Take French, i took it in high school and liked it more than spanish (also took in high school) it's not that hard of a language to learn.
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Russian or French?
- Thread starter dominordelingua
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Russian is very hard to learn because not only do you have to deal with a totally different alphabet, but also a very different grammar system. For example, a name like Ульяна Лопаткина--written the Cyrillic alphabet used in Russian, is unreadable to most Westerners (except maybe those who can read modern Greek, since the Cyrillic alphabet came from the work of Saints Cyril and Methodius, monks of the Greek Orthodox Church).
(By the way, if you're a knowledgeable about the art of ballet you'll recognize that Russian name I just mentioned.
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I for one would love to learn Russian, since there is a huge amount of great literature in that language. Fluency in Russian is really necessary to appreciate the work of Alexander Pushkin, a great Russian author who wrote most of his work like long poems.
(By the way, if you're a knowledgeable about the art of ballet you'll recognize that Russian name I just mentioned.
)I for one would love to learn Russian, since there is a huge amount of great literature in that language. Fluency in Russian is really necessary to appreciate the work of Alexander Pushkin, a great Russian author who wrote most of his work like long poems.
Good for you it will be useful in future I guarantee you.
Vodka woot not sure on Желаю удачи though I think it is good luck or something along those lines (Am I correct? I know the alphabet and quite a few words but wasn't sure).Желаю удачи and take it easy with водка!
He choose Russian (русский язык? I think that was right).
Ulyana LopatkinaУльяна Лопаткина--(By the way, if you're a knowledgeable about the art of ballet you'll recognize that Russian name I just mentioned.
, I like Ballet.Russian does seem much harder, but its definitely possible, and I think I'll enjoy it. I kind of like the fact that it is a different alphabet (which I've already taught myself
). Knowing that my spanish-speaking family can't easily guess Russian text or words like they can with French kinda sounds exciting , and it'll be nice to breakaway from the norm. Grammar will be a struggle, but I've already learned to think in translation of meaning not words...it will come with time anyway.I didn't know about the author Alexander Pushkin. His literature will give me something to look forward to. Thanks again northy124 and SactoGuy18.
Ulyana Lopatkina
I have a full performance of her on DVD (Swan Lake, filmed at the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg, Russia in April 2006), and I have tickets to see her live in Berkeley, CA this October.
just out of curiousity what materials are you going to use to learn Russian? I found the Teach Yourself series good (Link to search on Amazon) but it depends how you learn, Book, Watching or Listening. BTW this thread inspired me to learn more than what I already knowRussian does seem much harder, but its definitely possible, and I think I'll enjoy it. I kind of like the fact that it is a different alphabet (which I've already taught myself
I didn't know about the author Alexander Pushkin. His literature will give me something to look forward to. Thanks again northy124 and SactoGuy18.
.I don't think I seen that one, I'll see if I can find it and watchI have a full performance of her on DVD (Swan Lake, filmed at the Mariinsky Theatre in Saint Petersburg, Russia in April 2006), and I have tickets to see her live in Berkeley, CA this October.
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Once you can get decent fluency in Russian, definitely see if you can read Pushkin's works in the original Russian. I'd recommend reading Eugene Onegin, Boris Godunov and Ruslan and Ludmila, as all three were written in various verse forms.
I don't think I seen that one, I'll see if I can find it and watch
If you have a TV/DVD player that works with NTSC video, you can get that performance of Swan Lake I mentioned on DVD (Decca 074 3216). It's essentially the uncut version of the ballet that was shown on BBC 2 (I believe) back in 2007.
French is the best language, ever!
Except for one big problem: what you write on paper is not what you pronounce, an influence that ended up in English when Norman French started to affect the English language after the 1066 Norman invasion. One thing I like about Spanish is what you write is fairly close to what you pronounce.
just out of curiousity what materials are you going to use to learn Russian? ... BTW this thread inspired me to learn more than what I already know
Well, I'm glad I could help inspire you. I use a lot of different mediums for learning. I usually need a lot of everything to begin putting things together. So I will do independent reading, speaking with natives, listening, and currently I'm self-teaching, but I think that once I finish the program I am in currently in college, I will be taking classes.
For a while I independently studied Russian and French and the same time, and similar to spanish, french does have a set of patterns that once you learn them, makes pronunciation super easy.
No language is difficult when you are 19 or even slightly older. I started to learn English when I was 22 (10 years ago) and, while I am not a super-duper guru by a long shot, I am now more proficient in spoken and written English than many native speakers.
My point is that it is almost a crime not to have learned a second language by the time you are in your mid-20s. It is one of the best investments one could possibly make. Even if you take the more difficult path (Russian in your case), you should be able to maintain a simple conversation after a couple of months and to understand most of what is said to you within two years or so.
My point is that it is almost a crime not to have learned a second language by the time you are in your mid-20s. It is one of the best investments one could possibly make. Even if you take the more difficult path (Russian in your case), you should be able to maintain a simple conversation after a couple of months and to understand most of what is said to you within two years or so.
Too funny. Actually, English has probably the easiest grammar among all major languages, which is a plus, since this makes it more accessible to foreign speakers. English is also great for scientific writing. I cringe every time I have to rewrite in Russian an excerpt from a scientific paper originally written in English (even if both versions are written by me).
The biggest strength of English, however, is that it has absorbed so many words from other languages, which makes it probably the richest language in terms of synonyms available.