Hey guys!
Because of my linguistic passion and the different experiences I've had putting it into practice in various ways, I've often found myself with people coming to me for language and study abroad-related advice, varying from how I've found certain aspects of specific languages and general tips and tricks to essentially asking "what do you think would be a good language for me to learn?"
Let me preface this by saying that I am by no means any sort of qualified language teacher, and my word should by no means be final on any of these pieces of advice I give here. At the end of the day, everyone is motivated by different things and learns in different ways, and should pay attention to and listen to those things.
That being said, I do have some thoughts and feelings on certain things that have helped me across the boards, and may help others as well. Hope you enjoy!
Because of my linguistic passion and the different experiences I've had putting it into practice in various ways, I've often found myself with people coming to me for language and study abroad-related advice, varying from how I've found certain aspects of specific languages and general tips and tricks to essentially asking "what do you think would be a good language for me to learn?"
Let me preface this by saying that I am by no means any sort of qualified language teacher, and my word should by no means be final on any of these pieces of advice I give here. At the end of the day, everyone is motivated by different things and learns in different ways, and should pay attention to and listen to those things.
That being said, I do have some thoughts and feelings on certain things that have helped me across the boards, and may help others as well. Hope you enjoy!
1) PICK A LANGUAGE YOU'RE INTERESTED IN (FOR THE LOVE OF GOD).
In my humble opinion, far too many people base their language learning off of criterion that are far too impersonal and practically-minded. Essentially, what will look best on a resume, be the most economically profitable, what's spoken by the most people. NO. It is my fervent belief that anyone thinking of learning a language should do a bit of research and exploration, and then choose one that sparks a genuine interest at a personal level, which touches something inside them, whether it's one spoken by their ancestors, offered in school, or which simply draws them in. And it honestly does not matter whether it's spoken by ten people in some isolated mountain village or a billion in the world's most populous country - no language is useless. Again, I will repeat - No. Language. Is. Useless. Every single one is a unique and irreplaceable lens through which to view the world, a defining facet of the people who speak it and every corner and iteration of their multifaceted histories, which grants access to an otherwise unavailable set of music, literature, stories, feelings, and sense of home. Thus I urge everyone to ignore numbers, statistics, and ground covered when choosing a language to learn, rather than forcing yourself to learn something you don't care for for "practical reasons." If you do, you'll have no passion for what you're learning, and likely come to resent it.
In my humble opinion, far too many people base their language learning off of criterion that are far too impersonal and practically-minded. Essentially, what will look best on a resume, be the most economically profitable, what's spoken by the most people. NO. It is my fervent belief that anyone thinking of learning a language should do a bit of research and exploration, and then choose one that sparks a genuine interest at a personal level, which touches something inside them, whether it's one spoken by their ancestors, offered in school, or which simply draws them in. And it honestly does not matter whether it's spoken by ten people in some isolated mountain village or a billion in the world's most populous country - no language is useless. Again, I will repeat - No. Language. Is. Useless. Every single one is a unique and irreplaceable lens through which to view the world, a defining facet of the people who speak it and every corner and iteration of their multifaceted histories, which grants access to an otherwise unavailable set of music, literature, stories, feelings, and sense of home. Thus I urge everyone to ignore numbers, statistics, and ground covered when choosing a language to learn, rather than forcing yourself to learn something you don't care for for "practical reasons." If you do, you'll have no passion for what you're learning, and likely come to resent it.
2) Music will become your best friend.
Music has proven to be an incredibly valuable tool for me in my language endeavors. If you're good at memorizing song lyrics and imitating melodies especially, it can be an excellent way to improve your pronunciation and comprehension. For instance, if I'm about to speak a language that I haven't used in a while and feel nervous about pronouncing it badly, I'll play a song I'm familiar with in that language and sing along, which does wonders for loosening the tongue and getting back into the groove of the pronunciation. Additionally, I would advise people to look up translated texts of songs in their native languages and target languages alike, as this can really help to see how certain grammatical patterns are conveyed and what they look like in action, and writing them down will be a great future reference point. I can't tell you how much Turkish translations of Coldplay or English translations of Splin (a Russian band) have helped me to improve my comprehension and jog my memory for old grammar I super need to review.
Music has proven to be an incredibly valuable tool for me in my language endeavors. If you're good at memorizing song lyrics and imitating melodies especially, it can be an excellent way to improve your pronunciation and comprehension. For instance, if I'm about to speak a language that I haven't used in a while and feel nervous about pronouncing it badly, I'll play a song I'm familiar with in that language and sing along, which does wonders for loosening the tongue and getting back into the groove of the pronunciation. Additionally, I would advise people to look up translated texts of songs in their native languages and target languages alike, as this can really help to see how certain grammatical patterns are conveyed and what they look like in action, and writing them down will be a great future reference point. I can't tell you how much Turkish translations of Coldplay or English translations of Splin (a Russian band) have helped me to improve my comprehension and jog my memory for old grammar I super need to review.
3) You have to find a balance of reference in your first language, and immersion.
In some of the language programs or classes I've been in, textbooks have been used which are entirely in simplified registers of the target languages, clearly with the intention for use in classes where the participants hail from different countries and may have no language in common to communicate in with each other and with the teacher, other than the target one. I have very mixed feelings about this. True, there is no substitute for immersion. It is an absolutely necessary component of the learning process, which you will need to engage with at some point at some level in order to achieve truly natural and fluid speaking and comprehension skills, whether it entails meeting with a group of native and fluent Chinese speakers once a week at home, or moving to Tanzania for four months to immerse yourself completely. But there is also no substitute for proper comprehension. In my opinion, one cannot properly study a language and benefit productively from immersion without first having a base of comprehension of grammar and basic vocabulary built from studying the target language in their first language, or at the very least one which they fluently understand. Otherwise, you won't know what you're saying, how the grammar that you're using is actually meant to be used. Having a base of comprehension through one's first language, and then engaging in immersive spaces is the way to go. Choose your learning materials wisely in this way.
4) Continuity is key, and can make all the difference.
In my opinion, repeated practice and keeping a language active in your mind is a more critical and realistic goal than constant advancement. The latter is not possible in every context; you may be in a place where you can't take a class for a while or one that exists is not accessible to you, or where you'll be hard-pressed to come by a native speaker (trust me, as someone who's been learning Icelandic for two years, I know). Advancement is certainly important and worthwhile, but your energy is a precious resource, and if you're finding yourself drained or stretched thin in your everyday existence, prioritize hearing or using the language somehow and keeping it active in your mind, remembering or putting what you know into context regularly.
As an example, I often struggle to discipline myself to sit down and work through methodical grammar exercises, particularly when my day to day life is already as academically focused as it is, being a fourth-year undergrad student. So on an average, I'll listen to some music in Portuguese and Icelandic, write a short composition in Italian, watch some movie clips in Swedish and Spanish and some Turkish YouTube videos, practice my Japanese writing, and read through an Icelandic Wikipedia page on a topic I'm familiar with. Even if my grammatical growth in these languages isn't perfect, at least this way I see and create things with them, and keep what I already know and am familiar with active in my mind by using it in context.
5) DON'T COMPARE YOURSELF TO OTHER LANGUAGE LEARNERS.
It's not healthy and no good can come of it. Everyone has different skills that manifest differently, and what works excellently for one person in their language learning endeavors may not work well at all for you, or vice versa. And that's okay! Stick to what's ideal for you and you'll be on your way to success! It's really easy to get caught up in inferiority complexes, feeling like you're not as good as other people around you. But sometimes those toxic mindsets can certainly come from within as well. In my case, I can say that (likely as a result of my latent childhood fantasies that I could become completely fluent in any language if I worked hard enough) I often feel guilty if I can't do everything in a target language, completely disregarding the fact that doing stuff in another language is HARD! And exhausting! And takes time! So remember to be kind to yourself and give yourself time as you work through the challenges of rewiring your mind. Keep in mind that:
A) Fluency as a concept is pretty much bullshit,
because no one can be completely 100% fluent in every possible context of use of any language, even their own (I know I feel like I understand far more in a context where I'm talking about languages in Icelandic or everyday activities in Turkish than I ever did in my math and science classrooms growing up, even though those subjects were being taught to me in my first language).
And B) people generally are appreciative of your efforts to learn their language! Of course you'll get the odd asshole here and there. But for every person who gets annoyed with you for not being competent enough, there will be ten more who will be touched that you're making the effort to use their language with them; even just a single word or greeting has the power to let people know that you're making an effort to adapt, to understand the medium of their frame of consciousness. If all you can do is introduce yourself, pay for some ice cream, and ask for directions at the moment, be proud of that! Heck, be proud if all you can do is say hi! People will still appreciate it. Conversations about communist ideology and astrophysics will come if that's what you want.
That's what comes to mind off the top of my head! Hope it can be helpful for people and you enjoyed reading. If anyone ever wants more tips or just wants to nerd out together, my DM's are always open.
All the best!
(I've been on a throwback music craze recently.)
In my opinion, repeated practice and keeping a language active in your mind is a more critical and realistic goal than constant advancement. The latter is not possible in every context; you may be in a place where you can't take a class for a while or one that exists is not accessible to you, or where you'll be hard-pressed to come by a native speaker (trust me, as someone who's been learning Icelandic for two years, I know). Advancement is certainly important and worthwhile, but your energy is a precious resource, and if you're finding yourself drained or stretched thin in your everyday existence, prioritize hearing or using the language somehow and keeping it active in your mind, remembering or putting what you know into context regularly.
As an example, I often struggle to discipline myself to sit down and work through methodical grammar exercises, particularly when my day to day life is already as academically focused as it is, being a fourth-year undergrad student. So on an average, I'll listen to some music in Portuguese and Icelandic, write a short composition in Italian, watch some movie clips in Swedish and Spanish and some Turkish YouTube videos, practice my Japanese writing, and read through an Icelandic Wikipedia page on a topic I'm familiar with. Even if my grammatical growth in these languages isn't perfect, at least this way I see and create things with them, and keep what I already know and am familiar with active in my mind by using it in context.
5) DON'T COMPARE YOURSELF TO OTHER LANGUAGE LEARNERS.
It's not healthy and no good can come of it. Everyone has different skills that manifest differently, and what works excellently for one person in their language learning endeavors may not work well at all for you, or vice versa. And that's okay! Stick to what's ideal for you and you'll be on your way to success! It's really easy to get caught up in inferiority complexes, feeling like you're not as good as other people around you. But sometimes those toxic mindsets can certainly come from within as well. In my case, I can say that (likely as a result of my latent childhood fantasies that I could become completely fluent in any language if I worked hard enough) I often feel guilty if I can't do everything in a target language, completely disregarding the fact that doing stuff in another language is HARD! And exhausting! And takes time! So remember to be kind to yourself and give yourself time as you work through the challenges of rewiring your mind. Keep in mind that:
A) Fluency as a concept is pretty much bullshit,
because no one can be completely 100% fluent in every possible context of use of any language, even their own (I know I feel like I understand far more in a context where I'm talking about languages in Icelandic or everyday activities in Turkish than I ever did in my math and science classrooms growing up, even though those subjects were being taught to me in my first language).
And B) people generally are appreciative of your efforts to learn their language! Of course you'll get the odd asshole here and there. But for every person who gets annoyed with you for not being competent enough, there will be ten more who will be touched that you're making the effort to use their language with them; even just a single word or greeting has the power to let people know that you're making an effort to adapt, to understand the medium of their frame of consciousness. If all you can do is introduce yourself, pay for some ice cream, and ask for directions at the moment, be proud of that! Heck, be proud if all you can do is say hi! People will still appreciate it. Conversations about communist ideology and astrophysics will come if that's what you want.
That's what comes to mind off the top of my head! Hope it can be helpful for people and you enjoyed reading. If anyone ever wants more tips or just wants to nerd out together, my DM's are always open.
All the best!
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