auril
9 Oct 2012
Language / What has been the hardest language for you to learn? [81]
I really learned English by necessity, when I moved to US. I tried to learn German, bu it just didn't stick with me. My cousin, though, is fluent in German, and I don't think she had any problem learning it. I also learned (still am learning) Spanish, I caught up on it really quickly. After two semesters in my University and a two-week trip to Mexico, I can have a good conversation in Spanish. I'm definitely not fluent yet though.
I think, that the level of difficulty in learning a language depends on how much contact you have with it. I easily learned English, because I was surrounded by it everyday in school. I caught up on Spanish, because I live in Florida now, and I have a lot of contact with Spanish-speakers. I really had no contact with actual German language outside of classroom so I did not retain it. I would love to try my strength in learning Russian, but I'll probably have to wait till I graduate with that :)
I think another cause of whether the language seems easy is the similarity of the sounds it has. As you develop your throat adjusts to the sounds from the languages you learn as a child. That's why it's easier for a Polish person to correctly pronounce Spanish words, than it is for an American. Spanish sound extremely similar to the simple polish sounds. That's why even though I had my first contact with Spanish after I was 18, I'm often told by native Spanish-speakers, that I have no accent in Spanish. On the other hand my Mexican friend cannot pronounce "dź" or "dż" to save her life.
I really learned English by necessity, when I moved to US. I tried to learn German, bu it just didn't stick with me. My cousin, though, is fluent in German, and I don't think she had any problem learning it. I also learned (still am learning) Spanish, I caught up on it really quickly. After two semesters in my University and a two-week trip to Mexico, I can have a good conversation in Spanish. I'm definitely not fluent yet though.
I think, that the level of difficulty in learning a language depends on how much contact you have with it. I easily learned English, because I was surrounded by it everyday in school. I caught up on Spanish, because I live in Florida now, and I have a lot of contact with Spanish-speakers. I really had no contact with actual German language outside of classroom so I did not retain it. I would love to try my strength in learning Russian, but I'll probably have to wait till I graduate with that :)
I think another cause of whether the language seems easy is the similarity of the sounds it has. As you develop your throat adjusts to the sounds from the languages you learn as a child. That's why it's easier for a Polish person to correctly pronounce Spanish words, than it is for an American. Spanish sound extremely similar to the simple polish sounds. That's why even though I had my first contact with Spanish after I was 18, I'm often told by native Spanish-speakers, that I have no accent in Spanish. On the other hand my Mexican friend cannot pronounce "dź" or "dż" to save her life.