pretty fluently as a result of my family. My mom's side is all Greek.

Yasu George.
Welcome to the Lounge.
Greece stole my heart many years ago, and Thessalonikki is my second home.

 

[avedwards]

How can you hate Jezza? Just look at that face...

Or do you hate Hammond? I hate Hammond!

fftopic:
I have no problem with Hammond or May. I don't like Jeremy Clarkson though due to his arrogant attitude and casual xenophobia which sometimes borders on racism.

 

[TCMfan25]

Jeremy is my absolute favorite.

 

[Tomasso]

Thessalonikki is my second home.

After Chicaggo.........

 

[avedwards]

Jeremy is my absolute favorite.

I can understand his appeal as I used to think he was "cool" too until recently. This event changed my mind a bit, as well as his posts in the Daily Mail which I thoroughly disagree with but will not discuss on here as I would not like to breach the FL rules.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/tv-and-radio/2011/feb/04/top-gear-mexico-insults-sorry

 

[C-dot]

I suspect that Québécois is a form of French that was spoken in France in the 17th and 18th centuries.

You're right. Many people think its derived from Old French, but that was much earlier than the colonization. I've only ever heard it in informal registers, which probably contributes to my confusion lol

 

[Drappa]

^I agree, Quebecois sounds nothing like French French. It always reminds me of the kind of the Pennsylvania German the Amish speak.
I am fluent in German and English, and at one time was fluent in Turkish and French, but have lost a lot of both. I learned French in school for nearly ten years and by the end was good enough to do presentations and read Sartre in the original, but haven't used it since High school and would love to pick it up again. I took Spanish for a year, but don't remember enough to claim I understand any really.
At some point I would also love to learn Arabic, but I know from friends whose parents are Arabic but who were born abroad how hard the pronunciation is. I think with any language it has to be lived for a while or else it will become useless and/or remain stilted.
My husband is currently learning German and it's driving him a bit mad, despite the fact that he already speaks Dutch and knows a fair bit of German. The Dativ and Akkusativ are ruining any pleasure he may have gotten out of it

 

[Chasseur]

I speak and read French pretty well, I used to live there and did a university degree there, but its declined somewhat in the decade or so since I lived there. Can read academic literature, understand conversation, and also communicate in the language. My written French is still pretty basic (heck my written English is not much better...).

I have a basic level of Hindi that I've been studying with great difficulty for the past 3-4 years. Not an easy language and its hard to find the time while working and not living in the country to make things stick...

I had a basic command of Russian years and years ago but that has lapsed to basic greetings/directions.

Given my French knowledge I taught myself to read Spanish in grad school, but it was really only enough to pass the grad school second research language skill requirement exam.

At various times I studied Korean, Japanese and German but really only a term of each so that is little more than "My name is... Where is the museum? etc."

 

[Renault]

Do not get the opportunity to practice my German or French much anymore. But every Bastille day I do call and old friend and I do sing her this certain anthem! Interestingly enough I was able to help two Basque gentlemen in the shop the other day find shotgun parts with my French as I couldn't make heads or tails of their dialectal Spanish. Wasn't the Basque dialect they were speaking, but it was nuthin' like the Spanish spoken here!!!!

Renault

 

[Marla]

I'm very glad of that . I have no problems with Americans speaking American English (in fact I quite like the sound of the accent) but what I really resent is that all over the world people who learn English as a second language speak it with an American pronunciation. I'm not a fan of Top Gear though simply because I can't stand the main presenter .

When I studied English while living in Russia I was taught British English, pronunciation and all. When I moved to the United States all the kids at school were pretty miffed by my British accent and unorthodox (to them) vocabulary. I've since adjusted.