which foreign language would you like to speak as well as your first language?

[Dagi]

Well, if said fairy came to me, I would have to think quite a long time about that. But I think I´d choose English, since I´d be able to get at least some of Susie´s jokes then...

Which language would you choose, AND WHY?

[David In Indy]

French. And why? I think it's a beautiful language. 

[Shasta542]

I had a couple of years of Spanish in school, but never used it in conversation enough to develop it. There are many Spanish-speaking people in my area, so I would like to be able to speak and understand Spanish.

A very nice Mexican family lived on my grandparent's farm for awhile after they'd died, and many times I would combine some Spanish, English, and a few pretty funny motions to communicate with them.

[Pipedream]

I chose Chinese. After visiting a friend in Shanghai this year who speaks the language, I got quite fascinated by it. But, of course, apart from "Ni hao!" which means "Hello!" I don't have the faintest grasp of it...     

[Dagi]

So many answers in such a short time! If I could choose some more languages, Italian and Spanish would be two of the languages I´d love to speak...

[Dagi]

Italian.  Because I like the way it sounds, even though I don't understand a word.  Because the food is great.  Because the history is fascinating.  Because the ruins, and the art, and the architecture are amazing.  Because the country is beautiful.  Because the boys are even more beautiful.   

Gary   

Even in a poll about languages you manage to mention boys. Ts ts ts...

[MaineWriter]

I would like to speak Japanese. My daughter is studying Japanese and it is fascinating.

An equal choice would be German.

L

[mvansand76]

Hebrew and Russian, my sister-in-law can help me with both, so those are the best choices!

[Dagi]

I would like to speak Japanese. My daughter is studying Japanese and it is fascinating.

An equal choice would be German.

L

Japanese sounds beautifully, but three different ways of writing it, that would definitely scare me off. German? Are you sure? I don´t like the sound...I love my own dialect though, Bavarian, which sounds a little softer.

[MaineWriter]

Japanese sounds beautifully, but three different ways of writing it, that would definitely scare me off. German? Are you sure? I don´t like the sound...I love my own dialect though, Bavarian, which sounds a little softer.

I feel like I have alot of German friends, lately, and I would like to be able to say more than bitte and danke! LOL

[Shakesthecoffecan]

I am attempting to learn Spanish. I took it in high school, but that was long ago. I need to learn the language as it is becoming the other language spoken in my area.

But sometimes it can be que pereza.

[Dagi]

Yeah, yeah...  As if you didn't know exactly what I was going to say when you asked the question.   

   

[Brokeback_Dev]

I am attempting to learn Spanish. I took it in high school, but that was long ago. I need to learn the language as it is becoming the other language spoken in my area.

But sometimes it can be que pereza.

I picked French, but you've got a good point Truman.  It would maybe be worth my while to learn Spanish again because of the fact that so many folks who speak Spanish in Fl. never bother to learn English.

I could probably make more money on the job if I was fluent in Spanish as well..  you know now how that annoying computer lady asks you to press 1 for English and then she says something in Spanish?  Well if i spoke both I could help both Spanish speaking people and those who speak the native language of our country.

Hey there's a saying I remember..  I think it goes "When in Rome, do as the Romans"  Humph guess that doesnt apply to the U.S.

[David In Indy]

You know what? I read the title of this incorrectly. I thought it said "which foreign language would you like to speak as your first language".

Shit. 

I really hate it when I do that.

I agree with Shasta and Truman. There are many Spanish speaking people in Indianapolis, and Spanish would definately come in handy around here.

[Dagi]

  ... hey!! 

I'd love to learn French or Italian.. both languages are so sexy ..... ble ble ble bleuuuuu, ble ble ble bleuuuuuuuuu! 

I wouldn't mind learning English too ... never was very good at it!

Susie 

   It´s good enough I think. 

[Kd5000]

I took classes in French in elementary school but alas I have forgotten most.  I really wish I had mastered the language as I just love the way it sounds. Don't know what they are saying, but it sounds nice. 

I also like the Italian and Russian languages.

[dot-matrix]

I took three years of German in High School and got high marks but can't speak it anymore.  I find I do understand a little bit though and wish I had learned more and kept it up but there's not much call for it where I grew up or where I live.  Spanish would make more sense here.  I'd like to learn that too.

[Dagi]

I took three years of German in High School and got high marks but can't speak it anymore.  I find I do understand a little bit though and wish I had learned more and kept it up but there's not much call for it where I grew up or where I live.  Spanish would make more sense here.  I'd like to learn that too.

Hey Dottie, das habe ich gar nicht gewusst! Ich werde in Zukunft ein bisschen Deutsch mit Dir sprechen, okay? I love Spanish, too, but I think I lost it. Yesterday a Latinamerican friend replied to a message I had sent him in 2002, and I had difficulties reading my own letter from back then...

[mvansand76]

I loooooove your signature line, Dagi! 

[Dagi]

Thank you, I love yours, too. 

[ifyoucantfixit]

          Me personally I would like to speak Chinese or Japanese, but I think in all practicality
Spanish is a better choice, simply because of the growth of people that speak that language..It is not going to be very long until we will have about 1/3 of our citizens speaking spanish..
I know enough of it to get the jist of a conversation, and i can read a bit more, but I need to be more fluent myself.  My grandaughter has an affinity for language.  She speaks french and she knows latin, and is now teaching herself spanish..Of course as well as english..
         It will always be a help in whatever line of work she finally settles on..

[dot-matrix]

Hey Dottie, das habe ich gar nicht gewusst! Ich werde in Zukunft ein bisschen Deutsch mit Dir sprechen, okay? I love Spanish, too, but I think I lost it. Yesterday a Latinamerican friend replied to a message I had sent him in 2002, and I had difficulties reading my own letter from back then...

OK, I got the part that said you're going to speak German to me in future.  Aller, den ich zu dem sagen kann, ist ich versucht aber keine Versprechungen und kein Lachen an meiner schrecklichen Grammatik und Rechtschreibung.    I tried to write an e-mail to Sharon using the translation software on my husbands computer to help me and it was a disaster we both laughed.

[ednbarby]

For me, it's Spanish.  I live in South Florida and work with many Spanish-speaking people.  I'd love to know what they're talking about in the break room.  It's probably just the same mundane stuff we talk about in English, but it sounds so much more exotic coming from them.  I always marvel at how well they've mastered both languages, too.  English is so difficult to learn - having a five-year-old and teaching him to read and write will tell you that like nothing else.

[David In Indy]

For me, it's Spanish.  I live in South Florida and work with many Spanish-speaking people.  I'd love to know what they're talking about in the break room.  It's probably just the same mundane stuff we talk about in English, but it sounds so much more exotic coming from them.  I always marvel at how well they've mastered both languages, too.  English is so difficult to learn - having a five-year-old and teaching him to read and write will tell you that like nothing else.

It's so good to see you back again Barb! I miss you like hell when you're not here! 

[Lynne]

I'm going to pick Gaelic...because it's a language of my ancestors and it's used less and less frequently as I understand it - I hate to think of how quickly so many languages are dying, daily from what I read.

Besides, it's romantic and I like the words I already know like a ghra and Shanachie and Slainte. 

[Dagi]

OK, I got the part that said you're going to speak German to me in future.  Aller, den ich zu dem sagen kann, ist ich versucht aber keine Versprechungen und kein Lachen an meiner schrecklichen Grammatik und Rechtschreibung.    I tried to write an e-mail to Sharon using the translation software on my husbands computer to help me and it was a disaster we both laughed.

Hey Dottie!

The first part of the sentence meant that I didn´t know you are talking a little German! And I would be the last one to laugh about  someone speaking a foreign language...hey, I don´t want people to laugh about me here either! (Apart from really funny mistakes. ).

Yeah, translation software does funny things, and not only Bablefish!

Love,
Dagi

[Penthesilea]

English. I love the English language. I remember my very first English lesson at school like it was yesterday. It was almost like an epiphany to me. It was so easy, I had a feeling like I already knew everything the teacher showed us. Of course it was the teacher's proficiency which made it so easy for me. For our very first lesson, she draw little pics/icons of nouns which are the same or very similar in German and English on the blackboard. For example finger, ring, house/Haus, hand, mouse/Maus and so on. I knew from the very first lesson that this was what I wanted to do, what I wanted to learn, and learn it well.
It showed I have a talent for it and I did learn it well, but since I've never lived in an English speaking country I'm still not as good as I'd like to be.

On a more practical note, it would be more reasonable to choose another language than English. I already am able to communicate in English, but I'm not able to do so in a third language. My second choice would be Spanish.

[ednbarby]

It's so good to see you back again Barb! I miss you like hell when you're not here! 

:Blushing:

Wow.  That just made my day, David.  Nobody misses me like that anymore.  Or so I thought. 

 

[Ellemeno]

but since I've never lived in an English speaking country...

For four effin days you did, Chrissi! 


I picked French.  I used to speak pretty good French.  I can communicate at a basic level in German, Spanish, Italian and American Sign Language.

[delalluvia]

English is my first language, Spanish a kinda half-ass 2nd, so in a 3rd language, probably French.  I love the way French sounds - while I was in Paris, I got the impression that I might pick it up fairly quickly if I stayed long enough.

Though actually, I always dreamed about being fluent in many languages, not just the Romance languages.

[opinionista]

I like the English language. However, the pronunciation kills me. It is so confusing sometimes! I can never tell the difference between pronouncing ship, sheep, cheap or chip, for example. They all sound the same to me! I thought it was due to my hearing disability but it turns out to be a problem most native Spanish speakers have, since we have only five sounds for vowels and the 'sh' doesn't exist. We definitely keep it simple when it comes to the pronunciation, though the grammar is another story. English grammar is far easier.

[Mikaela]

Hmmm....

English, definitely. I write it better than I speak it, and would love to become truly fluent in spoken English.

I've also let my French and German slip to a point where I understand but can't very well speak or write them anymore.  I seriously ought to remedy that.

But when all was said and done, I chose Spanish for the poll. Of the languages I'm likely to come into contact with it's the largest and fastest growing one, and used by and in many different nations.

[Dagi]

 

Susie, you are fluent, and more than this!

[Jeff Wrangler]

I just went with "Other" because I'd like to be fluent in German, my ancestral tongue.

Actually, what I really wish I could speak would be Pennsylvania German. My grandmother tried to teach me a few phrases when I was a very small boy, but they didn't stick. My father can't speak the dialect either, so in our family, the ability has died out with my grandmother.

Pennsylvania German is a dialect of Middle High German derived from the language as spoken in southwestern Germany, the area from which most of the ancestors of the Pennsylvania Germans immigrated to Pennsylvania. After 300 years in Pennsylvania, the dialect has been heavily influenced my English.

I had a real Eureka! moment related to his in college many years ago. My German professor mentioned that in Schwaben (Swabia), people use schwetzen (sp?) as the verb to speak, instead of the "correct" High German schprechen. Schwetzen is used for to speak in Pennsylvania German.

[belbbmfan]

I had a real Eureka! moment related to his in college many years ago. My German professor mentioned that in Schwaben (Swabia), people use schwetzen (sp?) as the verb to speak, instead of the "correct" High German schprechen. Schwetzen is used for to speak in Pennsylvania German.

In Dutch, which is closely related to German, 'chatting' is called 'zwetsen', but in the sense of 'bragging, boasting'. 'Wat een gezwets!' = 'That's rubbish'
 

[j.U.d.E.]

Hebrew and/or Arabic.

I've tried Herbrew (long time ago) and I'm following classes in Arabic. Tough to learn!

Hebrew was/is easier! Prefer it over Arabic.

[serious crayons]

I have to take the opportunity to say how impressed I am by the English skills of the non-native English speakers on this board. It is very rare for me to see anything written here that would tip me off that the poster's first language is not English (I mean simply in terms of language, of course, not content).

I'm so impressed because I think it is very hard to learn languages fluently. I took French for years in school -- and got mostly A's! -- yet cannot fluently read a French magazine or hold a normal conversation with a French person.

Maybe it helps that English is spoken so prevalently in Europe? I'm always amazed whenever I go there how easy it is to get by with just English. I don't like to do it (when I went to Italy I learned some very, very basic Italian), but plenty of people do.

[David In Indy]

We were in a restaurant in Paris several years ago, and two women sitting near to us were talking to the waiter about what they wanted to order.  They made no attempt whatsoever to speak in French, they just spouted off in English.  The waiter looked after them but was very standoffish and unpleasant towards them.  We, on the other hand, sat there with our French phrase book and did our best to order what we thought were steaks.  The waiter smirked at our feeble attempts, but he corrected us, and was lovely and friendly.

No matter how rubbish you are, it's always worth making an effort .... and it can be good fun! 

Susie

I love to try and speak different languages when I'm in other countries. I normally make a total ass out of myself when I do it, but it sure is fun! 

[David In Indy]

Oh dear Gary, I deliberately missed that part out. "Yes" they were Americans ..... but Brits are just as bad, believe me!!  In fact we're worse because we speak really really slowly and loudly and use wild hand movements to make ourselves understood!!

Susie

Alex has knocked me upside my head with HIS wild hand movements! 

I didn't just say that!

Did I just say that? 

[Dagi]

We were in a restaurant in Paris several years ago, and two women sitting near to us were talking to the waiter about what they wanted to order.  They made no attempt whatsoever to speak in French, they just spouted off in English.  The waiter looked after them but was very standoffish and unpleasant towards them.  We, on the other hand, sat there with our French phrase book and did our best to order what we thought were steaks.  The waiter smirked at our feeble attempts, but he corrected us, and was lovely and friendly.

No matter how rubbish you are, it's always worth making an effort .... and it can be good fun! 

Susie

Yeah, I´m having so much fun here! And when I´m in Italy, I use my three words Italian, and in Finland my threes words Finnish (in fact I´m even able to count from one to ten in Finnish ) and the effect is always the same! Faces brighten up, and people start communicating in every imaginable way! It is fun. Communication is so wonderful!

[Dagi]

Alex has knocked me upside my head with HIS wild hand movements! 

I didn't just say that!

Did I just say that? 

  Oh boy.

[souxi]

I always wanted to learn German at school, but I don,t think the teachers thought I was clever enough so I had to stick to French. I never learnt much of it and gave it up when I could. I doubt I,ll learn another language now, I,m probably too old lol.

[Noviani]

French. it sounds beautiful. i even took a 5-period class on it in 2004-2005, but after taking a break in 2006, now i am 95% lost.

[dejavu]

Italian. 

I studied it on my own a few years and got to where I could read simple things, but I never spoke it, and now I forget almost all of it.

[Dagi]

Hi dejavu!

Italian sounds beautiful, I love it too. Most of all I love it in the opera! It's the most beautiful language for singing.

Dagi