#polyglottism

1. the studying of a language until i can read, speak or listen to stuff is actually a set timespan of at most a few years and that

2. I won't just lose one language while I'm learning another, because practicing a language I'm fluent in is fun (and not effort) by consuming books/shows/radio/etc, which concludes that

Today, the world celebrates the International Mother Language Day where we honour cultural diversity and multilingualism. It was pronounced in the year 2000 by the UNESCO and goes back to the Bengali Language Movement Day when on the 21th February 1952 several Bengali protestors were killed by the police while protesting for the recognition of their language in East Pakistan.

This day stands for peace and for linguistic diversity and especially puts minority languages into focus. So, by spreading this message, I want to encourage you: 

     Only two of us were left. The fourth and third places were already determined and now it was battle for the crown. I impatiently waited in my seat, eager for the end of this lengthy and overrated contest. I didn’t want to win. Though I never liked being the loser, I disliked the thought of moving on to District even more. Nevertheless, I decided to give it my best.

    As my opponent walked away from the microphone and toward his seat, I stood up, stepped up to the mic, and awaited my instruction.

     “Your word is larceny.”

     “Larceny,” I repeated. Quickly I turned to my thoughts. Hm. It only makes sense that it would be spelt with a c. But this is the final part of the spelling bee, and it can’t be that simple. “l-a-r- … s-e-n-y. Larceny.”

Diiing.

“I’m sorry, that is incorrect.”

     I can tell you that, half of a decade later, I’ve not misspelled larceny since. I attribute this small victory to defeat. Publicly goofing up the orthography of a seven-letter word is not something I’m proud of. But it helped me nonetheless.

     Believe me, I’m as annoyed as you are with quotes saying, “It’s okay to make mistakes… as long as you learn from them.” Ugh. [insert eye roll here] But I must confess, they’re right. There is science behind it.

     It has been shown that mistakes literally grow your brain. Even when we are not conscious of our mistakes, brain sparks still take place. Our brains are made to learn and move on from our mistakes, not to be shut down by them.

     As told in the story above, we give special attention to errors. Last year, when texting a friend in Spanish, I made a ton of sizable errors. I referred to myself as male, said that that I wanted school (instead of saying that I liked it), and in place of “teenage years”, I wrote “years of suffering” (but they’re basically the same thing, haha). I’m really grateful for that conversation, especially the blunders. Areas that were previously unclear to me became abruptly certain to me. I now know the proper use of querrer (to want). I always make sure my words are in gender agreement. And I know the difference between adolecía and adolescencia.

      Let’s be real. Mistakes are inevitable, and unsureness will catch up with you eventually. Don’t stress about failures. Use them to your advantage instead. If you’re like me, then it will be a process. Little by little I’m letting go and learning to learn. But it’s a good thing to remember and work on— not just in language learning, but life in general.

And just for the sake of it, here’s a wonderfully cheesy quote:

“We don’t make mistakes, just happy little accidents.”

     There are many people out there who would love to learn a language. They’re determined, excited, and willing. But the biggest question on their mind is, “Where do I start?” With all the options— courses, books, apps, and websites, figuring out where to begin and what to use can be overwhelming. But, friend, through trial and error, I have managed to come up with some resources that have helped me to learn (and to enjoy learning).

BEGINNING

Duolingo

What is it? Duolingo is a website and app (available for iOS and Android). Through a game-like setting of making easy daily goals, earning points and awards, it uses all four categories- speaking, reading, writing and listening- to teach.

Cost: Free

Languages: Danish, Dutch, Esperanto, French, German, Irish, Italian, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish, Swedish, Turkish, Ukrainian, Welsh

Personal Experience: It’s a super fun way to begin learning, but it only takes you to an intermediate level.

Living Language Complete Edition

What is it? Living Language’s Complete Edition includes

3-4 books (depending on which language) in Essential, Intermediate, and Advanced Levels

9 Audio CDs

Free extended online learning

Cost: Around $30- $50 (I got mine on Amazon for around $30)

Languages: Arabic, French, German, Greek, Hebrew, Hindi, Irish, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin Chinese, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish

Personal Experience: I ordered the Complete Hebrew Edition a few months ago and I am really impressed. Each lesson is explained very simply and it is therefore very fun to learn with. The audio CDs have been a great help, as Hebrew can be very hard to pronounce otherwise. The language lab games are so addicting. As for the cost of this, in my opinion, it’s worth it (that’s coming from a very cheap person). It takes you from a beginner to an advanced speaker, all for one price.

ADVANCING VOCABULARY

Linguasorb

What is it? Linguasorb is a website mainly used for conjugating verbs, but also includes grammar rules, vocabulary lists, quizzes and games, cognates, and pronunciation.

Cost: Free

Languages: French, Spanish

Personal Experience: It’s great for practicing verb conjugates, and reinforcing your memory of vocabulary words through quizzes.

Anki

What is it? Anki is a virtual flashcard app available for both iOS and Android.

Cost: Free

Languages: -

Personal Experience: This app is so easy to use. It creates a schedule based on the (self-judged) correctness and ease of your answers. It spaces the cards for you to review just before you forget them. Even for people with “bad memories”, this makes it very easy to memorize vocabulary. I actually use it for several other things, like studying for my driver’s permit.

“The Spanish Dude” (formerly known as "Gringo Español")

What is is? “The Spanish Dude” is a Youtube channel with short Spanish grammar tip videos (a.k.a. “quickies”).

Cost: Free

Languages: Spanish

Personal Experience: I just started watching these videos and I am already so relieved to have found this channel. Just a few of these “quickies” have really helped me fully understand the quirky rules (and exceptions) of the Spanish language, explained in a new and very thorough way.

LISTENING COMPREHENSION

FluentU

What is it? FluentU is a website and app (available for iOS) that uses real-life videos to teach.

Cost:

Basic plans are $15 / month or $120 / year

Plus plans are $30 / month or $240 / year

Languages: Chinese, German, French, Italian, Japanese, Spanish

Personal Experience: FluentU has many practical and real-world videos (in many different fluency levels) made by native speakers, which also give a glimpse into their cultures. But not only does it give you the “watch” option but also the “learn” option, which thoroughly walks you through each word in the video that you may not know. It has been a huge help to my listening comprehension, which has been my biggest struggle.

SpanishListening

What is it? SpanishListening is website that mainly uses videos (in beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels) of native speakers answering questions of many topics.

Cost: Free

Languages: Spanish

Personal Experience: This has helped a bit with my listening comprehension, though “beginner” are fairly challenging. One cool feature is the individual vocabulary quizzes and questions on each topic.

PRACTICING WITH NATIVE SPEAKERS

HelloTalk

What is it? HelloTalk is an app (available for iOS and Android) that helps you learn and practice by connecting you with native speakers from all over the world. It includes many features like audio messages, grammar correction, and free calls.

Cost: Free

Languages: Arabic, Azerbaijani, Afrikaans, Albanian, Armenian, Amharic, Apache, Afar, Bulgarian, Bengali, Bosnian, Basque, Belarusian, Chinese (Simplified and Traditional), Cantonese, Catalan, Czech, Croatian, Cebuano, Chewa, Choctaw, Dutch, Danish, Dakota, Dothraki, Esperanto, Estonian, French, Farsi, Finnish, Flemish, Frisian, German, Greek, Galician, Georgian,Gujarati, Gaelic (Irish and Scottish), Hebrew, Hungarian, Hindi, Haitian Creole, Hausa, Hmong, Hokkien, Hawaiian, Italian, Indonesian, Icelandic, Igbo, Interlingua, Ido, Japanese, Javanese, Korean, Kannada, Khmer, Kurdish (Sorani, Kurmanji, and Pehlewwani), Kazakh, Kyrgyz, Klingon, Lithuanian, Lao, Latin, Latvian, Lingua Franca Nova, Malay, Mongolian, Macedonian, Maltese, Maori, Marathi, Maithili, Malayalam, Malagasy, Myanmar, Norwegian, Nepali, Navajo, Ndebele, Nhuatl, Oriya, Ojibwa, Portuguese, Polish, Punjabi, Pashto, Quechuan, Russian, Romanian, Spanish, Swedish, Serbian, Slovak, Slovenian, Somali, Swahili, Shanghainese, Sesotho, Sinhala, Sundanese, Swazi, Sign Language,Turkish, Thai, Tagalog, Tamil, Telugu, Tajik, Toki Pona, Tswana, Tsonga, Ukrainian, Urdu, Uzbek, Vietnamese, Venda, Valyrian, Welsh, Xhosa, Yiddish, Yoruba, Zulu

Personal Experience: Because I am a perfectionist, I was slightly scared to talk to native speakers in their language for fear of making a mistake. But this, scary as it may be to some, is the best way to practice and learn new things. This provides an amazing opportunity to use a new language. But not only do others help you learn their language, you can help others learn your language. I have actually made a few friends using this app.

     Nowadays, it is now so easy to begin learning a language. Our options are no longer limited to a library book or a tutor. And though there are so many great resources, I recommend using multiple to learn. Because there is no perfect book, app, or tutor out there. Combining resources helps make up for the areas of lack. I have earned that the hard way.

     Following up on last week’s “Why You Should Learn a New Language”, I decided that it’s only fair to post “3 Common Excuses For Not Learning a Language”.

1. “I’m not good at it!”

     Great, neither am I. I don’t have any particular skill for language-learning. Sometimes, it’s very hard for me. How, then, do I speak three languages? Because I have desire and determination to learn— which anyone can have. You see, learning a language isn’t much different from learning anything else. It doesn’t require any special talent. Do you have a particular knack for speaking your native tongue? Probably not. You just learned. As humans, we were made to communicate, to speak. So in sense, we all have an aptitude for speaking languages.

2. “I don’t have time!”

     This I totally understand. Life is crazy and the thought of adding something else to do probably stresses most of us out. But the biggest misconception is that one must spend x amount of hours studying in order to achieve your goals. So wrong. For example: 3 hours of textbook studying = 15 minutes of having a conversation (no matter how basic) in another language. It doesn’t matter how much time you spend, but what you are doing in that time.

3. “I don’t live in that country.”

     I lived in Arizona for 11 years. According to Pew Research Center, in 2012 (the year I moved to Missouri), 30% of Arizona’s population was Hispanic- which is 3.8% of all Hispanics in the United States. People of that culture and language were not hard to find, but I didn’t begin actually learning Spanish until I moved to Missouri, whose Hispanic population in 2011 was 4%. And even now, as I’m learning Hebrew, it’s even harder to find someone who speaks it, as you could imagine.

    Don’t get me wrong- immersion is key to language-learning. But sometimes, you have to create a setting of immersion. “Artificial immersion” as I like to call it. How? Through some fantastic resources you’ll find in Chapter 4.

     For 6 ½ years of my life, I went to a school in which all students of all grades had to take Spanish class. Despite the phrase “me gusta la manzana” being drilled into my head since kindergarten, I was not learning, and I had no desire to. Even though my state bordered Mexico, I concluded that learning another language (even Spanish) was a waste of time. Hey, this is America, and we speak English here. 

     Don’t get me wrong, I wasn’t a bigoted child, and I certainly wasn’t raised to be one. But the only environment I had really been exposed to was my language, my culture. I had thought that my way of life was the ordinary. I didn’t realize that I and my practices are as foreign to another as they and theirs are to me. 

     But I didn’t learn this by staying in my bubble. I learned this by stepping out of where I was and seeing through the eyes of someone else. This brings us to point #1 of “Why You Should Learn a New Language.”

1. You can see things in an entirely new perspective

      As said above, what is normal to one may be bizarre to another. Through language-learning, I’ve not only started to realize this, but have begun loving it. Yes, that’s right. Differences are a thing to be celebrated.

2. You can meet new people (even without traveling)

Riddle time: I have connected and made friends with people from all over world, yet I’ve never left the United States. How is this so?

     Don’t worry, I’ll tell you. There’s this super cool thing called social media and the Internet. In fact, you’re using it right now! Who would’ve guessed?! Instagram. Facebook. Twitter. Tumblr. Anything else that involves the Internet. With today’s technology the world is basically at our fingertips. It is so easy to meet people from all over the world. (Check out my secret weapon HelloTalk in Chapter Four!) Plus there’s always something fun about scrolling through Instagram, reading a meme in a foreign language and laughing mysteriously because the rest of your family doesn’t understand it. *secret agent skills unlocked* Speaking of families…

3. You can connect with your family or your heritage

     Culture and language go hand in hand. Having a personal connection with the language you’re learning boosts your determination and ability to learn it.

4. Your brain will thank you

     Countless amounts of studies have shown the advantages of speaking another language, including, but not limited to:

better attention and task-switching abilities

less cognitive decline in older age

better adjustment to environmental changes

5. You can help advance your career

     Traveling the world “on business” is becoming increasingly common in this age. Who wouldn’t love to do that? But this requires the expertise of bi- or multilingualism (which anyone can achieve). Even on a smaller, more local scale, the ability to speak two or more languages looks great on a resume.

And finally…

6. Polyglots are polyhot

     First of all, I am extremely proud of that title. Second, just take my word for it...

The thing I find most interesting about polyglots is that not only does our personality change as we use a different language but the personality changes also depend on our mother tongue and what country we live in as well.