This Week's Meaningless Topic (#96)(July 9)

[Rodger Pettichord]

Hi all. As I try to relearn Spanish via an online course, I'm reminded of how much I respect those who are multilingual. Regulars on this thread have been many places and presumably have picked up languages along the way. Here's a chance to acknowledge your accomplishments and have a bit of a deserved strut.

 

THIS WEEK'S MEANINGLESS TOPIC:   What languages do you know and to what level?

     A. Fluency -- could be mistaken for a native citizen.

     B. Reasonable familiarity -- can carry on a decent conversation.

     C. Friendly tourist -- superficial but sincere.

[Nick Cooper]

Not so much after years of not using them but at one point,

I was fluent in the German spoken word but as I learned it by using it in Germany, my reading skills were less so.

Germans apparently took me for Swedish, because of my accent and the fair hair that I had then.

I studied French for ten years or so, to HND level.

I was fluent in reading and the spoken word but with an appalling accent.

Now, thanks to Google Translate, I am fluent in reading and writing almost every language.

 

(See that it is possible to reply to one of Rodger's topics without mentioning beer)

[Stillwater]

Nice thread to make yourself aware of what is hidden inside:

A: German, English

B: Spanish

C: Italian, Greek, French, Plattdeutsch, Hessisch

Just enough to feel good in big parts of the world.

[gumbypickett]

Just English and a little bit of slang for me.

cheers

Gumby

[flyingfish55]

Like Rodger I am trying my best to learn some Spanish having spent my last few holiday in Cadiz and am going back again in September for three weeks. My wife and I can get by in restaurants but would like to be able to exchange a few words with the locals. As I get older I find it harder to retain the vocab I am picking up daily but I shall press on. 

When I was working I spoke good French (although the French think I speak like a lorry driver from the Calais region), good Italian and passable German. Having lived in the Middle East I can exchange greetings in Arabic but no more. I also spent a year at night classes studying Japanese and had mastered the Kanji characters but I took it no further.

 

My motto is, if you can say please and thank you in the local language it would be appreciated by the locals. 

[TuFun]

My mother was German so second language was German although not used in decades. My power language is "tongues"!

 

Using a cell as a communicator like in Star Trek works pretty good.  Matter of fact is a guy rode up on his bike and asked in Spanish if I would like my trees trimmed.

I do not speak Spanish and he used his cell and I spoke in his cell... no need since I just had them trimmed.  His cell translated into Spanish on the fly.

We communicated back and forth like a normal conversation.

[boetie]

6 hours ago, Nick Cooper said:

Not so much after years of not using them but at one point,

I was fluent in the German spoken word but as I learned it by using it in Germany, my reading skills were less so.

Germans apparently took me for Swedish, because of my accent and the fair hair that I had then.

I studied French for ten years or so, to HND level.

I was fluent in reading and the spoken word but with an appalling accent.

Now, thanks to Google Translate, I am fluent in reading and writing almost every language.

 

(See that it is possible to reply to one of Rodger's topics without mentioning beer)

German and French with a Yorkshire accent. I'd love to hear that Nick (if only I were German or French!)

Maybe after a beer or two you'd sound like a local

[wain71]

I lived in Berlin for a few years in the 80's and knew enough to get by......

my eldest daughter bought me a t-shirt last year- it read- fluent in sarcasm............does that count?

I had a very disengaging teacher at school for German and French, I blame him...

[Ken Q]

Majored in French in college, and became fairly fluent.  But haven't used it in years.  I find I can still read it, and understand fairly well if the speaker goes slowly and enunciates.  At work I've occasionally had a bilingual conversation.  I'd speak English slowly and clearly, while my French speaking visitor would speak French.  Both sides understood the other well enough.

 

When stationed in Naples for Desert Shield I took a class in Italian.  I learned enough to ask the questions, but not enough to understand the answers.

 

Ken

[Rodger Pettichord]

Two years of Spanish 60 years ago never fully left but never developed either. A bit of German and French in college allowed a bit of reading but no speaking. Biblical Greek and Hebrew in seminary brought about the level of comfortable familiarity required of Presbyterian pastors. Several years in Asia made it possible to get around okay in Japan, Viet Nam, Thailand, and Taiwan. For my novels, I studied Australian, the hardest of all.

[Ken Q]

58 minutes ago, Rodger Pettichord said:

Biblical Greek and Hebrew in seminary brought about the level of comfortable familiarity required of Presbyterian pastors. 

I too studied Biblical Greek, and can work my way through a text with a dictionary and a lot of patience.  About the same ability in Hebrew, but the Hebrew I studied is the.modern Israeli kind.  Biggest issue is the pronunciation.  I've been asked to lead Passover Seders on several occasions by Jewish friends who initially have a little trouble with my Sephardic pronunciation when they are used to the Ashkenazi pronunciation.  I also can work my way through Medieval (and Church) Latin without much trouble.  I've taken courses in (modern) German and can get the high points of scholarly articles on literary criticism.

 

My specialty is Medieval Germanic language (and literature).  Old English (Anglo Saxon) Middle English, and Old High German.  Also studied Old Norse, but had philosophical problems with the approach of the professor, so didn't follow through on that.

 

Ken

[flyingleaf]

I speak perfect German:" Ein beer bitte". Ooops, oh no I did it again. Sorry Nick Et Al. 

[Rodger Pettichord]

50 minutes ago, flyingleaf said:

I speak perfect German:" Ein beer bitte". Ooops, oh no I did it again. Sorry Nick Et Al. 

Karl, I have made an appointment with a psychiatrist for you. We will overcome this problem, my friend, don't worry.

[flyingleaf]

Thanks Rodger. Mine gave up on me long ago. 

[VH-KDK]

2 hours ago, Rodger Pettichord said:

Karl, I have made an appointment with a psychiatrist for you. We will overcome this problem, my friend, don't worry.

Rodger, you would be better off making an apointment for Karl with Yaletown or Parallel 49.

[VH-KDK]

1 hour ago, flyingleaf said:

Thanks Rodger. Mine gave up on me long ago. 

Karl, was yours the one that went to see a psychiatrist immediately after your appointment.

[Rodger Pettichord]

2 minutes ago, VH-KDK said:

Rodger, you would be better off making an apointment for Karl with Yaletown or Parallel 49.

Oh jeez, here we go again, sidetracked into the hops.

[VH-KDK]

I hated French at school which was exacerbated by having a teacher that didn't like me. I will be fair, we didn't like each other.

I did learn some Thai and I was able to have a very limited conversation with people but I have now forgotten most of what I learned. 

Having different tones for the same words also made it difficult. 

No need now that we have Google translate.

[VH-KDK]

8 minutes ago, Rodger Pettichord said:

Oh jeez, here we go again, sidetracked into the hops.

Karl started it!!!!!

[flyingleaf]

17 minutes ago, VH-KDK said:

Karl, was yours the one that went to see a psychiatrist immediately after your appointment.

Yep that was him alright. Do you know him too?

[VH-KDK]

2 minutes ago, flyingleaf said:

Yep that was him alright. Do you know him too?

Sure do Karl but I know him four as I see double after a few you know whats!

 

[flyingleaf]

19 minutes ago, Rodger Pettichord said:

the hops

Let's go do the "hops".. Jeesh I meant the song guys. I should not be guilty all the time.  Less than six month away from "frosty". Lol somebody stop me. Ah come on guys the "snowman" what else do you think I meant.

[VH-KDK]

1 minute ago, flyingleaf said:

Let's go do the "hops".. Jeesh I meant the song guys. I should not be guilty all the time.  Less than six month away from "frosty". Lol somebody stop me. Ah come on guys the "snowman" what else do you think I meant.

Don't you mean "snowperson?"

[boetie]

Can we please get a Karl section on the forum?

Beers

Graeme

[gumbypickett]

13 minutes ago, boetie said:

Can we please get a Karl section on the forum?

Beers

Graeme

Perhaps Karlsberg beer. I don't know its past

my bed time.

I'm gunna have nightmares about Nick now.

cheers

Gumby

[VH-KDK]

13 minutes ago, gumbypickett said:

Perhaps Karlsberg beer. I don't know its past

my bed time.

I'm gunna have nightmares about Nick now.

cheers

Gumby

You are lucky only being past your bedtime Gumby.

I am well past my use by date.

[VH-KDK]

I will try and get back on topic again.

My brother spent a while trying to learn Spanish ready for our first holiday there in 1963. We got hopelessly lost in Barcelona and in the end dad pulled the car over behind two men loading a van. My brother leapt out looking forwards to trying out his Spanish. Just his luck as both of the men were from London and were easily able to put us back on track. Bear in mind that this was at the very start of the tourist invasion of Spain and the chance of finding two English men in a back street in Barcelona was very remote!

Dare I say the sparkling was so rediculously cheap we never had a beer !

[boetie]

I grew up in Rhodesia - Zimbabwe since Indepence in 1980. In primary school we were taught the local indigenous laguage Shona. I don't remember the Shona phrase but the English version has always stuck with me. In Shona someone will say " how are you?" The respectful reply will be "I am well if you are well". Perhaps a Shona speaker can give me the Shona version. It is such a great respectful reply. Sorry Rodger it's not along your intended thread but a 2nd laguage related

[VH-KDK]

8 minutes ago, boetie said:

I grew up in Rhodesia - Zimbabwe since Indepence in 1980. In primary school we were taught the local indigenous laguage Shona. I don't remember the Shona phrase but the English version has always stuck with me. In Shona someone will say " how are you?" The respectful reply will be "I am well if you are well". Perhaps a Shona speaker can give me the Shona version. It is such a great respectful reply. Sorry Rodger it's not along your intended thread but a 2nd laguage related

Wakadii?

Ndapora kana wapora.

As mentioned before Google translate is a very useful too. Not sure if this has translated correctly but maybe this may jog your memory.

[boetie]

Thank you Martyn. That's it! From my memory just one syllable missing. Oh the memories!! Cheers mate

[carlosqr]

On 7/7/2022 at 10:53 PM, Nick Cooper said:

Not so much after years of not using them but at one point,

I was fluent in the German spoken word but as I learned it by using it in Germany, my reading skills were less so.

Germans apparently took me for Swedish, because of my accent and the fair hair that I had then.

I studied French for ten years or so, to HND level.

I was fluent in reading and the spoken word but with an appalling accent.

Now, thanks to Google Translate, I am fluent in reading and writing almost every language.

 

(See that it is possible to reply to one of Rodger's topics without mentioning beer)

Very nice

[carlosqr]

On 7/7/2022 at 11:01 PM, Stillwater said:

Nice thread to make yourself aware of what is hidden inside:

A: German, English

B: Spanish

C: Italian, Greek, French, Plattdeutsch, Hessisch

Just enough to feel good in big parts of the world.

Wow, cool

 

On 7/8/2022 at 1:58 AM, flyingfish55 said:

Like Rodger I am trying my best to learn some Spanish having spent my last few holiday in Cadiz and am going back again in September for three weeks. My wife and I can get by in restaurants but would like to be able to exchange a few words with the locals. As I get older I find it harder to retain the vocab I am picking up daily but I shall press on. 

When I was working I spoke good French (although the French think I speak like a lorry driver from the Calais region), good Italian and passable German. Having lived in the Middle East I can exchange greetings in Arabic but no more. I also spent a year at night classes studying Japanese and had mastered the Kanji characters but I took it no further.

 

My motto is, if you can say please and thank you in the local language it would be appreciated by the locals. 

Cool

I think Spanish is quite difficult but I find French worst.

Keep it up

 

20 hours ago, Rodger Pettichord said:

Two years of Spanish 60 years ago never fully left but never developed either. A bit of German and French in college allowed a bit of reading but no speaking. Biblical Greek and Hebrew in seminary brought about the level of comfortable familiarity required of Presbyterian pastors. Several years in Asia made it possible to get around okay in Japan, Viet Nam, Thailand, and Taiwan. For my novels, I studied Australian, the hardest of all.

Australian the hardest of all

[carlosqr]

I feel lucky for knowing Spanish because I see how many struggle learning it

I started studying English when I was 14, thanks to my dad, I owe to English, all the labor opportunities I've had.

When working in a hotel, we received Air Transat, Mirabele and Grancd Circle Travel charters from Canada. I wasn't able to understand the Québécois, so I entered the Alliance Française to learn French and well, I continue not understanding the Québécois

Then got insterested in Italian with grades above 95 but at certain moment I started to get a huge mix and confusion with the French that I dropped it. Somehow I felt I would loose my French which found more difficult to learn and more useful, though I like italian a lot, it is almost Spanish.

I feel attracted by learning Turkish and the is due to the TV shows of course that display the culture, places etc

Cheers

Carlos

[TerribleT]

A. English, Strine, Neo-Melanesian Pidgin

B. Several PNG tribal languages and one Australian Aboriginal language

C. Chinese, Japanese, French, German

I am one of those people who had a facility for picking up a language by listening and using it - and loosing it if I didn't use it.  I used to listen to shortwave radio a lot to try and maintain my ability with languages I was not using but that has become more difficult in recent years

[Ken Q]

6 hours ago, carlosqr said:

 

When working in a hotel, we received Air Transat, Mirabele and Grancd Circle Travel charters from Canada. I wasn't able to understand the Québécois, so I entered the Alliance Française to learn French and well, I continue not understanding the Québécois .

When in college (Marist College, Poughkeepsie, N.Y.)  we had a group of brothers from a French Canadian teaching order on campus.  They attended class and engaged in usual extra curricular clubs and activities on campus. But they lived in their own residence, A little old house dubbed St Mary's Residence.  As a French major I was involved with them, befriended them, and spent a lot of time at St. Mary's.  Obviously, I got used to the Quebecois, and undoubtedly absorbed much of the dialect myself.

 

In 1967 the French Club and the Brothers arranged a bus trip to Montreal for Expo 67.  We stayed at the Brothers' Mother House in Montreal.  Very simple, but extremely comfortable accommodations, with a very nice breakfast and dinner provided.  I can't recall the cost, except that it was very cheap, even for impecunious undergraduates.  And we French majors were living in a French speaking community.

 

The following year during winter break (January) a friend and I hitchhiked to Montreal and stayed with the Brothers.  It was COLD!!!!!  But while we toured the city a bit, we found the facilities at Le Scolasticat Central wonderful.  I especially remember swimming in the wonderful pool.  As living in French speaking monastic community was great.  

 

Ken

[carlosqr]

1 hour ago, Ken Q said:

When in college (Marist College, Poughkeepsie, N.Y.)  we had a group of brothers from a French Canadian teaching order on campus.  They attended class and engaged in usual extra curricular clubs and activities on campus. But they lived in their own residence, A little old house dubbed St Mary's Residence.  As a French major I was involved with them, befriended them, and spent a lot of time at St. Mary's.  Obviously, I got used to the Quebecois, and undoubtedly absorbed much of the dialect myself.

 

In 1967 the French Club and the Brothers arranged a bus trip to Montreal for Expo 67.  We stayed at the Brothers' Mother House in Montreal.  Very simple, but extremely comfortable accommodations, with a very nice breakfast and dinner provided.  I can't recall the cost, except that it was very cheap, even for impecunious undergraduates.  And we French majors were living in a French speaking community.

 

The following year during winter break (January) a friend and I hitchhiked to Montreal and stayed with the Brothers.  It was COLD!!!!!  But while we toured the city a bit, we found the facilities at Le Scolasticat Central wonderful.  I especially remember swimming in the wonderful pool.  As living in French speaking monastic community was great.  

 

Ken

That's a nice memorie

 

[adambar]

Other- Anay  eer-Bay  ease-Play, o-nay  ake-Nay  itay  o-Tway. 

 

Karl will understand after a few.  

[flyingleaf]

7 hours ago, adambar said:

Karl will understand after a few.

Hic. Got it, hic

[Rob Abernathy]

Interesting lot here.  I studied German in High School, thinking I would read scientific papers from Germany in my future studies.  Little did I realize the level of competence I needed to understand any of them!   Wish I had taken Spanish.  After a 3 week trip to Costa Rica I found I could pick it up pretty well, so now am studying it online.

I also know some Arabic but that's a story for another time.