Learning the Lingo - Should you speak the language of your new country?

[john_and_marlene 162]

When I was in Germany for 3 years in the military, it was shocking that the vast majority of the americans stationed there didn't care to learn the language. I found that I was treated much better when attempted to speak German. Most of the citizens there could speak English well or at least as well as I could speak German, but may would not make the attempt to speak English unless I made the attempt to speak German. There were occassions when I felt shamed by the arrogance of those that complained when people there would not or could converse with them in English.

If you don't make the effort to speak the language of the culture, don't be surprised if you are isolated by your lack of communication.

My time there would not have been so pleasant if I had crippled my ability to function in the society where I resided by not learning the language.

[ChristinaM 0]

Yes, it's important. It's important from the point of view of communication, and it's also important from the point of view of integration. As has been said, foreign immigrants can tend to cluster, and never really integrate in a cultural sense because they lack the language skills to do so.

I don't think there's anything unreasonable in expecting people to get by in the language of the country in which they live, but "officialese" is going to be a problem whatever your native tongue.

[nijusjaanu 0]

i definately think you need to be able to speak a little of the language, even if you're just visiting the country. know how to say please and thankyou, yes and no, how much is this? where's the bathroom? numbers 1-10, simple stuff like that. like others have said: make the effort.

i also think it's the nice thing to do to learn your spouse's language. doesn't seem fair to me for him/her to have to speak a foreign language for you and you don't for him/her. ... then again, i'm very linguistically based, so it's fun for me. i realize some people are different. thoughts?

[meauxna 15]

As has been said, foreign immigrants can tend to cluster, and never really integrate in a cultural sense because they lack the language skills to do so.

Which came first, the chicken or the egg?

Foreign immigrants cluster (natural behavior).

They speak their native language and can transact 95% of daily life in their native language. They then do not learn English.

Can't integrate *because* they don't have English? Or, don't need to integrate because that's not what they came for and they can get what they need without English?

I could rattle off the names of a dozen Uk and US citizens living in Spain, who have lived there plus ten years and can barely order off a menu let alone hold a conversation in Spanish. Embarassing to me, because it's not how *I* would do it, but reverse things around and you can see that they don't feel a *need* to speak Spanish. They can get everything they came for without it. I had a similar experience in Greece, although I made a concerted effort to learn enough Greek to converse with the neighbors about basic things. Philosophy discussions were beyond my ability and I ran out of time!

It's been amusing to notice the DAH's efforts to use American. I first noticed it with 'garage'--he sounds like a right Yank now!

(riiiight )

[faith 0]

I must add that if you are planning on having children, and you do not bother to speak the language, chances are your children will not either. I taught a little boy whose family was from Jordan and English was his second language. Unfortunately his mother could not speak a lick of English and could not teach him or help him, so he did not begin taking ESL classes (free) until he was school aged. As a direct result he was behind in school and needed specialized reading help (which I was assigned to give him even tho he didn't fit the bill of our non-readers. His was a language problem).

[Yaads 0]

I agree that people need to learn the language of the country they are living in. If I were to move to Japan I would need to learn at least conversational Japanese. I don't see other countries changing all their signs and forms over other languages to suit the people that are there. If I move over to Japan they are not going to change over things so that I can understand...I am going to need to understand the language that is already in use there. I am not asking immigrants to speak English fluently but to at least TRY to get the basics down for conversations/business sake.

I work in an industry where 85% of our staff is of Hispanic origin. Most of them do not speak English at all. A few speak the basics and that is very helpful. It annoys me to no end that we have employees who speak not one work of English yet they can bring in forms from our government IN SPANISH to get things like...unemployment benefits, daycare services, food stamps, welfare etc. There is nothing wrong with getting those things but if you can't even speak the language of our country why should you be getting the benefits from our country? Our country isn't helping anything by making government forms available in all sorts of languages. If you want to get a drivers license, sign up for welfare, get social security, food stamps, medical care...and all those fine things our government supplies I believe you need to speak at least enough of the language to fill out the blasted form... in English!

I respect those who try to learn the language and those who make an effort. I have nothing to say about those that are lazy and don't even try

[cbd2cai 0]

My husband speaks English quite well so he won't have as many problems as he could have once he gets here. His vocabulary increases a lot when we have time to actually be together . . . recently had to explain to him words/expressions like "blabbermouth", "Okey-dokey", "fat cats" . . . well, you get the idea . . . not exactly the normal conversational items used everyday, but he managed to use them correctly when repeating back to me a day or so later.

NOW, my understanding of Arabic is just terrible! I am trying to learn it so I can speak with his mother and sister as they have no english. It is slow going for me even with all the books/CDs that I have bought. I pick up more when I actually go visit in Cairo, but still not enough for actual conversations.

He says that he will teach me when he gets here, LOL!! Maybe . . . but I think immersion is the best way to learn a language.

[eau_xplain 2]

I think that if you intend to work/live in a country for an extended period of time, one should make the effort to learn the language. Aside from it being important for integration, it also shows respect to the country (and its people) that you are living in.

[germangel 0]

I'm totally with you on that one!

American soldiers stationed in other countries barely care to learn the lingo.

Almost none of the people I knew could say more than "scheiße", "ein bier" and "Arschloch"

[Jasman0717 9]

[pedroh 21]

the latest word i've learned is pipsqueak

[LenJayUS 0]

You know my opinion on the matter.. we've had some heated debates about it on Ace :-) but for the rest of the people....

Yes, I think that immigrants to what ever country should do as much as possible (each person is in a different situation) to try and learn the language and intergrate the countries customs and mannerisms. I'm not saying that they shouldn't be able to follow their own countries customs, or speak their own language to others that know it... but they should attempt to meld into their new society as well.

I didn't immigrate to Germany, but I was stationed there for over 4 years. It wasn't required that we learned how to read, write, and speak German, or understand their customs - but they did give us a week long class to help us get by in Germany. Headstart I think they called it.

I learned enough to go out into public and show the local nationals that I was attempting to speak their language, and just about everyone was appreciative of that. They all spoke English as well - English is the world's business language so they are required to learn it in school from what I was told - so when I got done making an ### of myself, they'd switch to english to make sure I ordered what I really wanted... Of course I usually said what I wanted and pointed at it on the menu to make sure :-D

And it's not just of different languages - there's alot of differences between the english that people in the UK speak, and what english American's speak. Hell, there's differences within the US :-). I think there should be an attempt to try and adopt to where you are living. Drug store instead of chemist, yard instead of garden, fries instead of chips, chips instead of crisps, etc... otherwise there's going to be a language barrier with locals, despite the two people speaking the same language.

If for what ever reason I end up living in the UK, or even visiting, I'd try and adopt things fully. I'd expect someone coming here from where ever to try the same thing.

[tom&tata 2]

I see a lot of expatriates (in the company where I work) who lives in Indonesia does not speak Indonesian. They are here for 3-4 years (is that extended time ?)

Some does not have time, some does not want to try and look funny or foolish. But they do not see the need to learn the language since they can get away by using English the whole time. The maid speaks English, the driver speaks English, secretary speaks English. They do not see the needs to be able to understand Indonesian language because the Indonesians around them speaks English.

I used to live in the Netherlands. I went to school in Amsterdam, but eventhough I learnt the language 3 months prior to the move, I never made it to the level of carrying out the convo in Dutch. Plus, most people I interact in Amsterdam speaks English so I was not uncomfortable not knowing the language.

When I moved to Eindhoven, it is smaller city compared to Amsterdam and I started to learn the language. The reason is because I would need to understand the language to be able to work and start socializing with my co-worker who are 95% locals.