Language Abilities

[Forward Union]

Do you have second language skills?

[Sasha]

No ;)

[F9]

I speak 2, and im having in school a 3rd one, but im not paying much attention:lol: Greek 1st, English 2nd, and "3rd" italian, though i only speak 2 for now:)

[RedAnarchist]

I can only speak English fluently. I know very basic French and Spanish, and the usual mix of various words and phrases from different languages that a lot of people know of.

[Lyev]

I obviously speak this language and I can get by with my French, I'm going to take it at A-Level too. I am learning German at school but it's not a very good course and I don't really speak it very coherently. Other than I know no other languages.

[Pogue]

english and GCSE german.

[Bandito]

I speak my own language, Serbian, and, besides that, English and Spanish.
I studied German and Russian in school and university, so I know basics of those two as well.
I also studied Latin when i was in high school, but that didn't stick around in my head for long...:)

[Pogue]

oh if latin counts i'm good at that. don't ask.

[Panda Tse Tung]

Dutch, English and German.

[Luisrah]

Portuguese is my native language, I can speak pretty good English, I can use Spanish enough, and just enough French to communicate shortly.

[Comrade Gwydion]

I only speak Dutch and English. I have a reasonable understanding of german, and very little skill in spanish and french, but I think these last three total are about the equivalent of one extra language, so I put in (c).

Might be considered cheating by some. :rolleyes:

[Pogue]

I only speak Dutch and English. I have a reasonable understanding of german, and very little skill in spanish and french, but I think these last three total are about the equivalent of one extra language, so I put in (c).

Might be considered cheating by some. :rolleyes:

yes, you are a cheat, please leave.

[Invincible Summer]

English is my first language, and I feel that I have a pretty good understanding of conversational German (written and verbal). I also can speak/understand/read basic French and speak/understand basic Cantonese Chinese.

Not sure if that counts as 3+, but I chose that option anyway.

[Melebeb]

Does Vulcanian count? You know, "the language of inter-galactic love"?

[LOLseph Stalin]

Besides English(which is my first language) I really only know German well enough to have conversations.

[Os Cangaceiros]

I can speak shitty Spanish. That's pretty much it, though.

[Nwoye]

where is the option for "no I cannot use any language whatsoever"

[DecDoom]

I'm learning Russian, but I'm rather bad at it. Does that count?

[Tyrlop]

Spanish, danish, English and a little german

[Honggweilo]

I speak dutch and english, a reasonable amount of portuguese and german and a little french and spanish

[NecroCommie]

I speak fluent finnish and english, know the basics of swedish, german and elvish, and I also know several words of Klingon. :thumbup1:

[Dooga Aetrus Blackrazor]

I only know English. I'm in the process of learning basic French. I don't know if I'll keep taking French. My degree requires "language course" experience. All Arts programs at my school do. It's annoying as I dislike studying languages.

I will say I have a lot more understanding of immigrants who don't know English. 1, I'm fairly above average intelligence so it's easier for me than most. 2, it's really damn boring in my opinion. Instead of mistreating immigrants who have problems with English, we should be fucking throwing them a party for knowing the amount they do. Damn do I hate language learning.

[Invincible Summer]

I only know English. I'm in the process of learning basic French. I don't know if I'll keep taking French. My degree requires "language course" experience. All Arts programs at my school do. It's annoying as I dislike studying languages.

I will say I have a lot more understanding of immigrants who don't know English. 1, I'm fairly above average intelligence so it's easier for me than most. 2, it's really damn boring in my opinion. Instead of mistreating immigrants who have problems with English, we should be fucking throwing them a party for knowing the amount they do. Damn do I hate language learning.

It's funny cuz I already had all my language credits, then I wanted to learn German so I took it for fun :lol:

Still your 2nd point is very valid. Lots of immigrants come to Canada with an extraordinary knowledge of the language - the ones I meet in school can talk about university topics in English. It's impressive.

[The Red Next Door]

I speak shitty German, and english my native language

[LeninBalls]

Apart from English, lots of people say I'm fluent in French but I don't think I've reached fluency yet personally. I also have a good grasp of Spanish and some basic German and a mix between basic and good grasp of Irish.

[Il Medico]

English and broken French.

[Random Precision]

Native English speaker, and I am fairly proficient in Spanish.

I also know (very) basic Hindi, which is the language I'm studying at the moment. When I go to India next year I will hopefully be able to practice it a lot, as well as learn Marathi. In my senior year of college I'm thinking I will try to add German as well if it isn't too much.

[gorillafuck]

I speak English and a bit of french.

[FreeFocus]

Pues, estoy trabajando para hablar con fluidez..no estoy seguro como eso se va. :lol:

Random Precision sabe sobre mis esfuerzos. :lol:



If you don't speak Spanish, I said (or tried, lol): Well, I am trying to speak fluently, but I'm not sure how that is going. Random Precision knows about my efforts.

[Искра]

Croatian, Serbian, Slovenian, Bosnian, Macedonian, Latin, English, little bit of Spanish, little bit of Finnish and I can swear in Hungarian, Italian, Albanian, Turkish and Swedish ;)

[9]

Yiddish and English. As if it weren't sad enough that the language I speak besides English is essentially completely useless, I don't even know how to read it. I have to sound the words out in English :(
I learned Spanish in high school, but my last course was seven years ago, and I don't remember much except for "chicle en la basura"...

[Random Precision]

Yiddish and English. As if it weren't sad enough that the language I speak besides English is essentially completely useless, I don't even know how to read it. I have to sound the words out in English :(


Knowing useless languages is badass. The more useless the better. :)

[Random Precision]

Croatian, Serbian, Slovenian, Bosnian, Macedonian, Latin, English

At least three of those (Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian) are essentially the same. If Wiki is to be trusted Slovene and Macedonian are pretty closely linked to them too. Stop padding your resume! ;)

[black magick hustla]

spanish is native, english very fluently, broken french and tid bits of dada

[Bright Banana Beard]

English, Spanish, Italian *learning*, Esperanto, and American Sign Language.

[Weezer]

Pig Latin, Gibberish(my first language) and English

[Revy]

My native language is English. The first language I became fluent in was actually Esperanto believe it or not. Then Spanish. I'm trying to learn French.

[Niccolò Rossi]

My I'm a native English speaker. I plan to start learning Italian this holidays.

[Rusty Shackleford]

English, and can probably get by if i were trapped in germany, but not well at first. hoping to minor it it :thumbup1:
i only marked 2.

I also took 2 years of spanish in high school but i forgot most of it. and i *tried teaching myself russian. i know some words in a few other languages. andi can count to ten in french haha

[Guerrilla22]

English y espanol

[pastradamus]

Irish and English for me.

[Pavlov's House Party]

i voted the second option because i speak Quebec French and English fluently on a daily basis, but i know spanish and german as well

[9]

Knowing useless languages is badass. The more useless the better. :)

Haha, well in that case, I'm extremely badass. :lol:
I really want to go to Germany at some point so I can solve once and for all the question of exactly how different German and Yiddish are, and whether Germans can understand what I'm saying if they hear me speaking Yiddish.


My I'm a native English speaker. I plan to start learning Italian this holidays.

Are you sure you're a native English speaker? :D

[Искра]

At least three of those (Croatian, Serbian, Bosnian) are essentially the same. If Wiki is to be trusted Slovene and Macedonian are pretty closely linked to them too. Stop padding your resume! ;)
and Russian, Ukraine, Slovak, Czech etc. but I still don't know them...

[Glenn Beck]

I speak American and Mexican

[the last donut of the night]

I speak Portuguese, which is my first language, English, and Spanish. The latter, I'm getting pretty good at. I can get by with it with natives, I believe.

[Il Medico]

. andi can count to ten in french haha

un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six, sept, huit, neuf, dix, onze, douze, trezie, quatorze, qunize, seize,dix-sept, dix-huit, dix-neuf, vingt.

Maintenant vous savez comment compter vingt. :)

[PRC-UTE]

Irish and English for me.

míse freisin.

I also know a bit of French. I completely forgot my German :( Trying to do Italian now.

[Random Precision]

and Russian, Ukraine, Slovak, Czech etc. but I still don't know them...

Mutual intelligibility. Look it up.

[Rusty Shackleford]

un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six, sept, huit, neuf, dix, onze, douze, trezie, quatorze, qunize, seize,dix-sept, dix-huit, dix-neuf, vingt.

Maintenant vous savez comment compter vingt. :)

oh my god, that is so much like spanish.


at least i can count to a billion in german.

eins, zwei, drei, vierzig, neunundneunzig, einhundert, neunhundertneunundneunzig, eintausend, neuntausendneunhundertneunundneunzig, zehntausend, neunundneunzigtousandneunhundertneunundneunzig, hunderttausend, neunhundertneunundneunzigtausentneunhundertneunund neunzig, einmillion, neunmillion, neunundneunzigmillion, fuck, i give up...

[Comrade Gwydion]

With me, there is a terrible gap between speaking/writing a language and understanding/reading a language. I can read french and german without much effort, and with a little efford spanish, italian, and scandanivian as well.
Speaking however, is far more troublesome.

[Raúl Duke]

I speak English and Spanish, and I do have a good grasp at basic Italian. I plan to maybe learn French after Italian. I would like to learn sign language...but then I realize that there's more the one form of sign language (although I heard of an "international sign language").


oh my god, that is so much like spanish.
Italian is more like Spanish...

I have a hard time with French pronunciation

[An archist]

Grrr, I thought I was special for speaking 3 or more languages, but all you others are the same.:(

[Искра]

Mutual intelligibility. Look it up.
Still I don't speak Russia.

Bačuška!

[Comrade B]

Said 3, but still working on my Spanish, it isn't quite that good yet

[Il Medico]

I speak English and Spanish, and I do have a good grasp at basic Italian. I plan to maybe learn French after Italian. I would like to learn sign language...but then I realize that there's more the one form of sign language (although I heard of an "international sign language").

Italian is more like Spanish...

I have a hard time with French pronunciation
French is different than most Latin based languages. I've taken a course in Spanish and tried to teach myself Italian. They are a lot more alike than French is to them.

[Magdalen]

English... I used to have a fairly decent level of spoken Gaelic, but lack of opportunity to use it has made it very rusty. I do have a Standard Grade in Spanish, but I couldn't hold a conversation in it at the time, nevermind now.

[Niccolò Rossi]

Are you sure you're a native English speaker? :D

:(

Seriously though, what's wrong with 'this holidays'?

[Jimmie Higgins]

Spanish and English for me... I wish I knew more (or could at least use either competently).

[Rusty Shackleford]

I speak English and Spanish, and I do have a good grasp at basic Italian. I plan to maybe learn French after Italian. I would like to learn sign language...but then I realize that there's more the one form of sign language (although I heard of an "international sign language").

Italian is more like Spanish...

I have a hard time with French pronunciation



un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six, sept, huit, neuf, dix, onze, douze, trezie, quatorze, qunize, seize,dix-sept, dix-huit, dix-neuf, ving
as compared to

Uno, dos, tres, quatro, cinco, seis, siete, ocho, nueve, diez, once, doce, trece, quatorce, quince, diez y seis, diez y siete, diez y ocho, diez y nueve, veinte.

its pretty close. 8 is different and the "diez y" starts one earier than "dix-" but still pretty close.

i dont know much italian though.

[9]

:(

Seriously though, what's wrong with 'this holidays'?

Haha, are you serious? Maybe it's correct in Australia? :blink: As far as a know, "this" is singular, which makes "this holidays" ('holidays' being plural, obviously) incorrect. So it would be "the holidays" or "these holidays" or "this holiday".

[Random Precision]

Haha, well in that case, I'm extremely badass. :lol:
I really want to go to Germany at some point so I can solve once and for all the question of exactly how different German and Yiddish are, and whether Germans can understand what I'm saying if they hear me speaking Yiddish.

From what I've heard it would prolly sound pretty old-fashioned to most Germans (depending on where in Germany you were obviously) but they would understand you.

But seriously knowing useless languages gets you major nerd points. Like my girlfriend is learning Sanskrit right now. I love it.

[Niccolò Rossi]

Haha, are you serious? Maybe it's correct in Australia? :blink: As far as a know, "this" is singular, which makes "this holidays" ('holidays' being plural, obviously) incorrect. So it would be "the holidays" or "these holidays" or "this holiday".

:crying:

[the last donut of the night]

I want to start learning German soon.

[Nwoye]

I've taken latin for years and have studied texts like the Metamorphoses (and am currently working through the Aeneid) but that doesn't really count since I can't speak it. I would really like to learn french at some point; does anyone have any advice? is it difficult etc.

[Sugar Hill Kevis]

Competently, only English. I can get by with French, but I'm not so arrogant as to list it as a 'second language'

[9]

From what I've heard it would prolly sound pretty old-fashioned to most Germans (depending on where in Germany you were obviously) but they would understand you.

I suspect you are right. From what I understand, the dialect I speak contains Slavic words, but having no idea which words are Slavic, I don't know if there are enough of them that it would be an impediment to Germans.



But seriously knowing useless languages gets you major nerd points. Like my girlfriend is learning Sanskrit right now. I love it.Sanskrit?! :lol: That's awesome! I'd love to learn a language like that.
The only problem with learning useless languages is that it's probably insanely easy to forget everything you learn in a very small window of time. Hell, I was one of the most proficient Spanish-speakers in my classes, and it was probably only two or three years before I forgot most of what I'd learned and seven years since my last course, I don't think I could even make it through the most basic conversation. And with the single exception of English, Spanish is probably the most useful language in the country! Useless languages are probably 100x easier to forget. So if your girlfriend can learn and remember Sanskrit, she wins nerdpoints cubed.



:crying:

Haha, this is where you tell me to gehy kockin oyfen yom :D

[#FF0000]

I speak some awful German.

[Rjevan]

German (native language), English, basic Russian, very basic Italian and - Latin! :lol:
Quare id faciam, fortasse requiris? Nescio. (Why I do so, you ask? Dunno. - Catull)

[An archist]

un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six, sept, huit, neuf, dix, onze, douze, treize, quatorze, quinze, seize,dix-sept, dix-huit, dix-neuf, vingt.

Maintenant vous savez comment compter jusqu'a vingt. :)

Spelling nazi strikes again.:tt2:

[ComradeMan]

English & Italian - fluent
French & Spanish - can read, understand and speak basically
German & Dutch - can read and understand, can't really speak.
Smatterings of Arabic, Japanese and Russian- a few basic phrases and things.

[Искра]

Shine!

[bcbm]

i speak american

[Jazzratt]

i speak american

Hey, could someone translate this for an english speaker?

[Искра]

"That's preposterous. That chap talks about bloody bollocks"

[Os Cangaceiros]

Hey, could someone translate this for an english speaker?

Ha, that reminds me of that part in Snatch when Dennis Farina's character says, "'Blagged'? Speak English to me, Tony. I thought this country spawned the fucking language, and so far no one seems to speak it."

[Dr. Rosenpenis]

i speak american

you must be under the impression that your cocky american chauvinism is defiant, orginal or charming in some way
it's actually ridiculous and insufferable
nobody is impressed by this shticky patriotic "I don't give a shit" attitude
it's repulssive
you come accross as an extreme right-winger

[Os Cangaceiros]

you must be under the impression that your cocky american chauvinism is defiant, orginal or charming in some way
it's actually ridiculous and insufferable
nobody is impressed by this shticky patriotic "I don't give a shit" attitude
it's repulssive
you come accross as an extreme right-winger

You best not be messin' with 'Murika, son!

[bcbm]

you must be under the impression that your cocky american chauvinism is defiant, orginal or charming in some way
it's actually ridiculous and insufferable
nobody is impressed by this shticky patriotic "I don't give a shit" attitude
it's repulssive
you come accross as an extreme right-winger

i don't give a shit

[Os Cangaceiros]

i don't give a shit

i'm impressed.

[Dr. Rosenpenis]

the age-old archetype of a loner rebel as a true american icon of individualism and ostentatious independence
how revolutionary of you

[Dr. Rosenpenis]

you adopt political postures the same way you choose your clothes -- according to trends in pop culture
you're a fucking joke

[9]

I can't figure out if rosenpenis has a really, really dry sense of humor, or if he's dead serious and thinks bcbm is a flag waving chauvinist :lol:

[Os Cangaceiros]

Being that I kinda-sorta know bcbm IRL, I like to think that it's the latter.

It's more hilarious that way.

[Sam_b]

Apart from English, I have a pretty good knowledge of French and German, slight conversational Russian, and i'm learning Czech as part of my degree and research.

[Dr. Rosenpenis]

ironic hipster patriotism is still patriotism

[bcbm]

the age-old archetype of a loner rebel as a true american icon of individualism and ostentatious independence
how revolutionary of you

http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_xN_PwYccl-4/RoFVOJGc6mI/AAAAAAAAAAM/9nYZdOMZHtw/s320/marlboro+man1.jpg


your adopt political postures the same way you choose your clothes -- according to trends in pop culture
you're a fucking joke

look, i'm sorry you're not as hip and interesting as i am, but there's no need to be so hostile.
i mean, i'd be happy to share some tips.

[IrishWorker]

English I have a good enough grasp of Irish but still learning allot and BSL.

[Kayser_Soso]

English is my first language, Russian my second. I also understand Serbo-Croatian rather well, and I'm studying Turkish and Tatar. I know bits and pieces of a number of other languages. I'm the language guy.

[Искра]

English is my first language, Russian my second. I also understand Serbo-Croatian rather well, and I'm studying Turkish and Tatar. I know bits and pieces of a number of other languages. I'm the language guy.
Srpsko-hrvatski više ne postoji.

[Kayser_Soso]

Srpsko-hrvatski više ne postoji.

Serbs and Bosniaks don't care if one uses the term Serbo-Croatian.

[Искра]

Serbs and Bosniaks don't care if one uses the term Serbo-Croatian.
Of course, but if you use term Croato-Serbian (which was used in Croatia during Yugoslavia), Serbs would say that this language don't exist.

Serbo-Croatian really don't exist, because from the beginning of the 90's linguists (both Serbian and Croatian) are working on their languages and to separate them. Both Croatian and Serbian have different grammar for example.

Serbo-Croatian could be language which is used in Bosnia, but today people call it Bosnian language.

So, instead of trying to cause me for being Croatian nationalist (even I'm not a Croat :rolleyes:), you should take care of some facts.

[LeninBalls]

So, instead of trying to cause me for being Croatian nationalist (even I'm not a Croat :rolleyes:), you should take care of some facts.

Where did he call you a Croatian nationalist?

[Bandito]

Of course, but if you use term Croato-Serbian (which was used in Croatia during Yugoslavia), Serbs would say that this language don't exist.

Serbo-Croatian really don't exist, because from the beginning of the 90's linguists (both Serbian and Croatian) are working on their languages and to separate them. Both Croatian and Serbian have different grammar for example.

Serbo-Croatian could be language which is used in Bosnia, but today people call it Bosnian language.

So, instead of trying to cause me for being Croatian nationalist (even I'm not a Croat :rolleyes:), you should take care of some facts.

I'm really dissapointed in these words, Jurko.
I thought you don't consider revisionist nationalist linguists to be right about this matter.
Serbo-Croatian cannot stop existing, because it is the language used in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Montenegro. Just because some nationalistic scum from SANU and HAZN try to make language in order to establish nationalism in their countries and serve the neoliberal politicians who are exploiting (and paying very well) their efforts, that does not change the fact that we, both you and me, speak the same language.
Hell, even Montenegro now has its own grammar.

That is political game, and not a linguistic one.

[Kayser_Soso]

Of course, but if you use term Croato-Serbian (which was used in Croatia during Yugoslavia), Serbs would say that this language don't exist.

Serbo-Croatian is a title applied to the language outside of Yugoslavia, so it is still valid regardless of what word you put first.



Serbo-Croatian really don't exist, because from the beginning of the 90's linguists (both Serbian and Croatian) are working on their languages and to separate them.

And apparently they failed, since I can speak "Croatian" or "Serbian" if you prefer and every word is understood.



Both Croatian and Serbian have different grammar for example.

First of all, if I say 'Ja trebam taksi' or 'Treba mi taksi', I would be understood in any of the three countries. It is perfectly acceptable to say 'Treba mi taksi' in Croatia- it just doesn't fit the grammar of that dialect. British Commonwealth and North American speakers of English use different grammar, different pronunciation, and so on- yet nobody considers these forms of English to be separate languages. Compare these phrases:

'My family are here' (UK) 'My family is here'(NAE) I've just seen that film.(UK) I just saw that film(NAE). At the weekend.(UK) On the weekend.(NAE) He's in hospital.(UK) He's in the hospital.(NAE) (North American English)



Serbo-Croatian could be language which is used in Bosnia, but today people call it Bosnian language.

Actually this varies by person, and to be honest it is really a dialect closer to Croatian, judging by all the Bosnians I have met. Since Bosnian Serbs speak with that accent, it's hard to justify the claim that it is another language.



So, instead of trying to cause me for being Croatian nationalist (even I'm not a Croat :rolleyes:), you should take care of some facts.

I have, and the facts tell me that unlike languages of some other countries which were separated, Serbian and Croatian are mutually intelligible. This is not so with, for example, Czech and Slovak, where a younger generation has been growing up without being taught the other language(so I have been told). As a result, a certain generation cannot understand the other language.

[Искра]

Serbo-Croatian is a title applied to the language outside of Yugoslavia, so it is still valid regardless of what word you put first.
I wanted to say that Serbo-Croatian is result of Serbian imperialism.


And apparently they failed, since I can speak "Croatian" or "Serbian" if you prefer and every word is understood.If you look grammar closer they haven't.



First of all, if I say 'Ja trebam taksi' or 'Treba mi taksi', I would be understood in any of the three countries. It is perfectly acceptable to say 'Treba mi taksi' in Croatia- it just doesn't fit the grammar of that dialect. British Commonwealth and North American speakers of English use different grammar, different pronunciation, and so on- yet nobody considers these forms of English to be separate languages. Compare these phrases:

'My family are here' (UK) 'My family is here'(NAE) I've just seen that film.(UK) I just saw that film(NAE). At the weekend.(UK) On the weekend.(NAE) He's in hospital.(UK) He's in the hospital.(NAE) (North American English)
Your example was wrong:

Croatian: Trebamo uništiti kip G. W. Busha.
Serbian: Trebamo da uništimo kip G. V. Buša.

In Croatian people use infinitives in Serbian they use "da" and then they put verb.

In Croatian foreign names stay as they are in main language and in Serbian they change them.

There's difference in grammar. Also Croatian language is based on "ije" while Serbian language is based on "e".

Croatian: snijeg, bijelo, mlijeko...
Serbian: sneg, belo, mleko...

Serbo-Croatian was language with Serbian grammar.

In Bosnia Croatians and Muslims use "ije" and Serbs "e".

Croatian and Serbian are different languages even they sound the same and people can understand each other. But gramaticaly and phonetically those languages are different. There are even a lot of the words which are different for example hlače-pantalone itd. So, this is not the one language!

And regarding Serbo-Croatian it's more of political term and today there's no country which uses this language. In political practice in Yugoslavia, especially after Tito died it was one of the wepons of Serbian nationalists to subordinate other nations.

[Искра]

I'm really dissapointed in these words, Jurko.
I thought you don't consider revisionist nationalist linguists to be right about this matter.
Serbo-Croatian cannot stop existing, because it is the language used in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia and Montenegro. Just because some nationalistic scum from SANU and HAZN try to make language in order to establish nationalism in their countries and serve the neoliberal politicians who are exploiting (and paying very well) their efforts, that does not change the fact that we, both you and me, speak the same language.
Hell, even Montenegro now has its own grammar.

That is political game, and not a linguistic one.

Croatian, Serbian, Slovenian, Macedonian etc. are all different languages. Why would we run from that?

Drastic separation is political game as creating of artificial language called Serbo-Croat. The problem I have with Serbo-Croat is that it kills language variations....

Why shoulnd't we be different? If I speak Croatian and you speak Serbian does that mean that you can't understand me? You can understand me.

So, if I want to be "leftish" I have to claim that there's no Croatian or Serbian and that there's only one language called Serbo-Croatian, which is in the fact mixture of dominant Serbian grammar with Croatian grammar plus few "ije" words?

I'm not Croatian nationalist, I'm not Croat in the first place... But I think that all those languages are different and similar. They are not the same.
I don't know anything about Montengro. I always tough that they speak Serbian.

[Искра]

Show your skills. :D
Mää on paskaa. :lol:

[Panda Tse Tung]

Croatian, Serbian, Slovenian, Macedonian etc. are all different languages. Why would we run from that?

Drastic separation is political game as creating of artificial language called Serbo-Croat. The problem I have with Serbo-Croat is that it kills language variations....

Why shoulnd't we be different? If I speak Croatian and you speak Serbian does that mean that you can't understand me? You can understand me.

So, if I want to be "leftish" I have to claim that there's no Croatian or Serbian and that there's only one language called Serbo-Croatian, which is in the fact mixture of dominant Serbian grammar with Croatian grammar plus few "ije" words?

I'm not Croatian nationalist, I'm not Croat in the first place... But I think that all those languages are different and similar. They are not the same.
I don't know anything about Montengro. I always tough that they speak Serbian.
If you can still easily understand eachother speaking your own 'language'. Then it's a dialect, not a language.

[Искра]

If you can still easily understand eachother speaking your own 'language'. Then it's a dialect, not a language.
Dialect of which language? Yugoslavian...

I can easily understand people form Russia... is Croatian Russian dialect?

[Kayser_Soso]

Dialect of which language? Yugoslavian...

I can easily understand people form Russia... is Croatian Russian dialect?

Understand is not the same as completely understand. If I go to Zagreb and say: Мне нужен такси, even if a person could figure that out(probably by previous study of Russian since the words are quite different), they would immediately conclude that I am not speaking their language. In fact I HIGHLY doubt that anyone would understand it right off the bat if they weren't expecting it. On the other hand, if I say 'treba mi taksi', they would immediately understand.

"Serbian" and "Croatian" are totally mutually intelligible, and Serbs and Croats in Bosnia are speaking basically the same dialect. Ergo- Serbo-Croatian.

[Kayser_Soso]

I wanted to say that Serbo-Croatian is result of Serbian imperialism.

So? Spanish in Latin America is the result of Imperialism, as is English.





Your example was wrong:

Croatian: Trebamo uništiti kip G. W. Busha.
Serbian: Trebamo da uništimo kip G. V. Buša.

In Croatian people use infinitives in Serbian they use "da" and then they put verb.

It matters not. British people use different prepositions for certain phrases. Since Serbs in Bosnia often use the infinitives instead of 'da'(at least the ones I know), what language are THEY speaking then?



In Croatian foreign names stay as they are in main language and in Serbian they change them.

So that's why Serbian uses Avion and Croatian has Zrakoplov(I don't know if anyone actually uses that word there, but I saw it in a 'Croatian' language book). Kamion, Avion, majmun, para, kajmak, etc. are all foreign loan words.



There's difference in grammar. Also Croatian language is based on "ije" while Serbian language is based on "e".

Croatian: snijeg, bijelo, mlijeko...
Serbian: sneg, belo, mleko...

I am aware of these differences(I often change my dialect depending on the nationality I am talking to), but this is pronunciation, not grammar. British and North American English have very different pronunciation.



Serbo-Croatian was language with Serbian grammar.

No, a dialect of the language was with grammar native to Serbia.



In Bosnia Croatians and Muslims use "ije" and Serbs "e".

So what happened to this Bosnian language then?



Croatian and Serbian are different languages even they sound the same and people can understand each other. But gramaticaly and phonetically those languages are different. There are even a lot of the words which are different for example hlače-pantalone itd. So, this is not the one language!

People can't just understand each other, they understand PERFECTLY. I know because I come from a city with a mixed community that started out being all Bosnians(mostly Muslim and Serb), but then over the years they brought family members over from other parts- yet everyone still mixes and understands each other perfectly.

This does not happen with Turkish and Tatar, for example, which in many ways are far closer to one another than Russian and Polish, which share a similar relationship in Indo-European languages.

Different vocabulary is meaningless as well. Within the United States there are different terms for things and when you compare with the wider English-speaking world there are far more differences.

US - UK

pants - trousers
fries - chips
chips - crisps
bag - packet(only describes certain bags like one containing peanuts)
trunk - boot
yard - garden
check - bill
parking lot - carpark
elevator - lift
fire department - fire brigade
football player - footballer
hood - bonnet
windshield - windscreen
diapers - nappies
faucet - tap(this is often used in the US though)
lettuce - a lettuce(used as a countable noun)
candy - sweets
eggplant - aubergine




And regarding Serbo-Croatian it's more of political term and today there's no country which uses this language. In political practice in Yugoslavia, especially after Tito died it was one of the wepons of Serbian nationalists to subordinate other nations.

The use of the term Serbo-Croatian outside of Yugoslavia pre-dates Yugoslavia itself, perhaps even the 1918 Yugoslavia as well. It is not political at all.

[Bandito]

Does it mean that English and American are different languages?

From your analysis, it appears so.
Americans spell the word "can't" in a different way.
Also, the elevator is often reffered as lift in England.
English people say "chap" and "bloke" while the Americans say "dude".

Also, they call mile a kilometer and drink tea instead of coke.;)
Totally different language.


Don't confuse the term dialect with language.
Those are not equivalents where one is British and the other one American.:p

[Kamerat]

I know bokmål(norwegian), nynorsk(norwegian), english, german, swedish, danish, java, php, c#, javascript, perl and vbscript. I'm going to take a c++ course in spring.
Also do norwegian, swedish and danish count as different languages? I saw someone mention scandinavian as a language but i have never heard of it.

[rednordman]

I know bokmål(norwegian), nynorsk(norwegian), english, german, swedish, danish, java, php, c#, javascript, perl and vbscript. I'm going to take a c++ course in spring.
Also do norwegian, swedish and danish count as different languages? I saw someone mention scandinavian as a language but i have never heard of it.Hehe, which is you? Bokmal or Nynorsk? I can never tell which one is the formal one (the one spoke in Oslo). Where my mum comes from, they spell word 'not/dont/isnt' as 'ikkje', not 'ikke'. Which one is that?

[Kamerat]

Bokmål (direct translation = book language) is used by 87% of norwegians. Nynorsk (direct translation = new norwegian) is used by 13%. Bokmål is used all over the country except some parts mostly on the coast between Bergen and Trondheim where nynorsk is used. "Ikke" is bokmål and "ikkje" is nynorsk. Bokmål is more close to danish while nynorsk is based on norwegian dialects which where not so influenced by danish. I write bokmål.

[MarxSchmarx]

Does Jargon count as a separate language?

[Wanted Man]

I speak Dutch as a first language, and English as a second language. I took German in high school, but I'm not very good at it. I need to pay attention in order to read or listen to German properly, and I don't like writing or speaking it because of all the grammatical rules and false friends from Dutch.

[Invincible Summer]

I speak Dutch as a first language, and English as a second language. I took German in high school, but I'm not very good at it. I need to pay attention in order to read or listen to German properly, and I don't like writing or speaking it because of all the grammatical rules and false friends from Dutch.

Dutch is just Low German anyway :p


I'm considering learning Japanese by taking an intensive (3 hrs/day, 5 days a week) course in the summer. Is this a good idea? Is Japanese difficult to learn?

[Rusty Shackleford]

Dutch is just Low German anyway :p


I'm considering learning Japanese by taking an intensive (3 hrs/day, 5 days a week) course in the summer. Is this a good idea? Is Japanese difficult to learn?

im assuming english is your first language so i would say its going to be a bit of a pain in the ass unless you have good study skills. the 3 hours a day might actually be helpful since you can get more done though.

[Bandito]

I speak Dutch as a first language, and English as a second language. I took German in high school, but I'm not very good at it. I need to pay attention in order to read or listen to German properly, and I don't like writing or speaking it because of all the grammatical rules and false friends from Dutch.
Dutch seems to me like one of those languages one can never learn...:)

[Sentinel]

I'm fluent in Finnish and Swedish, and can express myself well enough in English as well. Thus I chose option 3.