Author Topic: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF  (Read 17355 times)

Jakob

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #25 on: 02 April, 2008, 10:38:34 pm »
Danish (Native)
Swedish (If forced)
English (Fluent)
German (Very rusty, used to be fluent)
Basic Japanese
A smattering of Korean
Enough French to order the wrong thing from the menu.

Can't understand Norwegian at all, despite being virtually the same as Danish. (Can read it, though)

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #26 on: 02 April, 2008, 10:50:21 pm »
Fluent in bovine scatology, profanity and inanity.  ;)

Probably forgotten most of what little French and German I learned at school.  :-[
"He who fights monsters should see to it that he himself does not become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." ~ Freidrich Neitzsche

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #27 on: 02 April, 2008, 11:00:36 pm »
English
Cantonese, getting increasingly more rusty as time goes by
Mandarin, ditto. In both dialects, my vocab is limited to family/non work situations. I can watch a sitcom, but the news confuses me. 
French AO Level French for Business studies. It was the doss option in 6th form, as you just had to learn to write a business letter in French and you could pass with that and your GCSE knowledge.  Got increasingly confused when French people started using 'Bonne journee', that phrase wasn't around in my school days. How dare they bring in new phrases.  Will only try speak French now when drunk.
Latin GCSE. Not really a language, but I can remember the first lines of all the latin poems in translation.

alchemy

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #28 on: 02 April, 2008, 11:05:22 pm »
English

Australian (some would say it counts as a language in its own right  :D)

David Martin

  • Thats Dr Oi You thankyouverymuch
Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #29 on: 02 April, 2008, 11:18:31 pm »
English - proper

Inglish - sarf lunnon

Jeg kan Norsk - Bokmaal

Scots - Aye, ken that I do.

Doric - just about.

Lochee - sometimes.

French - rusty, corroded and a few dents and scratches.

German, Italian, Spanish - Can order beer and breakfast.

Gibberish and Rubbish - fluent in every detail.

..d
"By creating we think. By living we learn" - Patrick Geddes

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #30 on: 03 April, 2008, 04:28:48 am »
English (fluent)
French (fluent)
Portuguese (advanced level)
All of the above well enough to do business in and have casual or intellectual chit chats!

Spanish (basic/intermediate)
German (basic; "rusty" in fact as I never use it although I stuied it for 6 years)
Plan to work on my Spanish to limit my reliance on Portugnol.
Frenchie - Train à Grande Vitesse

agagisgroovy

  • Formely yellow-ceitidh
Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #31 on: 03 April, 2008, 08:28:19 am »
Doric - just about.

How did you learn that?  :-\  ;D

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #32 on: 03 April, 2008, 08:41:37 am »
OT - sorry...

Swedish (If forced)

I travelled to Bornholm once from Sweden. I went to the campsite office & talked to them in Swedish. They were efficient, but cool. I gave them they my (UK) passport for ID, and the atmosphere immediately changed and they were very friendly as I was English.

The equivalent is the Scots & the English - though more civilised, of course!
Haggerty F, Haggerty R, Tomkins, Noble, Carrick, Robson, Crapper, Dewhurst, Macintyre, Treadmore, Davitt.

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #33 on: 03 April, 2008, 08:59:24 am »
Languages I speak:
English (including London, Norfolk, Dorset, Somerset & Scots)

Languages I can murder:
German (highly dodgy, up to GCSE)
French (advised not to take GCSE)

Also:
Japanese - 1,2,3,4,5.
Russian - big hedgehog (it may come in useful)
Latin - father / mother is in the garden
Scots Gaelic - Can I have a whiskey / black coffee / water please?
Danish - bread & cheese
Ancient Greek - alas sister!

Not surprisingly much arm-waving accompanies any attempt to communicate in another language...
Abnormal for Norfolk

hellymedic

  • Just do it!
Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #34 on: 03 April, 2008, 09:59:20 am »
OT - sorry...

Swedish (If forced)

I travelled to Bornholm once from Sweden. I went to the campsite office & talked to them in Swedish. They were efficient, but cool. I gave them they my (UK) passport for ID, and the atmosphere immediately changed and they were very friendly as I was English.

The equivalent is the Scots & the English - though more civilised, of course!

AIUI Bornholm is Danish and Danes manage Swedish with a struggle. Swedish and Danish are fairly different, but Danish and Norwegian are very similar, especially in written form.

Scandinavians are not inhibited about trying other languages, unlike us Brits, who mostly do not excel in this field.

Mr Larrington

  • A bit ov a lyv wyr by slof standirds
  • Custard Wallah
    • Mr Larrington's Automatic Diary
Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #35 on: 03 April, 2008, 10:27:14 am »
English (assorted)
French (needs improving if I am to remain M. le Maire)
German (now rather rusty)
DCL

I can pick the bones out of written Dutch, Spanish and Italian given enough time.
External Transparent Wall Inspection Operative & Mayor of Mortagne-au-Perche
Satisfying the Bloodlust of the Masses in Peacetime

IanDG

  • The p*** artist formerly known as 'Windy'
    • the_dandg_rouleur
Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #36 on: 03 April, 2008, 10:44:42 am »
Mine are:  ;D

English (fluent)
Gaelic (Skye dialect, but can change to Stornoway accent without too much bother. Can sing and get the gist of BBC Radio nan Gaidheal)
German (on Unit 5 of 1st textbook)
French (halfway through third textbook, but I drop in words from German and can't speak very well)
Scots (can understand)
Dutch/Flemish, Italian, Irish and Danish (random words I have picked up from holidays/music)

I found out yesterday that my 14 yr old son (yr 2 secondary school) is being put in for intermediate gaelic this year - that's 2 years ahead of time (a yr 4+ qualification) not bad for an white settler from a non-gaelic speaking family.

(His math's teacher also wanted him to sit the standard grade maths exam too, but his superiors stopped him from doing so because of the extra tuition and disruption to the rest of the class)

David Martin

  • Thats Dr Oi You thankyouverymuch
Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #37 on: 03 April, 2008, 11:07:07 am »
Doric - just about.

How did you learn that?  :-\  ;D

I'm staying on the north east coast, jist a wee stap fra aberdeen..

And I have a dictionary to help out now and then..

..d
"By creating we think. By living we learn" - Patrick Geddes

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #38 on: 03 April, 2008, 12:34:51 pm »
English, Geordie and Maccam  ;D ;D ;D
Stropping rocks

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #39 on: 03 April, 2008, 01:15:57 pm »
OT - sorry...

Swedish (If forced)

I travelled to Bornholm once from Sweden. I went to the campsite office & talked to them in Swedish. They were efficient, but cool. I gave them they my (UK) passport for ID, and the atmosphere immediately changed and they were very friendly as I was English.

The equivalent is the Scots & the English - though more civilised, of course!

AIUI Bornholm is Danish and Danes manage Swedish with a struggle.

Struggle = with their arms firmly twisted up their backs  :)
Haggerty F, Haggerty R, Tomkins, Noble, Carrick, Robson, Crapper, Dewhurst, Macintyre, Treadmore, Davitt.

Nick H.

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #40 on: 03 April, 2008, 01:29:14 pm »
I can speak in tongues.

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #41 on: 03 April, 2008, 01:46:40 pm »
Doric - just about.

How did you learn that?  :-\  ;D

I'm staying on the north east coast, jist a wee stap fra aberdeen..

And I have a dictionary to help out now and then..

..d

I spent a week near Inverurie last summer and picked up nothing but the word for bumblebee ('foggy bumble', would you believe?) and the word 'focht', which means tired, not f*cked.  I thought they were all very foul mouthed at first. 

My french is OK - I get along fine in conversation and can read newspapers. 

My Latin and ancient Greek are good, and I've been reading a bit of middle english mixed with church latin recently, which is very good brain exercise. 

RogerT

  • Playing with a big steamy thing
Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #42 on: 03 April, 2008, 01:55:42 pm »
I feel very humble in the presence of some much linguistic talent...

English     Posh version ( Queens English )
                Not so posh version
                Like wot e said

Regional   Devon
                 Dorset
                 Norfolk
                 Cambridgeshire
                 Lincolnshire

French       Only when in deep and serious need and accompanied by many Ello Ello varieties

German     The only phrase I know is " I am Pregnant "  ( Dont ask )



RainOrShine

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #43 on: 03 April, 2008, 02:04:40 pm »
Enough French and German to get by (politeness, directions, food & beer), and a smattering of Makaton...

Dave

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #44 on: 03 April, 2008, 02:32:50 pm »
Makaton?

<Google></Google>

Ooh, interesting.

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #45 on: 03 April, 2008, 02:43:41 pm »
Observation: Still don't know what people mean when they use the word 'fluent'. Usually they don't either. It appears to mean something more than 'halting' or 'beginner level' but often not much more.

Shrank from attempting an answer to this question when it came up elsewhere some time back  :-[. Now I'm trying to be less private and more assertive

French, German: did A level ages ago and it's all still there if a bit slow to emerge, French more so
 
Chinese: a BA some time back. haven't used for a while but there are few days when words and phrases come back, usually with a smile. Found I could read Zeng Jinyan's blog ok this morning

Japanese: lived there for much of the 80s. The non-English language I feel most comfortable in. Can read newspapers and easier fiction

Latin: another A level; could still recite most conjugations and declensions; Latin comes up at work regularly but find classical Latin texts much harder to make sense of than Chinese or Japanese

Turkish, Italian, Spanish:   survival knowledge, with enough grammatical background to build on if need be

Potteries-speak: mother's language; knowledge is (sadly) mostly passive; looking forward to meeting Alan again to practise  :D Does the publication 'Arfur Towk Rate in Staffycher' still exist?

Maladict

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #46 on: 03 April, 2008, 03:52:19 pm »
My CV claims fluency in assembly language.  :-[

Dave

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #47 on: 03 April, 2008, 04:21:18 pm »
Potteries-speak: mother language; knowledge is (sadly) mostly passive; looking forward to meeting Alan again to practise  :D Does the publication 'Arfur Towk Rate in Staffycher' still exist?

So, does the phrase 'crimes a paris' mean anything to you?

And the obvious question, Vale or City?

Another Stokie and proud(?) of it.

Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #48 on: 03 April, 2008, 04:47:21 pm »
German - I can explain to a hotel receptionist that I've locked my passport, all of my money and the instructions in the safe without first finding out how to open it.

French - I can manage a stilted conversation about where I've come from, the weather, where I'm going and why we're cycling, all while tasting wine in a cave.

I can order the menu item I've never heard of in both!

Dave

Julian

  • samoture
Re: The Multi-Linguistic Talents of yACF
« Reply #49 on: 03 April, 2008, 08:33:07 pm »
Observation: Still don't know what people mean when they use the word 'fluent'. Usually they don't either. It appears to mean something more than 'halting' or 'beginner level' but often not much more.

I was fluent in French when I found I was dreaming in French.  The only language apart from English that I've ever had fluency in (able to join in any conversation on any given subject, use puns, dream and think in). 

It's amazing how quickly you lose it if you don't use it.  :(