Language

Optimist Prime · #1 03-18-2003, 11:43 PM

Okay So I 've decided to learn a new language. If I take Spainish and French at the same time, will I be confused?

Kevin · #2 03-19-2003, 12:44 AM

Yes!

This coming from someone who took 7 hours of French and then 6 hours of Spanish right after! The languages are VERY similar. In some respects it makes it easier... grammatical rules, etc.. but they're so similar that (at least for me) it was hard to remember which differences belonged with which language.

Spanish would probably be the most useful language to learn.

KappaTarzan · #3 03-19-2003, 12:50 AM

yes you will be sooo confused.. learn one at a time.. spanish would be more pratical but i love french.. and i think french is easier, honestly. .. just a thought

queequek · #4 03-19-2003, 12:56 AM

May I suggest Chinese? Roughly 1.5 out of 5 people in the world speak the language. Not included other Chinese all around the world.

sugar and spice · #5 03-19-2003, 01:01 AM

Probably.

I've taken Spanish for seven years and this semester I started Italian. While my Spanish has definitely helped in some respects, since the languages are so similar, it has definitely been confusing in others. I'm probably reading at a lot higher level than I would be, thanks to the words being very similar to Spanish -- but speaking is a lot harder than it should be because I get some of the Spanish and Italian words confused. It drives my TAs crazy.

Spanish and French aren't as similar as Spanish and Italian but they're still pretty close, so I wouldn't be surprised if you had the same issue.

texas*princess · #6 03-19-2003, 02:43 AM

wish I could help ya there.. I've lived in texas all my life and still can't learn spanish even though i lived in the south.

straightBOS · #7 03-19-2003, 02:44 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by queequek
May I suggest Chinese? Roughly 1.5 out of 5 people in the world speak the language. Not included other Chinese all around the world.

Where are these people? (Serious question)

*****

Yes, you will get confused. Even if you take the separately, trust me, I know. But, that shouldn't stop you, it just means you might pause a second before speaking to be sure you are using the right language.

I've mixed up Spanish, French and Latin before and it gets a good laugh, so go for it.

LuaBlanca · #8 03-19-2003, 08:40 AM

If you really want to take 2 languages, I would suggest that they both not be Romantic languages. Spanish, Portuguese, French, Italian, etc. are all very similar and can be tough to keep straight. Maybe you should try a Germanic language instead?

CC1GC · #9 03-19-2003, 10:57 AM

I'd say that french is more similar to english than it is to spanish.

CarolinaCutie · #10 03-19-2003, 11:08 AM

I have taken both French and Spanish, and while they are similar, it won't be that confusing. You just have to stop and think before you speak, like someone else said. There are a few similarities but most of the grammar is really different.

Most people would say that Spanish is the most useful language to know, but knowing French is nice... a lot of our English words come from French language.

Sistermadly · #11 03-19-2003, 11:56 AM

No. The languages are very similar. You might get tripped up by the placement of accents (that's what got me) but what I learned in French helped me to understand the language rules for Spanish better.

Sistermadly · #12 03-19-2003, 11:57 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by straightBOS
Where are these people? (Serious question)

Vancouver and San Francisco.

starang21 · #13 03-20-2003, 12:46 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by straightBOS
Where are these people? (Serious question)

*****

in china....but there are like a hundred different dialects as well.

Peaches-n-Cream · #14 03-20-2003, 01:10 AM

J'ai étudié le français dans le lycée et l'université. Étudier une langue étrangère était difficile pour moi. J'imagine que cela étudier la langue deux simultanément serait très difficile si non impossible.

I studied French in both high school and college. Studying one foreign language was difficult for me. I imagine that studying two language simultaneously would be very difficult if not impossible.

Optimist Prime · #15 03-20-2003, 09:35 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by LuaBlanca
If you really want to take 2 languages, I would suggest that they both not be Romantic languages. Spanish, Portuguese, French, Italian, etc. are all very similar and can be tough to keep straight. Maybe you should try a Germanic language instead?

I have studied German (Hochdeutch) for five and a half years. I might not be able to fit either one in my schedule this semester, but if I can, it will be Spainish. I have teach yourself French tapes back home. I need German, Spainish, French and Italian if I'm going to be Emporer.