One of the fortunate aspects of my genetic inheritance involves an ease in learning foreign languages. I've always liked foreign languages. There's something very comforting about them, to me, at least, and pretty much everyone in my family has learned at least a few languages. It is, as they say, in the blood, and there is great love there - otherwise, why would we bother?
Naturally, in Europe, it can be really useful knowing a foreign language (other than your native tongue, and English, which everyone speaks by now, at least passably), though for many people I've met, the usefulness alone is not enough to drive a desire to actively learn French, or German.
So as with any other skill, I assume it is a passion that runs through your bloodline. Which naturally must mean there is also adversity.
I've always had a strained relationship with German, which I dabbled with in kindergarten, but never stuck to me. I was also studying English, which I took to like a fish to water, and French, at the time. Of course, then, I didn't really make a distinction between "Mom says I gotta learn this" and "I like learning this". So it would only be much later that I formed a real opinion on either English or French.
With German, however, the response was immediate and guttural. I did not like it. Not only that, there's something in me that actively dislikes German - the sound of the language is just so jarring and brutal to me. There seems to be no melody in German, for me, no song. It's one of those things that I don't know, and have no intention of trying to understand better, you know?
Sorry. I know some people love German, and I can understand that, as I feel the same for other languages. I'm really not trying to bash German here, just describing the intensity of this feeling.
I was doing some trip planning the other day, and while deciding between a trip to Germany and one to Italy, I found it funny that I had to check the name of a German town three times, though it was only one word, whereas for the Italian one, I remembered it immediately, despite it being a much longer name.
What determines these linguistic predilections of ours?
My mother is also a deep lover of Italian, and all things related to it, but blood isn't severely impacted by something that occurred so recently. On the contrary, with much of my family hailing from Germanic countries, if anything, my bloodline would dictate a proclivity towards German.
But it is not there.
My younger brother, though, is fascinated with it, and my eldest cousin has lived in German-speaking countries for several years now. So maybe it is there, in the blood, but just missed me.
Nurture vs. nature... again.
It seems recently, I keep coming back to this eternal question - how much of our traits are shaped by our genes, and how much by our surrounding environment? For the past 15 months, I've been actively studying Russian, and had ventured towards it in the past.
I like Russian, despite it being a difficult language that to many also sounds jarring and harsh. I just can't bring myself to see it that way. To me, Russian is beautiful and melodic, and so rich in expressions. I like Russian despite having a hard time with it, sometimes.
I liked Russian since the first time I met my teacher, and I stared dumbly and awkwardly at her while she spoke almost exclusively in Russian.
And I think I know why. My own native Romanian is heavily influenced by Russian, though also by Latin, and Germanic tongues. One of my greatest pleasures, learning this foreign tongue, has been unearthing all the origin words of some of my own.
Not only that, but naturally, due to our geographical proximity and shared USSR past, there are a lot of cultural similarities between Russia and Romania. I find myself, my home, and my grandparents in this language, in its idioms, and customs. So I can only conclude that my fascination for Russian is not borne out of genes, but out of breeding, and environment.
Russian is not one of the languages typically advocated as "useful", career-wise, in my country. German and Chinese, yes. But no one's ever advised me to learn Russian as a way to advance my career, much less now with the current state of affairs.
That doesn't matter, either. At the risk of sounding selfish, I can't wait for this all to be over, and for our relations with Russia to be back on their feet, so I can go there, and lose myself indefinitely...
... in this language that obsesses me. In this culture, in this world that draws me in with its every golden peak, expression, and poem.
Being a native English speaker, as much as I am fascinated by different languages, I've had little opportunity to use them. German is actually the one I know the most, as this was the language my school taught, plus my grandmother was German, so I visited 3 times. My grasp of German grammar is atrocious, however, and I am now incredibly rusty because I've had no opportunity to practice it since I finished college. I should have tried practising it with my grandmother more, but she could get quite forceful, so that could have strained our relationship.
I loved languages when I was younger and even did some Spanish, which was crammed into such a short time frame I didn't retain much of it at all. I really love that you can start recognising words from the different languages, so some Spanish words were similar to English ones and some similar to German. Like you I also like the history of where the words of our own language have come from and for English that's a lot of other languages.
My daughter did rhythmic gymnastics with a Ukrainian coach for a while and became attracted to the Russian language which she'd hear as the coach would speak to the Russian and Ukrainian students. She started trying to learn it, but I don't think she kept it up.
Maybe a trip to Germany is in order :) You know, it's interesting, but everyone I've met whose ancestors came from a different place (which is mostly everybody, isn't it?) speak that language, or had it spoken in their home. My own great-grandmother was from Croatia, yet no one in my family knows an ounce. It seems a shame these languages peter out.
That's wonderful! I think it's super beneficial even to come into contact with a different alphabet and culture, and so on. Does she still do rhythmic gymnastics?
We are actually lucky to know any German, because it didn't get taught to us at all by my grandmother. I suspect it's because she came to England so soon after the war, so it may not have looked the best to be teaching her children this former enemy's language. Instead we went to a Steiner school and learnt it there.
My daughter is at university and studying all hours now, so no longer does rhythmic. She can't afford the fees or the time.
I've always loved the sound of Russian. There's a gravity and substance to it, but a melody too. Most people think French sounds prettier, but to me, French sounds like dessert, while Russian sounds like a proper meal.
I'd like to brush off my high school French. I feel like I've got a good foundation, if I had the time to build on it.
I agree about the German, which sounds like it was specifically designed for cruelty. And Mandarin (the Chinese I mostly hear in Boston) which is a linguistic head cold, all szhing and sneezing. It's no wonder they spit so often. You should see the sidewalks in Chinatown!
I wonder what English sounds like, to people who can't speak it?
Maybe check out a film, or a book in French? I found those help a lot, especially any activity that involves listening to the language.
I mean it's funny, but maybe it's also not a coincidence? Maybe harsh languages and harsh character are, in some way, connected? That'd be interesting to check out.
Hm, I think you're right about the Mandarin, from the little I've heard in movies - it sounds very harsh and aggressive.
There's something wonderfully poetic about this question.
For a while there, we actually started watching "Peppa Pig" translated into French on Youtube. Not the most challenging material, but it was satisfying to be able to understand some of what was being said!
I was working at the bookstore at the time, and my co-workers thought I'd lost it when we got a shipment of Peppa toys and I started speaking to them in French.
Ha! That's great. I think "not the most challenging material" is actually a lot better than really hard stuff. Because that usually just brow-beats you into thinking you don't understand anything.
Would they have been less bothered if you spoke to them in English, I wonder? Also, this is assuming they believed you to be sane to begin with. Bold statement :P
I took Spanish and French in school and then dabbled in Mandarin on my own after I graduated. I have gravitated more towards French than any other. I'd also LOVE to learn Russian. Many of my Mom's family originated in that region of the world.
Have you seen any of this guy's videos on YouTube? They're exceptional. He has a real talent for learning languages very quickly.
You should try it :) It's not as difficult as people seem to think (it's usually the alphabet that trips people up).
I had not seen him -- wow, he speaks it so naturally. I wonder how long it took him to learn..
The alphabet looks SO foreign. Maybe I will try it. I have this trip planned for Montreal in September and my goal is to become conversational in French before then.
His channel is really entertaining but the concept is starting to get a little stale. There's only so many times you can shock people by speaking their native tongue. He is an amazing linguist.
Oh, that's a great goal. I'm sure it'll make the trip even more enjoyable. Besides, always smart to challenge yourself. Good luck ;)
Thank you! It’s so important to keep that grey matter active, especially as we age. I actually get quite depressed if I’m not constantly learning something.