I'm lost. Help.
Those of you who learned languages for fun, how did you choose your language? What was your reasoning?
I learned languages only out of necessity. Up to this point, I didn't have to think too much. Whether it was to succeed in life (English) or to connect to my heritage (Hebrew), the reason has always been clear. Now, I want to go on an advanture. I want to try learning a language myself. From zero to hero :)
But I have no idea how to choose. I lake too many things about languages and anything could be a good enough reason. A few examples:
- Spanish. For me, it's the best sounding language in the world and very common.
- Chinese. It might be a good economic advantage in the future, very different from any language I know, and I spent quite a lot of time in China when I was a child. Sweet memories.
- Norwegian. The mythology is intriguing.
- Korean. Have you seen the alphabet? Neat and elegant.
And I can go on, and on, and on... I like to listen to folk music of different countries, so I could be interested in a language just because of that. Plus, liking the culture might be a good reason but I can make myself fasinated with anything quite easily.
I'm not asking you to give me an answer. What made you decide? Culture, location, phonology, relevence?
Share your thoughts, please.
P.S. I don't want to dubble in a bunch of languages (I'm already doing that). I want to go from zero to pre-intermediate and then we'll see.
Headline image by brett_jordan on Unsplash
You expressed exactly my thoughts! I was choosing between Chinese, Persian and Spanish and finally chose Spanish for the next language to learn. Not only is it very common (beneficial for job search), but it also sounds appealing and sexy to me. Moreover, the Spanish community on Journaly is great and ready to help. I plan to start Spanish classes in June after taking the Cambridge exam.
That's great! Good luck :)
Yeah, Spanish is very melodic. I've been wanting to study it for years! I'll take Spanish in uni (obligatory), so it's out of the question.
Thank you for sharing!
The first foreign language that I started learning intentionally and rigorously was Spanish (surprisingly, not English). Back in 2019, I went on a trip to Spain. That was my first time abroad. I didn't expected anything at all, but ended up flabbergasted with the stunning, peaceful environment, beautiful architecture, nature, festive music on the streets. I loved everything. With that being said, I had no choice but to learn it, although I hadn't made any attempts until the covid arrived.
As for English, well, in spite of the hatred I felt toward it during all my 8 years of school, I took it up (from ground zero💀) naturally after Spanish.
At that time, I gravitated more towards romance languages, so my next directions were Italian, French, Portuguese, bla bla bla. Hopefully, it was just a "wanting-to-be-a-polyglot" phase💀. At the moment, my goal is just to keep French alive. I think speaking it will be beneficial to me in years to come. Ohhh, sorry for my poem🤠.
@Vanutka ohh, I wish it was obligatory (or at least an option) in my uni 🥲. Are you planning to study translation or something related to foreign languages?
Btw, I agree with both of you on how melodic Spanish sounds (right now, I'm addicted to the Spanish version of all Shrek 2 songs xD ).
@Vanutka "Out of the question" means that it's certain that you won't do something. In this case, "I'll be taking Spanish in uni (obligatory), so that's a given." works better here.
When I'm curious about learning a new language, I mainly consider the benefit I would get from learning said language; for me, being able to consume contents like news, articles, movies, music, books to know their culture is important. Also, how many more people I would be able to communicate with? The amount of learning materials available also matters to me, too; is there enough resources out there that you can easily access? Enough people who can help you with your learning? Then, there might be a small personal factors like you know someone who speaks said language in your real life; you like an artist who speaks the language; you have a favorite author who write in the language; or you are obsessed with some drama series. Or maybe your friend is learning the language. If I can't decide, I just start learning the language bit by bit, like 5 min a day for a while, and see how it goes.
@tortuguita Thank you for your beautiful story! I really felt it :)
Honestly, school killed English for me too. But I found an inspiring tutor in the end!
Still, your choice to learn Spanish before English is pretty interesting.
I'm majoring in linguistics, and we have to choose one Romance language to learn. I'm set on Spanish.
Thank you for sharing!
@JGComm Thank you for taking the time to correct me🙂
@Lariza Thank you! Your comment is like a check list. I'll deafinitely write that down.
Well, that's kind of what I'm thinking right now. And studying for 5 minutes here and there... That's what I've always done because I was so indecisive. I guess, I'll have to make "boundaries" for myself. Like: don't pick Italian because I'll get bored learning Spanish later😄
Thank you for sharing!
@Vanutka eeeeee, I'm very glad you found that person who managed to spark your interest in the language :D
Woah, that's awesome! I'd like to study linguistics next year, but the only thing that keeps me away from doing so is the fear of not finding a job ( sorry, I may exaggerate here due to the lack of knowledge about the field and self-confidence). Still, there is a hope that I'll be able to apply for master degree. 🥲
By the way, I've noticed that English Russian tutors who I follow on social media one by one started learning Spanish. So, maybe, it'll continue gaining popularity down the road.
@tortuguita Thank you! I wish you luck with your studies😁
You know, after learning Hebrew I realized that every language is valuable when it comes to tutoring. If the language is not common, those who study it would appriciate the help. If it's popular like Spanish or English, people will stay because of your personality and teaching skills.