What Other Language Do You Speak

[KPL]

Yesterday, I received some mail from National Geographic. It stated that "One out of every six people in the world today speaks MANDARINE CHINESE"

WHAT LANGUAGE DO YOU SPEAK BESIDES ENGLISH?

kpl

[cvb7873]

Yesterday, I received some mail from National Geographic. It stated that "One out of every six people in the world today speaks MANDARINE CHINESE"

WHAT LANGUAGE DO YOU SPEAK BESIDES ENGLISH?

kpl

Does ebonics count?

[Jason Baker Portugal]

Hmmmm....I have been tested on 8: english, french, german, portuguese, spanish, italian, arabic and turkish. I spoke all of these really well up until about 10 years ago and I did speak lots of chit-chat in others: dutch, danish, swahili, hindi, urdu, maltese, japanese and corean. Now I only speak english, german, portuguese and spanish on a daily basis. I feel that every language one learns opens up the mind a little more and gives a new perspective. Jason

[Jerry@TreeZoo]

I can say "Mas cerveza, por favor." It has served me well.

[samirbouag]

je parle francais; anglais,espagnol et arabe!

i speak french,spanish,arabic and english!

[Patricia-CR]

After Jason and Samir... Bilingual: Spanish-English though Portuguese, French and Italian are somehow easier to understand... Please, consider the huge variations of the English language - U.S. Southern, North-Eastern, West Coast...;Irish, British, NZ, OZ, etc. As well as the Spanish -Argentinian, from Spain, from the country side, etc.

What about you KPL?

[DoomsDave]

Hmm.

English is the mother tongue for me.

Taught German for 8+ years, Spanish, Chinese, mostly forgot.

Ni-hau-MA?

[sur4z]

Hmmmm....I have been tested on 8: english, french, german, portuguese, spanish, italian, arabic and turkish. I spoke all of these really well up until about 10 years ago and I did speak lots of chit-chat in others: dutch, danish, swahili, hindi, urdu, maltese, japanese and corean. Now I only speak english, german, portuguese and spanish on a daily basis. I feel that every language one learns opens up the mind a little more and gives a new perspective. Jason

WOW!! I can only handle spanish...castilian and maracucho

[www.dadluvsu.com]

I can say "Mas cerveza, por favor." It has served me well.

Don't forget "donde esta el bano?" Your gonna need that one afterwards...

[palmmermaid]

I understand all the English dialects and speak American English. I was fluent in Spanish when I lived in Costa Rica 40 years ago. Now I can get by. I understand more than I can speak. I can also read Portuguese and Italian - at least enough to understand the basics. All goes back to my 4 years of Latin and my specialization in derivatives of Latin words in today's languages.

I admire people who are fluent in many languages. I wish I knew more. We in this country have a bad attitude about other languages. But if a person never travels out of the US, I suppose they don't need another language. But they are wrong. Someone else posted that learning another language really opens up your mind to that culture. The only other thing that does so in such a way is food.

[Patricia-CR]

I can say "Mas cerveza, por favor." It has served me well.

Don't forget "donde esta el bano?" Your gonna need that one afterwards...

[Z4Devil]

JASON! Wow, respect!

Well, let´s enumerate it:

German (native speaker)

English (certificate)

Russian (certificate)

Swedish (Basics)

Would like to learn Italian ... what a beautiful language.

[Xenon]

Vietnamese and very basic Spanish

Jonathan

[Kim]

I admire those like Jason who can soak up languages seemingly effortlessly. It is said that learning a foreign language helps improve skills in one's native language, and certainly the intercultural experiences are broadening.

I speak French, improving from fumbling to semi-decent after a few days of practice. My Spanish is serviceable, but inelegant, and in Italian I mostly listen and nod, but occasionally interject some well-worn phrase with great enthusiasm. In German I can order beer and food.

What other languages do you speak, Karolyn?

[bgl]

Verena, basic Swedish - interesting! You have to practice it here every now and then! And I agree, Italian is a beautiful language. Have practiced a little bit of it myself, off and on, but it's been many years since I was in Italy. And I used to speak fluent German, but that was a VERY long time ago and when you don't practice a language, well, it sort of ends up in the dark places, deep down in your brain! But I could probably get up to speed in a couple of weeks. Other than that, my native Swedish obviously. And I understand Danish and Norwegian even though I don't technically speak those languages. When people from Sweden, Denmark and Norway converse with each other they generally speak their own language. I don't think I have to mention English, even though I just did!

[Alan_Tampa]

English. I can understand some French and can usually muddle reading it given some time. I picked up kili-kili Malagasy last year. Just a note, my English to Malagasy language guide was mostly useless. Whomever put the Malagasy language to paper did favors for no one.

Alan

[waykoolplantz]

Hmm.

English is the mother tongue for me.

Chinese, mostly forgot.

Ni-hau-MA?

i studied chinese in college...mostly forgot too

[KPL]

Merci! Gracias! Tack!

Do remember I also said fluent or not, and that really applys to me.

It's morning here so................!

Bon Matin! Comment allez-vous?

Buenos Dias! Como esta usted?

God Morgon! Hur mar du?

I studied Swedish in Sweden and some French and Spanish in school.

I shall go back to these three and get more proficient in same!

cvb7873, sorry I do not know your name. Ebonics does not count here, but I'm sure it works in many neighborhoods.

Jason, I admire your proficiency in languages. Plus, your statement is so very true about learning another language and how it opens one mind. I myself must take that to heart and go back to the table.

Jerry, I'm sure it has and will continue to do you good. Do you have a favourite beer, and do you live in a spanish speaking neighborhood?

Sam, I admire you!

Patricia, thanks for pointing out the variations of the English and Spanish language.

Dave, I want to believe you still have that touch for those languages.

Sur4z, sorry I do not know your name either. I must say, spanish is indeed very useful.

Thanks again and keep learning, I will!

KPL

Karolyn

[KPL]

William, your reference to Jerry reminds me of this short story. When Bo-Göran started coming to this country, he was looking for a toilet, I believe it was at the airport. He said he saw signs stating Bathroom, Restroom. He passed them by because he wanted a toilet, he did not want a bath nor did he want to rest. Just a little side line here. Anyway beer will make you look for same.

Kitty you are so right about engaging in the foods of another country.

Patricia back to that rest room!

Verena, thanks for the clarification.

Jonathan, thanks. Vietnamese is really one of the harder languages to learn.

Thanks Bo-Göran, and thank you for the opportunity I had to learn some Swedish. I will continue with same. I had my books out again after reading that article in NG.

Alan, sorry you had that problem, but I understand it happens often.

Mike, are you interested in picking up Chinese again. I believe you can do it if interested.

AGAIN THANKS TO ALL OF YOU AND KEEP ANOTHER LANGUAGE IN YOUR SIDE POCKET.

Aloha,

Karolyn/KPL

[Walter John]

Yesterday, I received some mail from National Geographic. It stated that "One out of every six people in the world today speaks MANDARINE CHINESE"

WHAT LANGUAGE DO YOU SPEAK BESIDES ENGLISH?

kpl

That's because one in six people ARE Mandarine Chinese.

Does pidgin english count ?

[ariscott]

Indonesian.... fluent & first language. I used to learn Japanese too, but it was hard learning English & Japanese at the same time, so I dropped Japanese. Besides, I didn't get to practise Japanese very much.

English is my second language.

Regards, Ari

[BS Man about Palms]

I can say "Mas cerveza, por favor." It has served me well.

Don't forget "donde esta el bano?" Your gonna need that one afterwards...

I usually follow that with "Muy bueno- Taco Bell"...

" Tah- co"

"Toe- stah-da"..

" En-cheer- re- toe"

Oh yes, a friend taught me to read Greek and I could read boxes, posters, etc in a couple hours which he said was really good. Had NO IDEA what I was reading...but he could understand me...

I still remember a little...

But in reality, English and "poquito" Espanol...

[_Keith]

Yesterday, I received some mail from National Geographic. It stated that "One out of every six people in the world today speaks MANDARINE CHINESE"

WHAT LANGUAGE DO YOU SPEAK BESIDES ENGLISH?

kpl

That's because one in six people ARE Mandarine Chinese.

Wal, I was thinking the exact same thing.

I speak English only, and not very well, I might add.

[Annika]

Nice thread KPL

And I am really impressed by all the language going on here!!!!

We recently moved to Germany and are doing silly things like mistakenly speaking Spanish to the taxi cab driver (the husband), or saying "excuse me" in Swedish all day in a nearby city. Accessing language, when you have not used anything but your mother tongue for awhile, is a very interesting, and sometimes confusing experience.

French- love it. Studied for awhile and was, I would say, fluid but not fluent. A recent experience trying to communicate with a non-English speaking Frenchwoman has reminded me how I need to get back into the language to access it. The layer of it are in my mind but reeling it out is tricky.

Swedish- pretty good. I am more competent with this than all of the other languages I learned. Again, reminded myself recently that I need to really keep reading Swedish text and listening to radio to keep it fresh (monthly trips to Sweden to immerse myself in the language would be nice, but hey, gotta be realistic)

German- Can speak enough to order beer, chat about my mood and the weather. Depending on the topic, I understand a lot of what is said or nothing at all.

I would make for a great linguistically clumsy spy in German or French speaking places. I often understand a lot of what is said but when I open my mouth it is potentially disastrous. Potentially. I am working on it. Among many other things, language opens up life.

[Z4Devil]

Annika!

What great news - you moved to Germany? Where exactly do you live? If you are interested in more than ordering beer (there are so much German specialities), tell me.

Would be great to talk with you ... if you like it we can use a mix of German, English and Swedish.

Welcome to Germany, Annika. Much luck, the best time and everything you wish to yourself. And yes, palms are growing in Germany if you have patience enough.

Love, Verena

[BigFrond]

I know lots of "four" letter words in many languages.

[peachy]

We spoke english at school, said our prayers in latin, spoke german at home and among my peer group we spoke a pidgin of afrikaans/english so our parents couldn't understand us. I know a few words in many languages, so I can make a few wisecracks to non english speaking people. My first husband was jewish so I knew a few words of hebrew and yiddish. oy veh !! Karolyn would faint if she heard the only 3 words of Swedish that I know. Jonathan, I can only remember how to say 55 cents in vietnamese !!

Peachy

[KPL]

Aloha, Thank you one and all for such great responses.

Walter, I relate pidgin english to ebonics as I stated above and I'm sure it works in many neighborhoods.

Ari, It's hard with another language, when you're not able to practice same often enough. I, along with ten other Rotarians took Japanese for a short time. We had a very hard time. It did not work for any of us. We have a Sister Club in Japan and wanted to be able to communicate with them when they are here and vice versa. We did have fun and we really enjoyed the food at each class. That is really one hard language!

Bill, Reading Greek interesting!!! A little Spanish is a good start. Do continue with same if you like the language.

Keith, We did get that!

Annika, Love Love Love and keep up with your love for languages. Most of us know, when engaging in a new language, that other foreign language that we know comes out!

Verena, I like that statement to Annika "if you like it we can use a mix of German, English and Swedish"

Big Frond, most of us learn those first!

Peachy, so happy to see you back on PalmTalk. Did you know you are a SHINNING STAR? We love you! BTW, I believe I know those same 3 words in Swedish and learned them early.

I find it interesting, most people in other countries speak at least one other language fluently. What does that say about the good old USA?

Take Care, Stay Healthy and Continue To Do Good Work.

MAKE IT A GREAT DAY!

Hugs,

Karolyn

[amazondk]

Most of the time I speak Portuguese more than anything else. Although I still end up speaking a fair amount of English throughout the day depending on what is going on. I do have to start speaking more English to my little boys which are 2 and 3 and starting to be pretty verbal. And, I do speak fluent Spanish although I do not use it too often. It takes me a little time to shift gears from Portuguese to Spanish since they are so similar. I studied one year of Mandarin in college many years ago. But only a little bit of that remains in my mind. In order to understand another culture you really do need to know it´s language to grasp the fine points. Becoming fluent in another language was one of the best things I have done. In business my strongest point is my ability to bridge the language and understanding gap between Brazil and English speakers, mostly the USA. I really do appreaciate that I was raised speaking English which is such a rich language due to the fusion of Anglo Saxon and Norman French.

dk

[edbrown_III]

for me southern english, pidgeon spanish, read french , and can sort of understand Tagalog when the context is there.

Best regardsss

Ed

[Jerry@TreeZoo]

Most of the time I speak Portuguese more than anything else. Although I still end up speaking a fair amount of English throughout the day depending on what is going on. I do have to start speaking more English to my little boys which are 2 and 3 and starting to be pretty verbal. And, I do speak fluent Spanish although I do not use it too often. It takes me a little time to shift gears from Portuguese to Spanish since they are so similar. I studied one year of Mandarin in college many years ago. But only a little bit of that remains in my mind. In order to understand another culture you really do need to know it´s language to grasp the fine points. Becoming fluent in another language was one of the best things I have done. In business my strongest point is my ability to bridge the language and understanding gap between Brazil and English speakers, mostly the USA. I really do appreaciate that I was raised speaking English which is such a rich language due to the fusion of Anglo Saxon and Norman French.

dk

Don,

I noticed when speaking to you last, that you throw a lot of Portuguese into your English. I don't know if you realize that or if someone has already told you that. It makes your speech more colorful but I had to have you repeat yourself a couple times. When people mix Spanish and English, it is called Spanglish. Do you have a name for Portuguese and English?

I really am impressed with people who can converse in other languages. Listening to them, like collecting palms, allows you to travel to exotic places vicariously.

[Jason Baker Portugal]

Jerry,

I don´t remember hearing an expression for the portuguese-english fusion but portuguese-spanish is called portanhol/portañol.

Jason

[Z4Devil]

The mix of mothertongue and another language is known in Germany, too. But more and more it is very funny to speak of Denglish, a mix of German and English or - on the other hand - the iteral translation from German to English. No English people would understand this. Would you like a sample?

We in Germany mean with

Du gehst mir tierisch auf den Keks. --> You get on my wick.

The iteral translation would be: You go me on the cookie. *lol*

Or the mix of German and English:

I speak English very well but not ganz so schnell.

I lieb you very dolle.

:D Verena

[BS Man about Palms]

Should I be blushing regarding the above?

[Z4Devil]

:D

Bill, regarding to the last sentence: yes. Relating to you it is right.

[KPL]

Don, as you said "Becoming fluent in another language was one of the best things I have done." Just remember to make sure your children have that opportunity. At the age of 2 and 3 is a perfect time to introduce multi languages.

Thanks Ed, it seems like you are getting along just fine. Have you been to the Philippines?

Jerry, listening to others speak a language other than my own, always attract my attention!

Jason, thanks for that information!

Verena, Thank you for those samples. Now it's clear to me what you said in post no.25. I thought I knew, how wrong I was! Are you starting something here with Bill?

Oh Bill, watch out!

Thanks again,

KPL

[Z4Devil]

Dear Karolyn -

thank you. Do not forget that the mentioned "Denglish" is always a joke, the Germans use it when they wanna fool around. And as I told before, no native english speaker would understand this.

Äääähmmm ... no, I do not started something with Bill. It has been here yet since I joined the forum. Both uf us have marriage partners, both of us love palms and cars, we share a lot of identic minds. I love his spelling style, his typical american way and especially his humor. The way I see it they could say: I love him, yes. And I love a lot of people here, too ... on a very special way.

Bill and me just like it to daff.

Love, Verena

[KPL]

I do and did understand Verena! Keep smiling and keep the humor in your life!

Hugs,

kpl

[amazondk]

Don,

I noticed when speaking to you last, that you throw a lot of Portuguese into your English. I don't know if you realize that or if someone has already told you that. It makes your speech more colorful but I had to have you repeat yourself a couple times. When people mix Spanish and English, it is called Spanglish. Do you have a name for Portuguese and English?

I really am impressed with people who can converse in other languages. Listening to them, like collecting palms, allows you to travel to exotic places vicariously.

Jerry,

I guess you could say Portingles, or somthing of the like. People here in Brazil mix a lot of English words into Portuguese. You are in little Brazil, Deerfield/Pompano and have more Portuguese around you than Spanish. Since Brazlians are the second largest immigrant group after Cubans in South Florida (at least it was the last time I checked) , there is a lot of Portuguese spoken.

dk

[Kumar]

I can read, write and speak Bengali, Hindi and English. Plus understand and read sanskrit. Also, a little bit of Kannada since I spent 12 years in South India.

I learnt German for six months with the result that i can have some fun watching "inglorious basterds".

It is surprising how English words have permeated. Whenever I converse with my countrymen in Hindi or Bengali, there is inevitably one English word per sentence, usually a noun. Iy has become so common that using the 'pure' vernacular will draw stares.