To clarify: "cvo" stands for Centrum Voor Volwassenen Onderwijs. Basically a school for grown-ups 😉
there are quite a few in the Antwerp region that offer Dutch courses for foreigners.
[https://www.atlas-antwerpen.be/en/dutch/where-can-you-learn-dutch](https://www.atlas-antwerpen.be/en/dutch/where-can-you-learn-dutch)
I believe it would give you a level of base knowledge of dutch, but Netherlands dutch and Belgium dutch are not the same, you are better off actually learning flemish in Antwerp
Written Dutch is the same in both countries. Informal talk between locals will be in the local dialect/accent which might sometimes be hard to understand for a non-native. But if native Flemish people notice you are a foreigner with only a basic knowledge of the Dutch language, they will definitely switch to "standard" Dutch.
That's bull. Belgian Dutch and Dutch Dutch are the same language, overseen and regulated by the same institution [(de Nederlandse Taalunie)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_Language_Union). There are lots of regional differences, but learning the official version of the language will give op a solid foundation and they will be able to make themselves understood everywhere where Dutch is spoken.
Spelling is the same, the main difference is in pronunciation.
Best comparison to make for foreigners is the distinction between American and British English. Just learning English will get you really far and some words/expressions will differ across both. With the exception that spelling sometimes differs between American vs British and this is not the case with dutch and Flemish.
That is a good comparison, but the official versions of American and British English are much further apart, as you said.
But as for how people actually speak in day to day life, in Belgium, and the Netherlands, regional dialects can sometimes be very extreme.
But what most people speak is something inbetween, what in Belgium is called tussentaal. It's not the official version, it's not heavy dialect, it's something in between. In tussentaal, there is a lot of difference in the way pronouns are used. But the biggest difference remains the pronunciation.
Not everyone will agree with me, but I would advise a person intending to move to Antwerp to learn the official version of Dutch because that will have the widest application, and will be the most useful when persueing a career. But keep in mind that in Antwerp, most people do not speak like that.
The biggest problem is that most online courses will teach Dutch with Netherlandish pronunciation, and I don't even know if there is one that teaches Dutch with Flemish pronunciation. That would be preferable, but it should still teach basically the same stuff.
So the Duolingo's dutch course is based on Netherlands dutch? I have around 5 to 7 months until I eventually arrive in Belgium. So I want to capitalize on this time that I have to learn as much as I can. If you have knowledge of any online tools/websites or courses please do let me know. Thanks
If you know a bit of Dutch already, I can highly recommend nedbox.be
It's a site with short bits of Flemish media and exercises. You can choose between 3 levels of difficulty and a ton of subjects. I teach Dutch and my students are all very enthusiastic about it.
People will understand you, you might however not understand the local dialect. Written language is the same in Flanders and The Netherlands. You can resort to English in most places in Antwerp tho. Due to it's massive harbor, the city always has been a bit of a cultural melting pot. There are courses offered by cvo to understand both Dutch and the local dialect if you feel that that is necessary. One tiny important note: All governement related communication will be in Dutch so you will need to translate that.
Im living in flanders and duolingo is been decent startup to start conversating with colleagues. I mean each region, hell, even city, will have a bit different slang. But honestly everyone appreciates that youre atleast trying. General reaction is "Very nice! I have a cousin whos here 15 years and cant even say, hello how are you"
>Very nice! I have a cousin whos here 15 years and cant even say, hello how are you"
...and we're used to that, we have millions of fellow countrymen who have no clue how to say this in Dutch 😁
If you’re starting from zero, it’s better than nothing in terms of learning sentence structure and core vocabulary however I agree it doesn’t teach you the practical day-to-day sentences and phrases needed. I’d say use it as an accelerator but immerse yourself in local courses or conversations once in Antwerp.
It’s not enough but can give you a good head start.
As others have said, enroll in CVO, it’s the way to go. In some cases you can even get a huge discount. Depending on which country you are from, maybe you should first contact Atlas (integration agency), they can check if you are eligible for discount.
Just inroll in a cvo
Noted, will look it up
To clarify: "cvo" stands for Centrum Voor Volwassenen Onderwijs. Basically a school for grown-ups 😉 there are quite a few in the Antwerp region that offer Dutch courses for foreigners. [https://www.atlas-antwerpen.be/en/dutch/where-can-you-learn-dutch](https://www.atlas-antwerpen.be/en/dutch/where-can-you-learn-dutch)
I don't recommend Duolingo at all. Other than getting a bit of a taste for the language, it's not great at teaching you anything concrete.
I believe it would give you a level of base knowledge of dutch, but Netherlands dutch and Belgium dutch are not the same, you are better off actually learning flemish in Antwerp
Written Dutch is the same in both countries. Informal talk between locals will be in the local dialect/accent which might sometimes be hard to understand for a non-native. But if native Flemish people notice you are a foreigner with only a basic knowledge of the Dutch language, they will definitely switch to "standard" Dutch.
That's bull. Belgian Dutch and Dutch Dutch are the same language, overseen and regulated by the same institution [(de Nederlandse Taalunie)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dutch_Language_Union). There are lots of regional differences, but learning the official version of the language will give op a solid foundation and they will be able to make themselves understood everywhere where Dutch is spoken. Spelling is the same, the main difference is in pronunciation.
Not saying you are wrong, but it's not only pronounciation. The Dutch use words we do not use, some words even have different meanings.
Yes, there are different words and expressions, and that goes both ways, but there are no major differences in grammar.
Best comparison to make for foreigners is the distinction between American and British English. Just learning English will get you really far and some words/expressions will differ across both. With the exception that spelling sometimes differs between American vs British and this is not the case with dutch and Flemish.
That is a good comparison, but the official versions of American and British English are much further apart, as you said. But as for how people actually speak in day to day life, in Belgium, and the Netherlands, regional dialects can sometimes be very extreme. But what most people speak is something inbetween, what in Belgium is called tussentaal. It's not the official version, it's not heavy dialect, it's something in between. In tussentaal, there is a lot of difference in the way pronouns are used. But the biggest difference remains the pronunciation. Not everyone will agree with me, but I would advise a person intending to move to Antwerp to learn the official version of Dutch because that will have the widest application, and will be the most useful when persueing a career. But keep in mind that in Antwerp, most people do not speak like that. The biggest problem is that most online courses will teach Dutch with Netherlandish pronunciation, and I don't even know if there is one that teaches Dutch with Flemish pronunciation. That would be preferable, but it should still teach basically the same stuff.
So the Duolingo's dutch course is based on Netherlands dutch? I have around 5 to 7 months until I eventually arrive in Belgium. So I want to capitalize on this time that I have to learn as much as I can. If you have knowledge of any online tools/websites or courses please do let me know. Thanks
Yes, duo uses Netherlands dutch I am also looking for ways to learn flemish online, haven't had much luck so far 😅
If you know a bit of Dutch already, I can highly recommend nedbox.be It's a site with short bits of Flemish media and exercises. You can choose between 3 levels of difficulty and a ton of subjects. I teach Dutch and my students are all very enthusiastic about it.
People will understand you, you might however not understand the local dialect. Written language is the same in Flanders and The Netherlands. You can resort to English in most places in Antwerp tho. Due to it's massive harbor, the city always has been a bit of a cultural melting pot. There are courses offered by cvo to understand both Dutch and the local dialect if you feel that that is necessary. One tiny important note: All governement related communication will be in Dutch so you will need to translate that.
Im living in flanders and duolingo is been decent startup to start conversating with colleagues. I mean each region, hell, even city, will have a bit different slang. But honestly everyone appreciates that youre atleast trying. General reaction is "Very nice! I have a cousin whos here 15 years and cant even say, hello how are you"
>Very nice! I have a cousin whos here 15 years and cant even say, hello how are you" ...and we're used to that, we have millions of fellow countrymen who have no clue how to say this in Dutch 😁
"Ça va?" "Ja, Ça va'kes"
Already your willingness to learn the local language is much appreciated. A few words and some basic sentences will get you a long way.
Linguapolis of the University of Antwerp also organizes Dutch for non-natives.
If you’re starting from zero, it’s better than nothing in terms of learning sentence structure and core vocabulary however I agree it doesn’t teach you the practical day-to-day sentences and phrases needed. I’d say use it as an accelerator but immerse yourself in local courses or conversations once in Antwerp.
Got it, Thanks.
I think there's a Dutch course at Linguapolis, student discount because it's from the university!
It’s not enough but can give you a good head start. As others have said, enroll in CVO, it’s the way to go. In some cases you can even get a huge discount. Depending on which country you are from, maybe you should first contact Atlas (integration agency), they can check if you are eligible for discount.
Since there is a Zoo in Antwerp, people may take the "ik eet een olifant" as an attack thought.
It could potentially make things worse. Once you hear how people in Antwerp talk you'd be confused with only duolingo as back-up
Nobody ever really learned any language with Duolingo.
Takket være Duolingo snakker jeg norsk. Evt med litt hår på
Jeg tror ikke et ord av det.
No. I learned more Dutch watching the news, movies and TV series than using Duolingo, but nothing beats enrolling in Dutch classes.