Can you speak any languages fluently other than your native language?
Why did you learn that language? How long did it take to speak it fluently?
For me, one of my New Years resolutions, is to get back to learning Japanese again. I was doing well last year but my classes were cancelled when COVID hit and I found it hard to stay motivated at home.
Where you from originally?
China
conversational can get by, but old japanese are pretentious with gaijin
Puns are not worth understanding anyway. Most people just use the iteration which sound similar and there is absolutely no humour in that.
'Samuel Johnson tells us that puns are the lowest form of comedy…but for me it's murder….'
I did as a child, lost much now no longer spoken. German (old), Gaelic, Ulster Scots.
I learnt these and several others as it was what was spoken at home. My Grandfather spoke 12 languages from memory. School literally beat my native languages out of me and taught me RP.
How long does any language? It's lifelong. I teach English and am still surprised about what I dont know (might have more to do with that initial learning part).
In all honesty, lessons will never replicate immersion and daily speaking. It is a use it or lose it scenario. Use Duolingo where it can be daily and there are online communities available.
Are you from Northern Ireland or that your family were from there?
Yes from all over Ulster by way of Scotland. Speak it less and less now the grandparents are gone. Even back home they are more Anglicised. I've found immigrants tend to hold onto old languages and dialects for much longer (case in point, Barossan German).
Interesting take considering you were suggesting people go to Germany because they are "multi-lingual" there. Maybe in Germany, they should also have that same shit attitude to foreigners and force them to learn German to communicate with the locals.
I bet you are also the type that goes to places like Bali, Thailand or Japan and refuse to learn their main language while you are a foreigner in their country.
Such a shit attitude to have; "YoU'rE iN A'sTrAyA, SpEaK 'StRaYaN". Basically, it's how you tell people you're a racist, without actually saying you're a racist.
And for what it is worth, your English is appalling as well.
People like them usually project a lot. Rules for thee, not for me etc.
People who speak two or more languages with English as their second language speak better English than this person. How ironic.
your English is appalling as well.
I was thinking the same thing lol My English does get lazy when I'm typing online, but his spiel was just terrible lol
K.O.
haha found a one nation voter…
after all these decades,people still feel very threatened by one nation voters
Yes, unfortunately racism is still a major problem to day, just as it was decades ago. Racism threatens democracy.
and demonise them.
No one needs to demonise them. They do that themselves by doing stupid crap like that idiot Youfoodz CEO you had to point out. Not sure what kind of case in point you are trying to make except for how stupid racists are?
Perhaps deep down you feel there is a lot of truth in what was said about your culture hence you feel so persecuted by it?
Nothing deep down, it's all on the surface. Being born and raised in Australia I'm well aware of the deep rooted racism that is part of our culture.
@subywagon: What I'm saying is the response to that incident was hugely disproportionate VS the 'offence'. Why were they so upset over a one off mimicry of how asians speak/behave? Is it because they're embarassed with their own culture and how some of it might be correctly considered as backward and eccentric?
Do you really believe that the average Aussie you meet and deal with have "deep rooted racism that is part of our culture"? Is that how you view your fellow countrymen?
How were yours or anybody else's part in the democracy threatened, recently?
Props for stating what you believe in, might not find common ground but it is what it is.
Do you really believe that the average Aussie you meet and deal with have "deep rooted racism that is part of our culture"?
Yes, there is definitely deeply rooted racism in Australia. At best there's only casual racism to deal with. I've seen it first hand
How were yours or anybody else's part in the democracy threatened, recently?
Dividing up populations amongst themselves, blaming races for certain issues and distracting them from the real problems and issues either caused by or not solved by supposed leaders is one example of how democracy is threatened and eroded. It's a technique that has been used throughout history.
Props for stating what you believe in, might not find common ground but it is what it is.
I've travelled and lived in various countries, we all have problems and issues. At the end of the day we are all people and should all have the right to be treated fairly, especially in Australia which was built on multiculturalism. The Eureka Stockade is a great example.
@subywagon: "Australia which was built on multiculturalism"
The White Australia Policy was amongst very first acts of the newly formed Australia Federal parliament after Federation in 1901. It was foundational legislation and heralded by virtually all! It may seem amazing these days but that is the truth.
Australia was truly build around a white supremacist idea.
https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/white-aust…
Australia was truly build around a white supremacist idea.
I'm well aware of the "White Australia Policy" and white supremacism in the government. Australia has as Payton put it, "deep rooted racism that is part of our culture". I'm referring to Australia actually being built by migrants. From the Eureka stockade to the Snowy River Scheme, the gold fields and Chinese immigrants. There's so many examples I could list of migrants building Australia. Whether people like it or not, Australia has a long and rich history of migrant success and contribution even in the face of racism and racist policy.
@subywagon: Physically built, as in man-power, yes I agree thoroughly.
I also have no doubt that Australia does have " deep rooted racism that is part of our culture". How could it not? The country was formed around racist ideals at Federation. There are not many countries for whom blatant racist policy were foundational acts of parliament!
Both points are true!
Do you really believe that the average Aussie you meet and deal with have "deep rooted racism that is part of our culture"? Is that how you view your fellow countrymen?
Australia (referring to NSW here) has been a failure state in racial integration.
From what I've learnt, in the 60s, 70s and early 80s - the AU immigration was calling on immigrants from across the globe with skills, trades, or what-have-you to come to Australia lend a hand in it's demographical and industrial advancements.
They even played the National Anthem Part in schools (which is now largely removed from presentation):
For those who've across the seas…
We've boundless plains to share..
With courage let us all combine.
Sydney Harbour/Circular Quay/etc was practically ghost-town full of wandering dogs, Barangaroo was a dishevelled port and the home grown Aussies would venture out to the 'suburbs' to get a taste of Asian/Italian/Middle eastern/Indian/Afghani food and culture.
These immigrants had all left the countries, be it from civil war, or personal choice to seek this new life of additional freedom and away from governments which were largely corrupt.
After (hypothetically) building the country; bringing in food, culture, traditions, labour, lifestyle, etc, these same families in 2000+ got nothing but a smack in the face with casual racism, hypertension, passive aggressiveness and general 'unwelcomeness'.
A rape case in 2000 sparked a frenzy, a riot and was on prime TV/paper for 10 years straight.
Later in 2012 a Rape (and choking murder) by one Adrian Bayley barely moved the news papers. A vigil was held and everyone moved on quietly. (Adrian wasn't himself when he committed the murder apparently..)
OneNation and other idiots started funding camps like this as a flag to stamp out anyone non-anglo…it was highly supported despite the leader of the party being mentally incompetent.
The gap of divide got wider, tension raised between police and communities, funding for various suburbs of high ethnic concentrations was severely restricted. This was later referred to be a "South Westy" which apparently people of the Northern Suburbs are told never to venture there or basically get raped/killed (lol), also to keep their windows locked at traffic lights.
MPs of these South Western Suburbs like Jason Clare are usually ignored in Parliament.
Have a look at what France had done to the Algerians, this is similar here.
A rape case in 2000 sparked a frenzy, a riot and was on prime TV/paper for 10 years straight.
Later in 2012 a Rape … barely moved the news papers
A? As in one? Seven girls were sexually assaulted and raped by fourteen Lebanese youths, with the perpetrators having no shred of remorse even years later. The Lebs specifically excluded their own culture group when choosing victims
In 2002, five girls were raped by four Pakistani brothers, one of the girls was 13 at the time.
These same families in 2000+ got nothing but a smack in the face with casual racism
"got nothing" is quite the massive hyperbole. Australia sheltered them and enabled them to better themselves and their kids. Australia opened the doors and took them in from their third world countries of origin. The "rewards" are never enough for entitled Choosing Beggars.
After (hypothetically) building the country; bringing in food, culture, traditions, labour, lifestyle
Building the country by building their own racial majority enclaves. Also (hypothetically) bringing in crime, ugly culture and habits.
The gap of divide got wider, tension raised between police and communities
And these poor poor victimised migrants didn't contribute to these tension and problems right?
@payton: Please dont go providing stats on rape between middle eastern Vs Australian perpetrators, you'd get nailed.
Most sexual assaults by Aussies go unreported given it was acted "under the influence" poor guy, it's not in his character usually…, lol
https://www.theleader.com.au/story/6787612/big-rise-in-domes… (last year).
If I were to collate the rape cases between 1990 - 2021, you'd have your racist jaw drop.
Here are more stats
Just to help you read through those racist pupils of yours, the extract denotes:
The surge was greatest in the Sydney regions of Ryde (up 325 per cent), Baulkham Hills and the Hawkesbury (170 per cent), North Sydney and Hornsby (158 per cent) and the eastern suburbs (133 per cent). Reports also doubled in the inner west and inner city.
Something tells me most of these suburbs are your typical True Blue mate, what's going on there? Where are the Middle Easterns?? Bu But But… Ding Dong!
Fact of the matter is, you racists are in denial - you're from the same tribe that invaded South Africa, created an Apartheid state and started blaming the indigenous Africans for crimes all whilst placing notes on Cafes "No Dogs or Black People Allowed". DUMB.
Australia is known to be a racist-infested country with people like yourself… You should be ashamed of yourself convict.
@frostman: Your source proved jack shit, it reported nothing about the culture group the perps belonged to.
Something tells me most of these suburbs are your typical True Blue mate, what's going on there? Where are the Middle Easterns?? Bu But But… Ding Dong!
lol, because access to these suburbs are strictly limited to a particular race, right? Gang rapists can only travel and commit crimes within middle eastern suburbs? Ding dong you're clutching at straws.
Most sexual assaults by Aussies go unreported given it was acted "under the influence" poor guy, it's not in his character usually…, lol
"by Aussies", as if you have any clue who the perps were and what group they're a part of.
Fact of the matter is, you racists are in denial - you're from the same tribe that invaded South Africa, created an Apartheid state and started blaming the indigenous Africans for crimes all whilst placing notes on Cafes "No Dogs or Black People Allowed". DUMB.
You should be ashamed of yourself convict.
Your rhetoric spray is comedy gold, As you've just shown, "anti-racism" characters such as you are full of shit. Meanwhile, your progressive friends just tried to burn down the old parliament house. I think you'd fit right in.
Is it because they're embarassed with their own culture and how some of it might be correctly considered as backward and eccentric?
Do you really believe that the average Aussie you meet and deal with have "deep rooted racism that is part of our culture"? Is that how you view your fellow countrymen?
I'm shocked that you don't even see the irony in your own post. You gave a prime example of the "deep rooted racism that is part of our culture" in your own disgusting spiel. I shouldn't be surprised, as I've never met an intelligent One Nation party voter, especially those who can breath with their mouths closed.
How were yours or anybody else's part in the democracy threatened, recently?
Extreme right wing racist politics destroys and stifles democracy and development. Nazi Germany is a prime example. Their nuclear weapons program suffered (thankfully) and many other efforts because many of the top German scientists and academics left due to racial and political persecution.
Finally, with comments like those you've posted above, I am "embarrassed with my own culture and how some of it might be correctly considered backwards and eccentric" such as the racism you have on display here but are unable to even realise.
@subywagon: I think most of us are pretty good with the overt racism at the moment, mostly owing to the fact that many of us have mixed heritage.
I totally agree though. My father presents like Nick Giannopoulos and I somehow popped out looking like a true blue Aussie.
People have literally approached me for no other purpose than to comment on those around us, under the assumption that I would agree. I've had coworkers in professional environments use the word wog to describe others in a setting where cultural sensitivity was important. I know it isn't the worst word, but when it is said with a pointed edge, you know what kind of place it is coming from.
It's kind of weird to see these little gross bits of a person's mind pop out. It can be really unexpected.
@thanatos350: Yeah I see it a lot too. I'm blonde and blue eyed and grew up here, so people feel comfortable to be racist around me. They're often shocked when I tell them I'm a 2nd generation refugee, because in their mind they are all "brown". My father came over as refugee in the 60's, couldn't speak a word of English and had a very tough time with abuse, both verbal and physical and was even tortured by police on a few of occasions. He suffers PTSD along with other mental issues. I had a very hard upbring with a father holding all that baggage. I remember as a kid someone asking why my dad speaks weird, is it because he's on drugs. I'm like no, he's from Yugoslavia ffs…
@subywagon: My father has said the same about police treatment, too. Apparently the Yellow Pages were a weapon of choice due to a lower likelihood of producing bruises. It would have been about a decade later and some change.
I'm not making excuses, but people from that time would have been acting out of fear and intolerance subsequent to low exposure to other cultures. Fear of the unknown and all of that.
It's hard to imagine how people in 2021 are able to justify racism and intolerance when we all benefit from multiculturalism.
The guy you initially replied to is a fool, too. I work with a lot of NESB people and recent asylum seekers. These people want to learn English because they want to participate in the society, want to feel less isolated, want decent employment prospects and, contrary to what right wing media suggests, don't want to be dependent on welfare. The younger people already speak functional English, but it isn't an easy task for older migrants. These people appreciate our country (and very surprisingly, our government) more than we do.
This turned into a rant, whoops.
lol, after all these decades,people still feel very threatened by one nation voters and demonise them. Perhaps deep down you feel there is a lot of truth in what was said about your culture hence you feel so persecuted by it?
It's genuinely funny to me that in trying to criticise others, you demonstrate such little introspection.
Many immigrants, the types that One Nation voters demonise, come to Australia precisely because of our culture - mateship, everyone being given a fair go, a society that rewards the battlers who work hard and make a life for themselves.
FWIW, as someone born and bred in Australia, I can honestly say that the people One Nation voters demonise exemplify Australian values far more than One Nation voters. Funny.
@p1 ama: You're absolutely correct.
My girlfriend's old Chinese grandparents have Australian flags all over their home and all sorts of souvenirs decorating their furniture. They love this country and it's culture, to an extent greater than I imagine you or I would.
Honestly, if I didn't know better, I'd have thought it was Pauline Hanson's safehouse.
demonstrate such little introspection.
mateship, everyone being given a fair go, a society that rewards the battlers who work hard and make a life for themselves.
Yes those were the good old days.
Meanwhile, these are some of the ugly culture being brought here
*Brisbane City councillor Gail MacPherson said she had received more than 50 complaints of student overcrowding in the suburbs close to Griffith University, including a string of houses in one street at MacGregor. Ms Reis said a combination of differing cultural standards and greed
"I don't want to target any one group specifically, but it is a cultural thing. In some countries it is perfectly acceptable to live six to a room and they don't understand why it is a problem. We don't do that in Australia."
A series of 1000 similar raids made by the council over the past 12 months also revealed cases of portable toilets being erected in backyards to cope with overcrowding and garages being converted into bedrooms.
She believed a number of Asian residents had set up website businesses to attract students.
"Some of them are in a disgraceful state. A two or three bedroom property is not equipped to cope with nine or 10 people. They all have computers and heaters so they overload the power; the ovens are filthy; nobody cleans the bathrooms; it is just a breeding ground for germs and viruses."
Lol wow, talk about getting triggered.
Yikes, so much to unpack here.
I hope you can get past whatever hurt you before.
Found the racist.
Learning how to speak another language is not just for communication, it is also a very good way to sharpen your mind. It is a life skill that can benefit you in many ways.
WOW! in 2021!
How quickly we forget that immigrants built this country.
I speak enough Vietnamese to make Vietnamese people laugh at me…
Me and you both!
Hrm, I don't recall any Viet speaking person had ever said that. Must be a Singaporean thing.
Definitely not a Vietnamese thing mate.
That’s Singaporean.
It’s a Malaysian/Singaporean thing, definitely not viet.
Another non-native Vietnamese speaker here.
I love the weird looks I get from people in shopping centres when I speak to my wife in Viet. I definitely do not fit the mould of someone who looks like they can speak Viet.
My wife's friends love it when I talk to them in Viet, because I have the worst accent, and at times I deliberately add my Aussie accent to make it sound so much worse. Or, to joke with the wife, I will use North Vietnamese words or intonations to say things (She is from South). :D
While I know a lot of words, I can not for the life of me get my head around their grammar though and will often says things in the wrong order that garners weird looks or comments of "cái gì?".
And I am basically illiterate. I can speak way more than I can read or write in Vietnamese. To many words that look the same, spelt the same with just changes in the intonation marks. I learned the hard way that there is a huge difference between "bánh mì thịt nguội" and "bánh mì thịt người" :D
bánh mì thịt người
ngon quá
ah, không không
I far prefer the southern dialect, never could get used to all 'Z' sounds from the north.
If I had a penny for every cái là gì / cái gì I have heard in response to my sometimes mangled pronunciation :-)
The "intonations" you referred there are called diacritics in linguistics. There are only 5 diacritics that change the intonation of the vowels. The rests indicate completely different characters. Take an example, "nguội" and "người": the 3rd letter from the 2 words are "u" and "ư". These are 2 different vowels in Vietnamese alphabet. Alexandre de Rhodes was very meticulous when he designed his method of writing Vietnamese in Roman alphabet and he soon ran out of characters to represent different Vietnamese vowels. So, he combined diacritics with the base Roman vowels to represent these "new" vowels that he came up with. Take ex from the 2 Viet words above, the 4th letters in each are "ô" and "ơ"; They look similar but sound completely different. The "ô" sounds like "eau" as french eau de toilette or "oh" in English. The "ơ" sounds like "eur" as in french menteur or english "erh". Because of these many vowels, Vietnamese can "write the same way as they speak". They hardly can go wrong with the spelling. But if one doesn't know how to pronounce the words properly, he'll have problems with spelling. People using regional accents which cause them to pronounce words incorrectly will has problems with spelling.
I can converse in Spanish and learned it when I moved to Costa Rica for work. I started from scratch but took me around 6 months to actually be confident to walk to people and speak to them.
Que bien
Japanese, nice goal!
I've tried learning Japanese to be able to read (2016-2017), I can interpret manga comfortably enough to enjoy it, though not a fully accurate comprehension.
At the start of 2020, I wanted to be able to talk, write and construct sentences, so I tried Japanese language classes, but lockdown started and it became online based, which wasn't for me.
If I were attracted to online services, I would use online tutoring services to maximise practice and learn efficiently as possible through regular practice while not living in Japan.
But, I personally find it hard to improve on it efficiently outside of online services, so I've stopped actively learning it.
However, I'll hope to move to Japan next year, to really embrace and practice the language daily.
Can you speak any languages fluently other than your native language?
Yup, Mandarin
Why did you learn that language?
Better learn it if you want to do your bachelors in China.
How long did it take to speak it fluently?
One year of language school with foreign students and two weeks of full-on math/physics/coding lectures in uni with Chinese students.
what programme did you go for? and were there any benefits?
It was a 4 years computer science bachelor's degree with one year of language school first, but I'm a special case. At the time it was more about leaving the country (Soviet Union) rather than choosing what and where to study. And an opportunity to enrol into a student exchange program with China with all school fees and living expenses covered sounded like a great deal.
Never regretted learning the language as it's a great asset, I still use it every day. Computer science degree - my personal view is you could learn more from the job than in uni, I haven't used majority of what I learnt in uni.
thanks for the reply!
That is impressive. I've wanted to learn for a while, but I've always been apprehensive due to the time cost. I'm not even aiming to be fluent, just to pick up enough for basic conversation.
I find immersing yourself into that language's environment is the best way to learn. The deeper the immersion the better the results. In my first few weeks of uni, with all lessons in hard core Mandarin, with no breaks to let me catch up on what was said (there were 200 other local Chinese students in the room), 4 hours a day, it was swim or sink. I learnt more in those few weeks than in my previous year of quite relaxed language school.
That's insane. I don't know how you managed - Mandarin speakers aren't exactly known for slow pace of speech.
As for your other comment - I've already got one. Australian born and not strongly tied to the community though, so her language skills are lacking.
I've practiced a few words acquired through Duolingo with her family and they have been both impressed and amused. I'm not so sure they were in equal measure. Hahaha.
May I suggest to consider a Chinese girlfriend/boyfriend? (Only half-joking, it actually works)
Mate that's so good. My wife is Chinese but I'm not confident to learn it
Chinese (writing aside) is one of the easiest languages to learn. The grammar is simple. Tones - two weeks of practice and you get them.
Btw, my wife's Korean, but we use Chinese between us, it is a second language for both of us.
We use four languages in the house, the dinner convos are quite interesting 😂
which is easier? learning the accent or language?
Do you want to be a tik tok comedian or actually communicate?
Speak 3 other languages fluently other than English..
And Two more , but just basic words
English, Canadian, American, Strayan…
Which ones?
The language of OzBargain.
Cheap cheap lah and coupounese.
eBay and Jack
Imma wait and see who wins the next world war before I commit to any new languages.
Burnt by your previous experience learning German?
Ja.
Austriae est imperare orbi universo.
Many times I have thought about learning another language and a I have started/restarted using apps like Duolingo. Every time I have given up simply because I don't have the opportunity to use the other language outside of learning it.
watch foreign movies (with subtitles)
and also Youtube videos , to pick up vocabulary
Read books in the targeted language. Back in the day people studied English / French / Spanish / Italian / Latin / Greak / Chinese / Russian etc. only to be able to read original writings rather than translations.
I know a bit of Japanese as that is my wife's native language. I also studied it at it at TAFE for 18 months but had to stop because they didn't have enough students. I would like to speak it fluently but I don't think I ever will.
If your going to spend years learning another language the hard choice is which language and why. Do you plan to work there? I was taught some French many years ago in high school but have never travelled to a French speaking country. Could that time have been spent more wisely learning about different cultures around the world? My children are learning Indonesian in school but I am getting them after school tutoring one in Maths and one in English could the time spent learning Indonesian instead be spent bringing up their weaker subjects.
I don't understand why Indonesian would be taught in an Australian school?
Yes. Teach about their culture, food, history. They're one of our neighbours and a lot of Indonesians live here. But a language only spoken in one small country?
The desire to speak Indonesian in schools is a hang over from 90's policies when there was this fear that Indonesia would invade. The pro's with learning it is it is essentially Malaysian so you are covered for most things in that region. But outside of that, waste of time.
Look at similar changes in education directions now - the number of schools taking up Spanish as if Australia is the US. Yes, I understand the prevalence of it worldwide but in terms of 'near neighbours' or trading partners, another gigantic waste of time.
from 90's policies when there was this fear that Indonesia would invade.
Do you mean the 60's? By the 90's, they were already tamed..
Small?
Indonesia pop: 273 million
Yes large population and large in land mass.
I meant small as in the impact that Indonesia has on the rest of the world. The small benefits a child would get from learning their language compared to other more prominent languages.
I don't understand why Indonesian would be taught in an Australian school?
You can say this about any foreign language, really. I'm multi-lingual and I've always found learning new languages (for the sole purpose of usefulness) to be a very low return endeavour. Unless you actually want to live in a particular non-English speaking country, for the purposes of work or travel, basically any non-native English speaker you meet will speak English better than you can speak their native language.
Look at similar changes in education directions now - the number of schools taking up Spanish as if Australia is the US. Yes, I understand the prevalence of it worldwide but in terms of 'near neighbours' or trading partners, another gigantic waste of time.
You're ignoring all of the other benefits of learning a language. By your logic, many other subjects that we learn in school are also "another gigantic waste of time" - art, music, PE, perhaps even maths, science, English for some would be a waste of time.
Learning a language can be interesting for its own sake, has great cognitive benefits in kids, can help to bridge cultural gaps and divides…etc.
You missed my logic. Which clearly was that there are better languages for Australians to invest in over Spanish.
That, in of it self, ought to have implied my favour of multilingualism but not random languages in schools because of supposed availability of resources.
Yes I was also taught Indonesian in primary school . Not that i really learnt much besides the number
I was told it was because they were the closest country to us
For quite a few schools, the choice of their LOTE is based on what teacher they can get, alas.
Chinese, and hokkien speaker here
German (grew up in Vienna)
Italian and Spanish (was quite easy because I had Latin for 8 years in school)
Polish (my partner is from Poland)
Learned English for 8 years in school and then had to really use it because I started in IT in 1970 and the only current manuals were in English
Polish - well done!
Wish I had learned latin. At least in primary school I had a teacher than insisted on teaching us latin/greek roots and it does make a difference later with language.
Romanian fluent and can read/write and understand quite a bit of Hungarian bc of family.
Spanish understand and read/write but it’s definitely gone way down since I’m out of practice. That’s because I learned it in school.
English
To live in Oz and talk crap on OzBargain
I still don't. My English is good enough for daily talk/read, and reading research papers while needing to use dictionary occasionally. I struggle to understand puns especially if there's no captions. I think it going to take me another 10 years to understand most puns, and my accent won't go away for this life at all.