Language

[1savvydiva]

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

Probably...but what about if you take Spanish and 'Freedom' at the same time?

[CC1GC]

Originally posted by Cream
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.

do you have many opportunities to use your french?

[Peaches-n-Cream]

Originally posted by CC1GC
do you have many opportunities to use your french?

No, not really. Once in a while I will go to a French restaurant. I was in Paris in 1999, but most French people speak English better than I speak French so I didn't really use it.

LOL @ 1savvydiva for FREEDOM.

[lionlove]

Originally posted by CC1GC
do you have many opportunities to use your french?

I am a French major and while I don't use it every day I do find it useful. Last summer at my internship I used my French when I had to make phone calls to the Morrocan government. Also, I enjoy reading foreign newspapers and several are in French. It's one of those things where I could definatly live without it but since I know French I seek out opportunities to use it.

Cream, how did you type the accents in your post?

[CC1GC]

Originally posted by Cream
No, not really. Once in a while I will go to a French restaurant. I was in Paris in 1999, but most French people speak English better than I speak French so I didn't really use it.

LOL @ 1savvydiva for FREEDOM.

france french is a lot different than north american dialects...which may have been what you were taught. I noticed my mom has lost her fluency in french a little, not being able to communicate everyday like she used too.

[Munchkin03]

So, you wanna be Emperor?

As someone who took 4 years of Spanish, followed by three years of Italian (one of which was in Italy), I will second everyone else and say learn a non-Romance language. Italian and Spanish are so much alike, I now speak a "Spatalian" pidgin that speakers of both languages understand fairly well.

For all of the people saying "Learn Chinese"--what dialect? There's Mandarin, which is spoken more than any other language on Earth, and will allow you to speak to mainland Chinese, as well as those in Taiwan. Cantonese will allow you to speak (and work) well in Hong Kong.

[Optimist Prime]

I already know two Germanic languages. German and English. I can't fit either french or spainish in my schedule

[queequek]

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

They live in China, the most populous country in the world. There are more than 1.2 million people live in China, and given the world population of 6 million, there. It's only in China mainland. Yes, there are hundreds of dialects of Chinese, but the official language is Mandarin Chinese, so they can speak two languages in most cases.

Outside China mainland, there are lots and lots of ethnic Chinese all around the world: Taiwan, Singapore, Hong Kong, northern part of Indo-China (Thailand, Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia) speak Chinese (Mandarin). Malaysia, Indonesia, the Phillipines also have significant Chinese population.

Also in South/Latin America, Africa, and Europe, there are Chinese population as well.

In the nothern America, there are lots of significant Chinese population, concentrating mostly in Western states. San Francisco and Vancouver, as mentioned, has more than 40% total Chinese population. And most of them still speak/understand Mandarin.