Welcome. I really enjoy such talks. And more often they occur, more creative they become, i feel. Ugh, i really wish you could read also poems in Polish, not just those in English.
Oh man, I really wish so too! Like I wrote in my first-ever article in Spanish, I really regret that everyone else is expected to do the laborious work of translating from their mother tongue. We native English-speakers have it way too easy, so we become lazy!
One of my heroes is Moses McCormick, the african-american polyglot who speaks the basics of 50+ languages. I have a long way to go and plan to start with Cantonese/Mandarin. I haven't chosen any Slavic languages yet, because I want to tackle the logographic script since it is the most challenging. It's kind of foolish because it would be a lot easier to study languages that use latin characters, but sometimes you have to follow the heart's lead even when it seems insane.
Long story short, maybe I can finally learn Polish one day...
Ugh, you know... poetry is strange thing in so many ways. Why? Simply because it is land of abundance, deeply immersed in meanings. Meanings. Meanings. Meanings. Boundless really.
Speaking of languages worth to learn for their poetic value, i would recommend Tamil, apart from my native Polish. It is said that Tamil literature is among richest, oldest and most thriving worldwide. Also, Tamil Nadu gave birth to some unknown titans of contemporary literature such CN Annadurai and Karunanidhi. Btw, your comment is quite long, and hence it is not really easy to reply in one comment, no matter how long ;) . So, please, let me gather my dispersed thoughts for more to come later :) .
Wow... what a pile of synchronicities. I'm American by birth and the only foreign country I've ever visited (so far) is India [the state Kerala to be specific.] It happens to be the neighboring state of Tamil Nadu. I lived in a monastery for 4 months in which I learned to read and write the Malayalam language: Tamil's cousin tongue!
They are intricately related for many hundreds of years. You may know that already, but I'm blown away by the (not-so-)coincidence! In my far-fetched dream, I would like to revisit Malayalam later in life and learn Hindi as well. Now, you're telling me I have to add Tamil to the list?!? 😂😂😂
Such a strange coincidence! I have quite extensive connections with Kerala. For few years i worked in and around Malayalam film industry. I have tried, in so many ways, to popularize Malayalam movies in Poland. I worked with several distributors to make it happen. And though my success in all these undertaking was and still is minimal, i can easily say, i am Keralite by heart, and Polish by birth.
No, now i can say you either vanakkam or namaskaram. Which greetings would you choose? ;)
Hahaha, I am fond of namaskaram for its relation to namaste. Though, I can also say എനിക സന്തോഷം ആണ് because to meet another Keralite-in-spirit makes me quite happy. @sayee is a friend of mine and fellow poet from Kerala, if you've yet to meet her :-)
I would be more surprised, but once life reveals a kindred spirit to me, it all makes sense! A large portion of my heart also belongs to Kerala. It may sound odd, but I always felt out of place in my home country. Kerala was the first place I felt like I belonged anywhere on this planet. I was very sad to leave.
This is so cool.
P.S. here's a picture of my Malayalam study notebook when I was training with an eager pedant and priest around my same age who agreed to train me :-)
Thanks for posting this. I will be in Tamil next year and never thought about learning Tamil because of the short time I was planning to stay but it is respectful to at least try to speak and listen to a few things they are saying. My friend from Tamil never says he is "Indian." He always introduces himself saying, "I am Tamil from Tamil Nadu."
Tamils are extremly proud of their language, history and heritage. And yes, significant portion of Tamils in TN (though still far from majority) identifies primarily as a Tamil, and Indian only by default. And in past, ethnic nationalism was even stronger. Alas, main opposition party in the state assembly, DMK was founded with the agenda of establishing independent Dravida Nadu, and dropped it from party platform only after patriotic fervour of Sino-Indian War in 1962.
Welcome. I really enjoy such talks. And more often they occur, more creative they become, i feel. Ugh, i really wish you could read also poems in Polish, not just those in English.
Oh man, I really wish so too! Like I wrote in my first-ever article in Spanish, I really regret that everyone else is expected to do the laborious work of translating from their mother tongue. We native English-speakers have it way too easy, so we become lazy!
One of my heroes is Moses McCormick, the african-american polyglot who speaks the basics of 50+ languages. I have a long way to go and plan to start with Cantonese/Mandarin. I haven't chosen any Slavic languages yet, because I want to tackle the logographic script since it is the most challenging. It's kind of foolish because it would be a lot easier to study languages that use latin characters, but sometimes you have to follow the heart's lead even when it seems insane.
Long story short, maybe I can finally learn Polish one day...
Ugh, you know... poetry is strange thing in so many ways. Why? Simply because it is land of abundance, deeply immersed in meanings. Meanings. Meanings. Meanings. Boundless really.
Speaking of languages worth to learn for their poetic value, i would recommend Tamil, apart from my native Polish. It is said that Tamil literature is among richest, oldest and most thriving worldwide. Also, Tamil Nadu gave birth to some unknown titans of contemporary literature such CN Annadurai and Karunanidhi. Btw, your comment is quite long, and hence it is not really easy to reply in one comment, no matter how long ;) . So, please, let me gather my dispersed thoughts for more to come later :) .
Wow... what a pile of synchronicities. I'm American by birth and the only foreign country I've ever visited (so far) is India [the state Kerala to be specific.] It happens to be the neighboring state of Tamil Nadu. I lived in a monastery for 4 months in which I learned to read and write the Malayalam language: Tamil's cousin tongue!
They are intricately related for many hundreds of years. You may know that already, but I'm blown away by the (not-so-)coincidence! In my far-fetched dream, I would like to revisit Malayalam later in life and learn Hindi as well. Now, you're telling me I have to add Tamil to the list?!? 😂😂😂
Such a strange coincidence! I have quite extensive connections with Kerala. For few years i worked in and around Malayalam film industry. I have tried, in so many ways, to popularize Malayalam movies in Poland. I worked with several distributors to make it happen. And though my success in all these undertaking was and still is minimal, i can easily say, i am Keralite by heart, and Polish by birth.
No, now i can say you either vanakkam or namaskaram. Which greetings would you choose? ;)
Hahaha, I am fond of namaskaram for its relation to namaste. Though, I can also say എനിക സന്തോഷം ആണ് because to meet another Keralite-in-spirit makes me quite happy. @sayee is a friend of mine and fellow poet from Kerala, if you've yet to meet her :-)
I would be more surprised, but once life reveals a kindred spirit to me, it all makes sense! A large portion of my heart also belongs to Kerala. It may sound odd, but I always felt out of place in my home country. Kerala was the first place I felt like I belonged anywhere on this planet. I was very sad to leave.
This is so cool.
P.S. here's a picture of my Malayalam study notebook when I was training with an eager pedant and priest around my same age who agreed to train me :-)
Since you are Keralite-in-spirit, let me send you some photos of mine with familiar faces ;) .
Here you can find some basic infos about Tamil, including Tamil literature with its ancient beginnings
https://southasia.berkeley.edu/tamil-classes
Thanks for posting this. I will be in Tamil next year and never thought about learning Tamil because of the short time I was planning to stay but it is respectful to at least try to speak and listen to a few things they are saying. My friend from Tamil never says he is "Indian." He always introduces himself saying, "I am Tamil from Tamil Nadu."
Tamils are extremly proud of their language, history and heritage. And yes, significant portion of Tamils in TN (though still far from majority) identifies primarily as a Tamil, and Indian only by default. And in past, ethnic nationalism was even stronger. Alas, main opposition party in the state assembly, DMK was founded with the agenda of establishing independent Dravida Nadu, and dropped it from party platform only after patriotic fervour of Sino-Indian War in 1962.
Nice reference source, thank you!