Languages to learn?

[Vhan]

I was thinking of learning chinese, and french. A little of each anyway, as much as I can shove in my brain. (I took latin in school, so that should help)

Anyway, what are some really popular languages to learn in the next 6 months?

[Greg]

You picked two good ones...(and damned hard as well)   The Latin will be a huge help, but not so much for the Chinese obviously.

You can definitely use French on the road, and it might come in handy if you find yourself with groups of French backpackers that speak perfect English
but never seem to want to use it. German is another very widespread and useful language on the backpacking circuit.

I have studied several languages, but they all fall apart unless I go somewhere and use them daily.  Its absolutely amazing at how fast you
can start to pick up on Chinese if you just go spend a few months there....I could fake and slaughter my way through a basic conversation with the taxi
drivers after 3 months.

[Vhan]

hmmmm...sounds challangeing, but I think the payoff will be well worth it...very, very, very well worth it from the stories I have heard so far.

[Vagabond Vince]

Based on my experience you really only need to know English unless you'll be spending time in super rural areas.  Thanks to globalization everyone speaks english.

However if you do decide to learn chinese it can help a lot.  Japan uses some Kanji characters which is Chinese,  You can use Mandarin in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong somewhat, Singapore and Malaysia (though their english is great due to being former british colonies).

[Vhan]

Even in the more rural areas? (not "super" rural, but)

I honestly have no idea how valid the "programs" are, but I picked up copies of "My Japanese coach" and "My Chinese Coach" for my DS. I'm actually quite impressed with it! I don't need programs for my computer, I can carry it around, phrase books, it will record my voice and let me hear it to make sure I'm pronouncing it right! As long as I'm actually learning actual Chinese, then its not to bad, and I only really need a basic level to steer myself around with if needed, (and maybe avoid a few scams!)

I wanted to spend time in the Chinese countryside for sure, and because Mongolia is so close to China, I figured Mandarin would come in handy there!

[Greg]

Mandarin is a great language to learn - no shortage of Chinese people in the world no matter where you go.  Since learning a little bit last year, I've been speaking it for fun in Chinatowns and all over just for practice.

The truth is, even with what you consider to be "good" Mandarin, the people in rural areas won't understand a word, LOL.  I found that out first hand in 2007.   Outside of Beijing, the dialects and pronunciations differ so greatly that you might as well be speaking Klingon to them.  Thank God for charades!

But of course you should still try to learn....it will greatly enhance your trip, and its just more fun.  You will learn words 10x faster once you are there and hear/use them every day...so don't stress to much about studying now.

Cheers!

[Alex]

In response to what are some popular langauges to learn, I would suggest studying Arab languages or anything on the Foreign Service prefered list. Just in case one day, you may want to consider a career in diplomacy, they come in handy and it would get you a lot of points.

I speak several Romanesque languages, and I can attest that once you speak one pretty fluently, it is easy to get by in the others. So, yes, go ahead and learn French. It is an exceptionally beautiful language, with an infernal grammar.

I would love to learn Chinese and/or Japanese. Let me know how those 2 "coach" programs work for you.

[Vhan]

They are working well, it just takes a little motovation to pick up the DS and run the programs a few minutes a day. I gave the one for japan to a friend of mine, and have been useing the chinese one, except now it looks like I will be spending more time in Japan than china! (I still don't have concreate travel plans, and refuse to! ha  ) Oh well, nothing will replace learning from the rush of walking down a street and trying to figure out a menu, that'll help me learn quick!

[Scribetrotter]

Spanish... it opens up all of Latin America, and you'll be able to manage in Portuguese to boot.

[ENTILIASSOT]

o.O

What we speak in Malaysia is the Malay language besides the rest of the languages and were not the only ones who speak Malay o.O Those in Singapore and Indonesia speak Malay as well... <_<

Well, technically, if theres anyone who wants to learn how to speak Malay, they can always post in the Malay thread and well teach them right there and then. No need for a thread like this ;

[Greg]

terima kasih dan menyambut Entiliassot! 

saya cinta Malaysia, ia sangat cantik.     

Saya belajar bhasa Indonesia, sudah lupa kata kata....mau pergi sana!