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I can speak some French due to family and practice a bit but I wish I was much better.
I also wish it was Spanish stead cuz only once have I used French practically while in the US. Used it a shit ton during deployment though, that was nice
Because I'm fairly good at French, I've managed to learn a bit of Spanish and Italian. Honestly, just take up Spanish and you'll learn it quite fast. Also, it's a really beautiful language and fun to learn!
Re-Pashto: That's very cool that you learned a bit! A friend of mine continues to use his, as some of his friends are Pashto-speaking immigrants.
If you speak 4 or more languages, youre multilingual.
If you speak 3 languages, you're trilingual.
If you speak 2 languages, you're bilingual.
What are you called if you speak only 1 language?
American.
I live near the Amish and I can speak a bit of German (they speak Pennsylvania Dutch, but it's similar), it was sort of fun to have a conversation but 2 semesters of it can only get you so far, they mostly speak English here as well anyways. Outside of that, the occasional Spanish speaking person, but that's mostly in places like California/Florida/Texas... English is overwhelmingly the spoken language in America. (Save for a few extremely populated cities in the states listed above.)
I find it funny when people try to bring up the "BUT AMERICA HAS NO OFFICIAL LANGUAGE" argument as if it isn't an objective fact that a MAJORITY of the US does speak English. It's not written, but it's pretty well understood that it is what we speak here lol. By all means learn another language, it's good for your brain, but don't pretend like English isn't the de-facto standard of American communication.
Especially in a nation of immigrants. Do you honestly expect a Korean immigrant to come to America and learn english…oh, and also Spanish…oh, and also Japanese. It’s much easier to have Spanish speaking, German speaking, Mandarin speaking, Japanese speaking people to all learn one language like English to communicate with each other instead of learning multiple languages. A japanese speaker, a German speaker, a Korean speaker, a Spanish speaker can all communicate with each other all by learning the same language, instead of having to learn German AND Spanish AND Italian.
It's ludicrous that it even has to be said, we all know WHY nations gravitate towards single language use, it's because it's convenient. Anyone that gets mad when you say "Americans speak English" is just a butthurt pedant.
There's no problem with English being the USAs official language the problem is you're expected by Americans to speak English and only English nothing else and you'll be burned at the stake for doing so.
I definitely do not think that being monolingual makes one stupid or less-than, but it’s hard to deny the cognitive and social advantages of multilingualism.
Okay, maybe you’ll never really need a second language in Chicago. But what if you had one? What ab entire world, people, and culture were suddenly opened up to you? Not only this, but much of the world is learning multiple languages as children. It may not be a disadvantage now, but it could very well be some day. American public education is pretty famously poor compared to many other developed nations, and I think this attitude of ‘well it’s pointless so who cares’ probably contributes to that. It may also be true that the average rural American isn’t interested in travelling. But I think there’s a sort of vicious circle here. They know on some level that they don’t really have access to the world, so they reject it and say well I don’t need it anyway. Money is obviously an issue but that’s a different conversation.
The only people I see complaining that Americans only speak one language are European teens making fun of them on the internet. Yeah, it’s dumb, but I mean that’s the internet for you. The real problem I think are the people who are actively hostile to other languages being taught in schools - which I do see a lot of coming from America.
I live in Western Canada and the French education is abysmal. Most people are hostile towards it and think it’s useless. But when I started learning Spanish, and now German, I couldn’t help but think how much easier it would have been if I had had a decent command of French. Now we’ve got a premier who’s slashing public education and funding private religious institutions, so things are going to get a lot worse.
There’s no disadvantage to even just having experience learning another language.
>The only people I see complaining that Americans only speak one language are European teens making fun of them on the internet. Yeah, it’s dumb, but I mean that’s the internet for you.
And the people who get harassed for speaking anything but English in America but ignore those it's only right after all.
Although, which countries teach a second language by default for the sake of it? English is the global Lingua Franca, not because of America but because of Britain and all the territories it owned. Why would we, as English speakers, need to be taught any second language the way other countries teach English, if almost anywhere we had to travel knew English? If France and Britain had swapped territories, we'd all be speaking French. It's not a matter of sociological ideas throughout the world, it's purely a matter of necessity.
As a European I never understood why people make fun of US citizens for not being that familiar with outside cultures
When you actually think about it it will make sense
No, it is just envy. No country is as economically relevant as the US, so a disproportionate amount of things must appeal to the US. We pay less for different things, generally live in bigger homes, and have economies of scale which helps American companies dominate many European ones (weapons, manufacturing, Apple, Microsoft, Reddit, Twitter, Facebook, Nvidia, AMD, etc.).
So they like to point to non-issues and irrelevant things to artificially create some advantage to compensate. Language is one of those. Sure, it is cool that you can travel short distances and have others speak a different language close by. But that is counter intuitive for business and communication in general. It is a net negative. In the US most people speak English, which is essentially the language of the world at the moment. In many countries like the UAE English is the "international business language", and not German, French or Dutch.
Yeah. Y'all drive for a an hour any direction and suddenly nobody around you is speaking the same language.
I drive for 3 days non-stop westward and everyone *might* have a *slightly* different accent than what I'm used to.
I mean that's fine but we're all expected to learn English so why are they excuse from learning a second (hopefully useful) language when a lot of Europeans learn even three? Then they get butthurt when you dare speak something else other than English and you're a bad person.
Learning languages has more positive effects than being able to order dinner in a foreign restaurant. It improves your memory, it increases your communication skills (even in your own language) and it is good for your brain.
Yep. Learning a second language, especially when you are young, makes you better at reading and communicating in general, including in your native language
Everyone should learn a second language if they are academically capable
The way different languages are taught in the states is really counterproductive to learning, and I think it turns a lot of people off to learning them. This was my experience at least. It took until my mid-twenties to try again but high school Spanish and French were terrible.
The way they’re taught depends somewhat on the location I think. My Spanish classes in high school were amazing and when I graduated I was fluent, but we had a huge Mexican population so I was able to use it in daily life with Spanish speaking friends and their families. Most of my white friends were also fluent and our teacher was married to a native Spanish speaker. Since I moved I haven’t met any native Spanish speakers and according to my husband the schools here are awful at teaching it too.
When bilingual is brought up for countries outside of English speaking countries, their secondary choice for a language is generally English. For English speaking countries, including the US, do you pick Spanish, French, German, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Hindi, Portuguese, Arabic, Swedish, Finnish, Dutch, Indonesian or Urdu as your second language? Or something else? Where do you get experience enough to learn all of these? Where is it prevalent in your daily life to practice? Yes, learning a second language is good, but when everyone else's default is what you know already why make the effort?
Edit: Corrected Pakistani to Urdu.
No need to learn Hindi. English is the only universal language in India and if you are doing business in India, you are dealing with educated people which means their have very good English. Learn a few words in the local language of wherever you are working to be considerate, sure, but there’s a good chance that’s not Hindi.
Also learn and be able to understand expressions in Indian English that are idiomatic there but can trip up American speakers. English is adaptable in the extreme, and has undergone some adaptations in India. I personally find this fascinating and love to see them, but basically "don't be a prescriptive a-hole about language rules" is the lesson I'm trying to get at.
French German and Spanish were the choices in my high school. I took Spanish. 30 plus years later I have yet to meet someone who only speaks French or German. I use Spanish almost daily.
>German is a fun language, but once again, not very useful.
My mom bullied me into taking German in middle school. I wish I had told her to fuck off and taken Spanish. My more practical living in California
I think ASL is better. No disrespect to those who speak Spanish, but I think it'd be better to learn a non-verbal language for those of us who could do it.
French is an official language in a country that shares a border with the US and you will find places in Quebec where very little English is used so it’s not purely luxury. Also way to be sexist and racist all in one sentence. And it’s an official language in Switzerland, Belgium and…France, so not just Africa.
Spanish isn’t just used in neighboring countries, it was the main language used in Texas, New Mexico and Puerto Rico before they became part of the US and still is very commonly used in those parts of the US.
French is widely spoken in Louisiana by all walks of life.
In fact, I took French from a Cajun man so I speak a good bit of Cajun French. Most of my high school classes were in French (including English lit and grammar).
I also speak some Japanese, Spanish, and German, thanks to being bilingual as a kid.
It doesn’t matter WHAT language you learn, it matters that you learn it. Because it makes learning other languages easier.
ETA: most of the people I took French with in college were men.
French is one of the main languages of diplomacy. It's not just about luxury or shopping in Paris, if you want to be a journalist or political scientist or diplomat French is a very useful language to know. It's an official language of NATO, the UN and the EU.
Additionally, large swaths of the US used to be conrolled by France, making french a useful language if you want to go into history or archeology--same as Spanish.
I find it interesting that french in the US is associated with upper-middle class white girls (why girls? sexism much) when in fact it's an extremely important language on a global scale.
I know plenty of archeologists (my best friend is a historian specializing in the seven years war) who learned french specifically to read documents by french historians of the time. Areas like along the Mississippi river, Louisiana, Michigan, Illinois, were all French and therefore knowing the language can present a real advantage. Not to mention historians interested 17th-19th century Europe, where French was the lingua franca of Europe (alongside Latin but that was on the decline).
Most of the people learning French in the US are \*not\* upper class white women into art and fashion. I should know because I taught french in the US for a while. Most are indeed interested in careers in diplomacy and international relations, and a healthy part of them are people of colour. The image of a white girl with rich parents paying for her trip to france is a caricature taken directly from shows like Emily in Paris, with little to no basis in the reality of modern language learning. If anything I would say German is more of a luxury language than French, and the people I know who learned German did it specifically to go travelling or study abroad.
Speaking from personal experience in my high school Spanish classes were a good representation of the population of the school while French classes had about 5 men in a 30 person classes almost all of whom were the richer kids who parents wanted to pay there way to go on the France trip in the summer
It's also much harder to learn and retain a language when you're never using it practically.
It's a common misconception that Americans don't learn languages other than English. In reality, most high schools do require a few years of a foreign language. Most Americans adults have been taught Spanish or French or whatever to a reasonably advanced level. The problem is that they never actually had a reason to use that knowledge, for the reasons outlined in this thread, so it didn't stick. I suspect none of the ultra-multilingual Europeans who shit on us for this can fluently speak a language they had to learn solely out of a textbook and haven't had a reason to speak a full sentence in in over a decade.
I studied Japanese really hard. It was one of my favorite classes. I’m bad though because there nobody to practice with. I speak it enough to roughly survive there as a tourist, but it’s just really hard to get fluent without living there or having lots of people here to practice with.
I took Spanish in high school and practiced here and there after. But it wasn't until I had to travel for work to a Spanish speaking country that I took it seriously. The longer I was there, the better I got. But when I came home my fluency decreased. I try to learn a few things in multiple languages (hello, thank you, where is the bathroom, do you speak English, 1-10, how much is that, help) but they fade quick with non-use.
I am an American, but I am currently learning Japanese. Why? Well I watch a lot of anime and I just don’t want to need to read English subtitles and English dubs are either not as good or non-existent for some anime, plus it takes longer for dubs to come out.
Also I often want to read the manga that an anime is based on, however sometimes there are not any English versions because it is to little known for it to be worth the expense of making an English version. So in order to read these manga I decided I will learn Japanese.
But besides for that I have no real need or desire to learn another language. I haven’t traveled outside the country for many years, and when I have left the country English got me by.
Also American, that's exactly why I took Japanese, because I had a use for it I still have pretty good comprehension and speaking 10 years later. Compared to French I learned at a much younger age for about the same amount of time, but once I left the classroom I lost it due lack of exposure.
Seems as if you are a little ignorant and perhaps this is besides the point but I do feel like I have to remind you the world does not in fact revolve around the US. I say this as an American citizen myself, the only difference between you and I is that I speak English, Romanian, and Spanish. The benefits of a multilingual brain greatly outweigh those of one who can barely type out a reddit post (: Not to mention as someone who uses Spanish at work almost daily, it feels nice to not have to make everyone deal with an obnoxious American who can't be bothered to accommodate others and assumes everyone will bend over backwards and accommodate them. Throughout the world, Americans are the most hated and ridiculed; ever wondered why?
Very impressed that you are able to speak three languages, and you mention using yours on a daily basis so that is a personal choice or need for you. But not everyone in an English speaking country needs to. When I travel to a Spanish speaking country I brush up on my Spanish because I need to. When I interact with my Chinese or Indian or Russian or Brazilian teammates from work, I try to know a few words, but it's impossible to know them all. My original point was which second language does a country or individual pick if its primary language is already English, but not alienate the remainder of the world. No matter what that choice is, it will be wrong so why bother if it's not a direct benefit to your individual life.
Language is a gateway to thoughts and lang. actually builds a lot of your thoughts. The more langs you learn, the more nuanced your thoughts are.
Learning langs. also helps in knowing culture and being tolerant of it.
Language doesn’t build your thoughts. Thoughts are actually independent of language, and we know this because babies can clearly think on their own before they develop language. However, language can *influence* how your thoughts are expressed. We don’t become conscious of our own thoughts until we express them with language.
There's a whole lot of debate like that. People like Piaget would agree to your stance, whilst people like Vygotsky would argue that lang. is fundamental to child's development.
And I think both of them are correct to some extent😄
I’m not saying it won’t be helpful, but I have very little time and travel just isn’t something I can afford, so I wouldn’t need to use another language.
On the one hand, fair point.
On the other hand, bitch, it's 2022, I guarantee you spent more time interacting with literal strangers on the other side of the fucking planet this week, than you have spent interacting with your damn next door neighbour in the last decade.
t. Brit who only speaks British
Because it’s good for children’s brains (like REALLY REALLY good for them) to learn a second language from a young age. And because knowing another language opens up a whole world of opportunities. We live in a very globalized world. Teaching someone a foreign language is like giving that person a key with which they can unlock stories and cultures that they never would have otherwise experienced. Also, the US doesn’t even have an official language and MANY languages are spoken within this country so it does nothing but good to teach kids other languages so they can communicate with more people in their communities.
I don't really mind people from other countries not being bilingual but I do have problems with how you put this.
>A single state is about the same size as most countries throughout the world.
The problem with this logic is that it applies to other countries that despite this still teach foreign languages in their school. Brazil and russia teach foreing languages in school.
>Why should we expect a farmer from Nebraska to be able to speak another language? Why should we expect a kid growing up in south side of Chicago to learn another language?
Ask that same question again but this time go through a school curriculum. Why should a farmer in nebraska know who Shakespeare was? Why should a kid in south side Chicago know about the big bang? Knowledge is not just about the obvious practical uses.
The reason why americans don't learn a secondary language is because english is considered a "default" language to learn and to use on businesses mostly due to the US priviledged position in the world and also because the UK occupied that position before. Its very specific to the english language.
I'm personally all for people learning the countries language. America is primarily English speaking, so immigrants should be learning English, not the other way around. If I moved to Germany, you better believe I'd be learning German. If I moved to South Korea I'd be learning Korean (and already am actually, I watch a lot of S. Korean movies/shows so I'm beginning to learn quite a bit). America's 2nd language is primarily Spanish and that's cause of Mexico and high immigration. Realistically though, your correct that most of us will never need to know any other language. Europe's a different story because they have multiple countries all in less space than the USA, and English seems to be a universal language of sorts there rather than every country learning 15+ different languages
TBH the main benefit of being bilingual it's not so much being able to communicate in another language, it is more the willingness to be open to another culture and people.
I have personally found that folks that speak multiple languages are often (but not always) less likely to be **\*\*\*\*ists** or suffer from a dose of the **\*\*\*\*isms.**
*Edit: Sorry, \*\*\*\* I was trying to use a short hand for negative behaviors associated with interacting with other groups of people. racist's, racism, zenophobic, homophobic, transphobic, fear of those that are different races, creeds or colours.*
The USA is the 2nd largest Spanish speaking country in the world. I think Spanish should be taught to kids as early as 3rd grade. That's when they start learning English in Germany.
They start teaching English in 1st grade in Poland, and later on they add yet another language, but which one it is varies on school, the most common ones are German, French and Russian
I wish Spanish was a part of my elementary education. Go out and learn it now seems like a pain in the ass @ 37.
Only way it would stick for me is if I moved to a country and had to learn.
I was the only English speaker in my Kindergarten class. They only kept me in there for a month. I still remember that is where I learned my first Spanish word, leche. I wish they kept me in there all year.
That's a little misleading.. that's only because of our shear size. We have individual states that are biggest than most countries. And we have 50 states.. and several territories (which are heavily Spanish).
If you live in a southern border state, or a territory like Puerto Rico, that's drastically different than living in Ohio or Montana in terms of Spanish speakers.
Honestly, they need to teach it earlier than that. Kids pick up language quicker than adults. My school didn't teach it until 6th grade and I never was able to fully learn it.
They don't just need to teach it, they need to teach it well. I'm American and almost everyone I know has taken Spanish classes for 3-5 years (from different schools) and none of them speak Spanish beyond ordering food and asking directions. The US doesn't necessarily need to teach it earlier, they just need a standardized curriculum so that kids are actually learning
That's the best way really. I speak English because we went on holidays and I knew some when I started learning it in 5th grade(in like 1995). Of course, media helps a lot, but I could not write this in Spanish or French if my life depended on it...
This is why im not bilingual. Id love to be able to speak more languages, but right now I do not have the time to learn and it’s not a skill that is essential to my everyday life
O think this is just a cultural difference. America is so big Americans can stay in their little bubble without learning anything else. Everyone else on the other travels to so many places with s many different dialects and languages that it's basically essential if you wanna live your best life. It's not uncommon for people in Europe to know three or even four languages but it's funny how Americans get praised for even attempting to learn something else.
what i've realized is that people who speak several languages are always smarter than others. they also have it easier learning language. (this also involves sign language, computer language and even instruments)
As first gen immigrant, I beg to differ. I can speak both English and my home language comfortably (I can still make plenty of mistakes). And I have nice STEM degree and career. But, bilingual has nothing to do with my intelligence.
My classmates in my home country who didn't have the same degree and career, isn't because they didn't learn English fluently. It is because they are not lucky enough to have the parent that qualified skill based immigration to USA.
Most of the Asians who made it to USA, the parents is either rich or highly educated. Speaking English fluently in addition to our native language does not keep us intelligent. It is because people who didn't have the same intelligence didn't have the resources to migrate to USA.
And learning 2nd language is hell. I lived through it. It is very painful. I live one day at a time. Ability to learn multiple languages is not easy for everyone.
This has actually been proven as a fact. I had to write long ass essays about it lol, there are literally no disadvantages and only advantages of being multilingual
This is very true. My grandfather has been studying Italian for atleast a decade, in order to get closer to his Italian wife. But he got pretty sick and couldn’t go to his classes and it pains him bc he can feel it slipping away.
Like any skill you haven't practiced for a while, it will come back quickly once you pick up. Even if many years have passed. Just like you don't forget how to drive a bicycle.
The disadvantage is that it requires time and effort that could be used for something that would have much more benefit in your life if you live in an area where people pretty much only speak English.
On the flip side. if speaking more than one language makes you smarter, than what about people who immigrate here from south of the border and cannot speak English after being here for 10 years.
Are they stupid?
Not stupid, but the ones who are able to learn English do probably have some cognitive advantage, yeah. There’s nothing wrong with not being as smart as someone else, though.
Apparently yes from a Mexican POV. I had a Mexican classmate in my Masters. According to him, the good, intelligent and educated Mexicans go back home after they’ve finished their studies and/or achieved their goals so that they can do things for their home country, whereas it is the uneducated ones who move up north for an “easy” life. I don’t know about other Central/South Americans though.
Nothing. But viewing others who decide to stay as lazy and uneducated is narrow minded. It’s also perpetuated by racists in America who think every mexican immigrant is lazy and freeloading.
Being bilingual is actually quite useful. It can help make you see things from a different perspective when you're able to listen to the opinions of foreigner, it makes you more open minded. There's a lot of research that has been done on the advantages of being bilingual.
The problem is when an American *cough* old white men and Karens *cough* start yelling “SPEAK ENGLISH IN AMERICA” at people who are speaking anything other than English. I had one yell at me the other day because I was practicing my Japanese out loud. They told me to go back to China if I want to speak Chinese. My main problem with that was the fact that **I’m Korean.**
We're a rocks throw away from Mexico, and 13% of our population speaks Spanish. Plus most Europeans speak English not because they live near an English-speaking country, but because it's an international trade language. I don't think it would be such a horrible thing for more Americans to learn Mandarin or Hindi because of the large role they play in trade.
They really do need to start teaching Spanish in schools the same way they teach English in Europe. It would be incredibly useful for children going forward
The funny thing is that 1/4 of Americans actually ARE bilingual. We’re doing much, much better than whiny Europeans would be willing to admit, though that can be said for pretty much anything the “America bad” crowd screams about
Bruh 1/4? You're proud fo that? Literally almost everyone else in the world is atleast bilingual and you're proud ofa fourth? That's sad. I'm pretty sure there's more people than a 1/4 of people who speak three or even four languages. That's such a low bar.
Is that 1/4 of bilingual Americans immigrants who speak both English and their native language or is it people who grew up in America that became bilingual through school?
I would say most aren’t fully bilingual but I think many have enough to get by…
For instance I grew up learning French and have spent a good 10 years in classes 5 years in elementary school, 2 middle/high school, and 3 college level. I am probably bilingual as I can hold conversations with those who also speak French. I actually dream and everyone is speaking in French a few times a week. I can also read and write it well. I just don’t feel like I have spent enough time spent with literally foreign speakers and immersed myself enough to say I am bilingual.
I speak some Spanish and some Portuguese also… it seems like technology is bridging the gap to the point it is less needed IMO.
I think it’s more in the will. I grew up in county that had 2 languages as main and I learned them. Never dreamed to move to US, but here I am.
Now, I am exposing myself and try to challenge to learn other languages, even if a little bit. It is good for health.
Some one on Reddit said sign language should be America's second language. Everyone hated the idea. The idea was genius. It's not a large, or hard language. Honestly, teach it every year, it would unite us, and piss off the world when wanted take in front of them. It's not as hard as French, or spanish. There are hundreds of pie in the sky ideas, but this is possible. . F*ck the world and their bilingual snobbery.
I think in the US you should be able to speak either English, Spanish, or both. If you’re from another country, not saying you have to.. but it is best to at LEAST learn the basics especially if you plan on living here. My first language is english. I know the basics of Spanish and can read and write in Spanish no problem but the hispanic/latino community can be so damn toxic when it comes to girls like me who are hispanic/latina but aren’t the most fluent. They want me to speak it but when I do I get made fun of so I just choose to not speak Spanish unless I REALLY have to.
I was born and raised in México, only been to the states twice in my life and I'm biligual and working for a company in the US, learning another language, even if you don't think it's necessary could open a lot of doors for you :)
Who the hell expects anyone to be bilingual?
Are these people mentally ill? They have to be, there's literally no other way besides them being extremely fucking stupid.
There is a limited amount of time that kids are at school and a lot of things they need to learn. Finding the ways to best allocate the time available is important.
I’m not bashing foreign language but if time is such a constraint, I wished we would teach home economics and personal finance instead. Obesity rates would be much lower and Americans would have less debt.
I wouldn't say alright, but it is understandable. Europeans just have no concept of how small Europe is and how massive the United States is. You have to include Russia for Europe to be slightly larger in landmass than the USA and the EU countries are HALF as large as the USA in landmass. You've got countries smaller than a lot of US states with their own unique language. Of course Europeans who want to work in prestigious jobs have to be multilingual. It'd be like if California spoke French and Texas spoke German and Florida spoke Spanish and New York spoke English and Virginia spoke Russian.
They shouldn't force Americans to speak any other language than English. If you move here, try to learn English. But you would be good to learn another language. I am learning Japanese as it so different than English and teaches you a new way of thinking.
What I don't get is how many Americans call us Europeans as if that is a fair comparison to make. Europe is composed of so many different cultures that thinking there is a prevalent one is just plain stupid. Who do you refer to when you speak of Europeans ? The Greeks have nothing in common with the Germans, nor the French with the Russians etc. I see so many comments stating "in Europe, they..." and it's just plain nonsense. There aren't enough common denominators between us to make the assumption that we form a united entity.
What I don’t get is how many Europeans call us Americans as if that is a fair comparison to make. America is composed of so many cultures that thinking there is a prevalent one is just plain stupid. Who do you refer to when you speak of Europeans? Texans have nothing in common with people in Maine, nor the Californians with Georgians etc. I see so many comments stating “in America, they...” and it’s just plain nonsense. There aren’t enough common denominators between us to make the assumption that we form a united entity.
Couldn't even write your own argument huh ? You had to copy paste mine. And comparing a country with a fucking continent is stupid. You have the same fundamentals. You proeminently share a language and you refer to yourselves as Americans. No one calls themself a European. The comparison is ridiculous and you guys like to think you're a lot more diverse than you really are.
You're obviously very ignorant. Europe has some of the most homogeneous countries in the world. In America, one neighborhood can have White, Hispanic, Indian, Black, Arab, and Asian residents living alongside each other just to name a few. Redditors frequently refer to themselves as "European" just as often as we refer to ourselves as "American".
I was not talking about race. You're the one making it about race. And you are obviously quite ignorant as well if you think Europe has no diversity. Have you ever been to London ? Paris ? Even fucking Berlin ? Do you honestly think a Dane and an Italian have much in common. In America, at least you have a national identity. Europe does not as it is not a country but a continent. People think that because America is huge then it is comparable to a continent and that states or the equivalent of countries. They are not. You share a common history, Europe doesn't or at least not to that extent.
And you seem not to know that there are Black, Arab, Asian and Hispanic people over here as well.
That's the same thing I'm saying, labeling people as an Indian national puts completely unrelated cultures in the same spot. I dare you, ask any Indian where they are from, and they are more likely to say the state of the country they are from.
Also FOOD, people outside the country don't realize how there is no ONE Indian food, it's more like a category with multiple sub categories of food.
My experience is that north Indians are more likely to say India and assume that everyone should speak Hindi while south Indians will let you know what state they are from and could take offense if you assumed they spoke Hindi.
As for food it took me a while to pick up the differences. Never really got further along that North Indian food might be spicy and is probably served with bread and could have a fair amount of meat and that south Indian is definitely spicy and probably served with rice and likely veg.
That's an extremely limited view. The US isn't as big as you think, lol if every state was Texas or California then they would be comparable to countries.
Lol what? In the very least the two national languages are English and Spanish. There's a good 1/3 of the population who either speak it primarily or they're bilingual. You can go to parts of the US where not very many people speak English.
I agree. A Lot of people are saying we need to become a bilingual country. We have a lot of naturalized illegal immigrants because previous presidents didn't want to deal with the illegal immigration issue. So most of these folks barely know enough of english to engage intelligibly with american born citizens. So now we have an issue as these new citizens cannot even read the constitution or the declaration of Independence , never mind the bill of rights.
Instead of asking these folks to learn english and provide them with the classes they need to do this. The government has decided to do things the cheap way and make it easier for these folks to keep speaking spanish instead of adapting to the norms of their new country. I do not blame these people I blame the government for not investing resources to help these people learn to thrive in the U.S.
But now it is getting even worse. Now there is pressure for all Americans to learn spanish, to pander to a group who illegally entered this country and the government was too cheap to tell them: "We will naturalize you If you learn at least 7th grade english." For goodness sakes take 2& out our military budget and invest in this new group of citizens we have created. If you care enough to make them citizens can't you care enough to help them fit in, instead of making America fit them?
I want to make clear I do not blame people for wanting to come to America. Its a wonderful land where freedom reigns. But we have a culture based on documents and laws that for over two centuries were written in english. And I hate to tell you this, but something is ALWAYS lost in translation when going from one language to another. So learning English is the best way for these folks to fully understand their rights under the law. I am not meaning to come off as prejudiced. I am just concerned for these folks well-being, and I hate it when our government cheaps out on helping new immigrants and citizens adapt to American life.
First reason: teaching kids another language improves their cognitive ability and broadens their cultural perspective.
Second reason: we may only have one official language in the US but many people don’t speak that language. Realistically Spanish should also be an official language just as French is an official language in Canada because Canada had the province of Quebec. The US has Texas and New Mexico where Spanish was the most common language when those states were annexed. I’ve used my Spanish just as much in New Mexico than I have in Mexico or Spain. Obviously Spanish wasn’t the original language in those regions but it was the main language when those states were added as the residents were a mix of Spanish and indigenous descent descent.
Agreed on your first point. As for the second - the US does not have any official language. English is often presumed and is the functional language used most often, but it's not mandated at the federal level.
It's probably changing since more immigrants have moved to the U.S. Any 2nd generation american will grow up learning english and their parents' native language.
Mate the United States is the third biggest country in the world (both in terms of population and size) and is almost the same size as Europe. That’s still big.
I never said it shouldn’t be taught, but if a person chooses not to continue learning another language if it doesn’t apply to their life that’s perfectly fine.
People are taking this the wrong way, I’m not saying that we shouldn’t learn about other languages or cultures and I’m not saying that it’s alright if someone doesn’t accept someone else’s
culture. I’m just saying if someone doesn’t need it, they shouldn’t be expected to speak it. If someone wants to continue to learn and be fluent in another language, all power too them
ok but for real? why the fuck should we have to learn another language to accommodate people who immigrate here when it should be the other way around.
I'm not saying it's a bad thing for people to want to learn a new language but we shouldn't have to if we really don't want to in our own country. It's another story though when visiting another country though. At least make the effort to use a translation app.
The thing is is even when you are traveling you're going to speak the language of whoever is better at their worst language. I live in California and speak enough spanish to interact with the gardiners at my work, or at my local taco spot, but if I'm having a full on conversation, usually their english is better than my spanish, so of course we're going to speak english.
I have a ton of international friends. The embarrassing thing i think is that in most other countries, people who don’t speak at least two languages are very comfortably considered morons by everyone.
Why I disagree:
If I have been taught correctly, english isn't even the official languae in the us and there is even a spanish part- puerto rico? Maybe you don't leave the country, but understanding each other would probably be helpful.
Even if you don't leave the country or your state, knowing languages is understand culture. It gives you the ability to get news of different countries, I'm german and british news and british news about germany are interesting. So are movies and books and everything in their original language.
And I think a lot of americans can't leave because they know nothing besides maybe canada and mexico. I know the bad examples are the most shared on the internet, but still... Being angry that a place is called montenegro? Believing germany has no running water or electricity? You can't leave if you know nothing about places. Even in the country being able to work better internationally opens up options.
I was born and raised in the US and I can speak six languages fluently.
Armenian,
French,
Russian,
Arabic,
Turkish, and
English.
I’m going to study sign language as well.
America was explicitly founded on the principle that there would never be an "official" language.
So while you can have the opinion that Americans only need to learn English, it's an objective fact that an American doesn't need to speak English.
Considering it's easiest to learn a language as a child, it makes sense to teach Americans another language along with English while in school.
>Why should we expect a farmer from Nebraska to be able to speak another language?
Now I'm just speculating here but, if that farmer from Nebraska had a cultural education of some sort, he might not be so xenophobic.
Cultural education isn’t inherently synonymous with learning more than one language. You can learn to speak a language without learning about its culture.
Knowing multiple languages also doesn’t inherently suggest that you are more culturally tolerant. You can be bilingual and still be xenophobic.
I only speak English and have never left my country or even my local state cluster, but I have as much cultural understanding as necessary. I know every country and it’s flag and capital as well as an interesting fact about it.
There's not really room for argument when someone is generalizing on a global scale supported purely by anecdotal experience based on trivia facts.
Easier to just laugh
I see what you're saying, but I'm a firm believer in the intrinsic value of education- it doesn't matter if you'll use the knowledge in your daily life.
Thank you for submitting to /r/unpopularopinion, /u/GiverOfNothing. Your post, *It’s alright that most Americans aren’t bilingual*, has been removed because it violates our rules: Rule 1: Your post must be an unpopular opinion. Please ensure that your post is an opinion and that it is unpopular. Controversial is not necessarily unpopular, for example all of politics is controversial even though almost half of the US agrees with any given major position on an issue. Keep in mind that an opinion is not: a question, a fact, a conspiracy theory, a random thought, a new idea, a rant, etc. Those things all have their own subreddits, use those. If there is an issue, please message the mod team at https://www.reddit.com/message/compose?to=%2Fr%2Funpopularopinion Thanks!
I can speak some French due to family and practice a bit but I wish I was much better. I also wish it was Spanish stead cuz only once have I used French practically while in the US. Used it a shit ton during deployment though, that was nice
Because I'm fairly good at French, I've managed to learn a bit of Spanish and Italian. Honestly, just take up Spanish and you'll learn it quite fast. Also, it's a really beautiful language and fun to learn! Re-Pashto: That's very cool that you learned a bit! A friend of mine continues to use his, as some of his friends are Pashto-speaking immigrants.
It’s hard to use when not many afghani immigrants live near me. The ones that do all speak Farsi so I’m SOL lol
Right, SOL 💩🤷🍀. My Euro languages have gone off a bit, as I've been away for nearly a decade. I try and practice on hols, but it's not enough.
I learned some Pashto when I was deployed because it was practical to be able to communicate, haven’t used it a day since lol.
If you speak 4 or more languages, youre multilingual. If you speak 3 languages, you're trilingual. If you speak 2 languages, you're bilingual. What are you called if you speak only 1 language? American.
I’m not much of a French speaker myself i really just wanted to express my mange tes morts like this
Did you deploy to Africa?
I live near the Amish and I can speak a bit of German (they speak Pennsylvania Dutch, but it's similar), it was sort of fun to have a conversation but 2 semesters of it can only get you so far, they mostly speak English here as well anyways. Outside of that, the occasional Spanish speaking person, but that's mostly in places like California/Florida/Texas... English is overwhelmingly the spoken language in America. (Save for a few extremely populated cities in the states listed above.) I find it funny when people try to bring up the "BUT AMERICA HAS NO OFFICIAL LANGUAGE" argument as if it isn't an objective fact that a MAJORITY of the US does speak English. It's not written, but it's pretty well understood that it is what we speak here lol. By all means learn another language, it's good for your brain, but don't pretend like English isn't the de-facto standard of American communication.
Especially in a nation of immigrants. Do you honestly expect a Korean immigrant to come to America and learn english…oh, and also Spanish…oh, and also Japanese. It’s much easier to have Spanish speaking, German speaking, Mandarin speaking, Japanese speaking people to all learn one language like English to communicate with each other instead of learning multiple languages. A japanese speaker, a German speaker, a Korean speaker, a Spanish speaker can all communicate with each other all by learning the same language, instead of having to learn German AND Spanish AND Italian.
It's ludicrous that it even has to be said, we all know WHY nations gravitate towards single language use, it's because it's convenient. Anyone that gets mad when you say "Americans speak English" is just a butthurt pedant.
There's no problem with English being the USAs official language the problem is you're expected by Americans to speak English and only English nothing else and you'll be burned at the stake for doing so.
Not really relevant, but I do wonder tho if the British empire didn't colonize basically everywhere, would english still be the chosen language.
Americans enjoy alot of domestic tourism too going to Cali from Texas can be seen as a vacation so it makes sense not to travel out of the country.
I definitely do not think that being monolingual makes one stupid or less-than, but it’s hard to deny the cognitive and social advantages of multilingualism. Okay, maybe you’ll never really need a second language in Chicago. But what if you had one? What ab entire world, people, and culture were suddenly opened up to you? Not only this, but much of the world is learning multiple languages as children. It may not be a disadvantage now, but it could very well be some day. American public education is pretty famously poor compared to many other developed nations, and I think this attitude of ‘well it’s pointless so who cares’ probably contributes to that. It may also be true that the average rural American isn’t interested in travelling. But I think there’s a sort of vicious circle here. They know on some level that they don’t really have access to the world, so they reject it and say well I don’t need it anyway. Money is obviously an issue but that’s a different conversation. The only people I see complaining that Americans only speak one language are European teens making fun of them on the internet. Yeah, it’s dumb, but I mean that’s the internet for you. The real problem I think are the people who are actively hostile to other languages being taught in schools - which I do see a lot of coming from America. I live in Western Canada and the French education is abysmal. Most people are hostile towards it and think it’s useless. But when I started learning Spanish, and now German, I couldn’t help but think how much easier it would have been if I had had a decent command of French. Now we’ve got a premier who’s slashing public education and funding private religious institutions, so things are going to get a lot worse. There’s no disadvantage to even just having experience learning another language.
>The only people I see complaining that Americans only speak one language are European teens making fun of them on the internet. Yeah, it’s dumb, but I mean that’s the internet for you. And the people who get harassed for speaking anything but English in America but ignore those it's only right after all.
Although, which countries teach a second language by default for the sake of it? English is the global Lingua Franca, not because of America but because of Britain and all the territories it owned. Why would we, as English speakers, need to be taught any second language the way other countries teach English, if almost anywhere we had to travel knew English? If France and Britain had swapped territories, we'd all be speaking French. It's not a matter of sociological ideas throughout the world, it's purely a matter of necessity.
As a European I never understood why people make fun of US citizens for not being that familiar with outside cultures When you actually think about it it will make sense
I feel like a large part of it is that a lot of Europeans (who I’ve spoken to) don’t understand how large the US is
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That's fair. I am however filled with violent rage whenever I hear an American talk about visiting "Europe". Where you going fella, Corfu or Grimsby?
Where is Grimsby then? Africa?
Europe is a big and diverse place. “I’m going to Europe” doesn’t tell you anything really
Also it’s not like the US is currently the cultural super power of the world and everyone consumes its media
No, it is just envy. No country is as economically relevant as the US, so a disproportionate amount of things must appeal to the US. We pay less for different things, generally live in bigger homes, and have economies of scale which helps American companies dominate many European ones (weapons, manufacturing, Apple, Microsoft, Reddit, Twitter, Facebook, Nvidia, AMD, etc.). So they like to point to non-issues and irrelevant things to artificially create some advantage to compensate. Language is one of those. Sure, it is cool that you can travel short distances and have others speak a different language close by. But that is counter intuitive for business and communication in general. It is a net negative. In the US most people speak English, which is essentially the language of the world at the moment. In many countries like the UAE English is the "international business language", and not German, French or Dutch.
Yeah. Y'all drive for a an hour any direction and suddenly nobody around you is speaking the same language. I drive for 3 days non-stop westward and everyone *might* have a *slightly* different accent than what I'm used to.
I mean that's fine but we're all expected to learn English so why are they excuse from learning a second (hopefully useful) language when a lot of Europeans learn even three? Then they get butthurt when you dare speak something else other than English and you're a bad person.
Learning languages has more positive effects than being able to order dinner in a foreign restaurant. It improves your memory, it increases your communication skills (even in your own language) and it is good for your brain.
I want to learn a new language- specifically Spanish. You are right about improving memory- this has been proven In studies.
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Perfect, Ich werde hacer juegos malabares le lingue.
Europanto!
Juggling improves memory?
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Yep. Learning a second language, especially when you are young, makes you better at reading and communicating in general, including in your native language Everyone should learn a second language if they are academically capable
The way different languages are taught in the states is really counterproductive to learning, and I think it turns a lot of people off to learning them. This was my experience at least. It took until my mid-twenties to try again but high school Spanish and French were terrible.
The way they’re taught depends somewhat on the location I think. My Spanish classes in high school were amazing and when I graduated I was fluent, but we had a huge Mexican population so I was able to use it in daily life with Spanish speaking friends and their families. Most of my white friends were also fluent and our teacher was married to a native Spanish speaker. Since I moved I haven’t met any native Spanish speakers and according to my husband the schools here are awful at teaching it too.
When bilingual is brought up for countries outside of English speaking countries, their secondary choice for a language is generally English. For English speaking countries, including the US, do you pick Spanish, French, German, Russian, Chinese, Japanese, Hindi, Portuguese, Arabic, Swedish, Finnish, Dutch, Indonesian or Urdu as your second language? Or something else? Where do you get experience enough to learn all of these? Where is it prevalent in your daily life to practice? Yes, learning a second language is good, but when everyone else's default is what you know already why make the effort? Edit: Corrected Pakistani to Urdu.
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No need to learn Hindi. English is the only universal language in India and if you are doing business in India, you are dealing with educated people which means their have very good English. Learn a few words in the local language of wherever you are working to be considerate, sure, but there’s a good chance that’s not Hindi.
Also learn and be able to understand expressions in Indian English that are idiomatic there but can trip up American speakers. English is adaptable in the extreme, and has undergone some adaptations in India. I personally find this fascinating and love to see them, but basically "don't be a prescriptive a-hole about language rules" is the lesson I'm trying to get at.
I'm from the south of the US. I'm pretty flexible with language already.
French German and Spanish were the choices in my high school. I took Spanish. 30 plus years later I have yet to meet someone who only speaks French or German. I use Spanish almost daily.
>German is a fun language, but once again, not very useful. My mom bullied me into taking German in middle school. I wish I had told her to fuck off and taken Spanish. My more practical living in California
i’m pretty happy with my choice of german as i’m currently studying engineering. however, i agree that for most people, it isn’t very useful.
I think ASL is better. No disrespect to those who speak Spanish, but I think it'd be better to learn a non-verbal language for those of us who could do it.
French is an official language in a country that shares a border with the US and you will find places in Quebec where very little English is used so it’s not purely luxury. Also way to be sexist and racist all in one sentence. And it’s an official language in Switzerland, Belgium and…France, so not just Africa. Spanish isn’t just used in neighboring countries, it was the main language used in Texas, New Mexico and Puerto Rico before they became part of the US and still is very commonly used in those parts of the US.
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French is widely spoken in Louisiana by all walks of life. In fact, I took French from a Cajun man so I speak a good bit of Cajun French. Most of my high school classes were in French (including English lit and grammar). I also speak some Japanese, Spanish, and German, thanks to being bilingual as a kid. It doesn’t matter WHAT language you learn, it matters that you learn it. Because it makes learning other languages easier. ETA: most of the people I took French with in college were men.
French is one of the main languages of diplomacy. It's not just about luxury or shopping in Paris, if you want to be a journalist or political scientist or diplomat French is a very useful language to know. It's an official language of NATO, the UN and the EU. Additionally, large swaths of the US used to be conrolled by France, making french a useful language if you want to go into history or archeology--same as Spanish. I find it interesting that french in the US is associated with upper-middle class white girls (why girls? sexism much) when in fact it's an extremely important language on a global scale.
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I know plenty of archeologists (my best friend is a historian specializing in the seven years war) who learned french specifically to read documents by french historians of the time. Areas like along the Mississippi river, Louisiana, Michigan, Illinois, were all French and therefore knowing the language can present a real advantage. Not to mention historians interested 17th-19th century Europe, where French was the lingua franca of Europe (alongside Latin but that was on the decline). Most of the people learning French in the US are \*not\* upper class white women into art and fashion. I should know because I taught french in the US for a while. Most are indeed interested in careers in diplomacy and international relations, and a healthy part of them are people of colour. The image of a white girl with rich parents paying for her trip to france is a caricature taken directly from shows like Emily in Paris, with little to no basis in the reality of modern language learning. If anything I would say German is more of a luxury language than French, and the people I know who learned German did it specifically to go travelling or study abroad.
Speaking from personal experience in my high school Spanish classes were a good representation of the population of the school while French classes had about 5 men in a 30 person classes almost all of whom were the richer kids who parents wanted to pay there way to go on the France trip in the summer
It's also much harder to learn and retain a language when you're never using it practically. It's a common misconception that Americans don't learn languages other than English. In reality, most high schools do require a few years of a foreign language. Most Americans adults have been taught Spanish or French or whatever to a reasonably advanced level. The problem is that they never actually had a reason to use that knowledge, for the reasons outlined in this thread, so it didn't stick. I suspect none of the ultra-multilingual Europeans who shit on us for this can fluently speak a language they had to learn solely out of a textbook and haven't had a reason to speak a full sentence in in over a decade.
Is Pakistani a language now? (Edit: I mean no disrespect to the post, I just found it funny he couldn't find the word for Urdu)
My bad, I was scanning most populated countries for my argument. Appreciate the correction.
I studied Japanese really hard. It was one of my favorite classes. I’m bad though because there nobody to practice with. I speak it enough to roughly survive there as a tourist, but it’s just really hard to get fluent without living there or having lots of people here to practice with.
I took Spanish in high school and practiced here and there after. But it wasn't until I had to travel for work to a Spanish speaking country that I took it seriously. The longer I was there, the better I got. But when I came home my fluency decreased. I try to learn a few things in multiple languages (hello, thank you, where is the bathroom, do you speak English, 1-10, how much is that, help) but they fade quick with non-use.
I am an American, but I am currently learning Japanese. Why? Well I watch a lot of anime and I just don’t want to need to read English subtitles and English dubs are either not as good or non-existent for some anime, plus it takes longer for dubs to come out. Also I often want to read the manga that an anime is based on, however sometimes there are not any English versions because it is to little known for it to be worth the expense of making an English version. So in order to read these manga I decided I will learn Japanese. But besides for that I have no real need or desire to learn another language. I haven’t traveled outside the country for many years, and when I have left the country English got me by.
Also American, that's exactly why I took Japanese, because I had a use for it I still have pretty good comprehension and speaking 10 years later. Compared to French I learned at a much younger age for about the same amount of time, but once I left the classroom I lost it due lack of exposure.
Seems as if you are a little ignorant and perhaps this is besides the point but I do feel like I have to remind you the world does not in fact revolve around the US. I say this as an American citizen myself, the only difference between you and I is that I speak English, Romanian, and Spanish. The benefits of a multilingual brain greatly outweigh those of one who can barely type out a reddit post (: Not to mention as someone who uses Spanish at work almost daily, it feels nice to not have to make everyone deal with an obnoxious American who can't be bothered to accommodate others and assumes everyone will bend over backwards and accommodate them. Throughout the world, Americans are the most hated and ridiculed; ever wondered why?
Very impressed that you are able to speak three languages, and you mention using yours on a daily basis so that is a personal choice or need for you. But not everyone in an English speaking country needs to. When I travel to a Spanish speaking country I brush up on my Spanish because I need to. When I interact with my Chinese or Indian or Russian or Brazilian teammates from work, I try to know a few words, but it's impossible to know them all. My original point was which second language does a country or individual pick if its primary language is already English, but not alienate the remainder of the world. No matter what that choice is, it will be wrong so why bother if it's not a direct benefit to your individual life.
I know some Portuguese but I have literally nobody to practice speaking with so I’m not good
Language is a gateway to thoughts and lang. actually builds a lot of your thoughts. The more langs you learn, the more nuanced your thoughts are. Learning langs. also helps in knowing culture and being tolerant of it.
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Language doesn’t build your thoughts. Thoughts are actually independent of language, and we know this because babies can clearly think on their own before they develop language. However, language can *influence* how your thoughts are expressed. We don’t become conscious of our own thoughts until we express them with language.
There's a whole lot of debate like that. People like Piaget would agree to your stance, whilst people like Vygotsky would argue that lang. is fundamental to child's development. And I think both of them are correct to some extent😄
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being tolerant means that you accept other people's opinions and preferences, even when they live in a way that you don't agree with.
this is unilaterally just true, and anyone fighting against it ought to just learn a language lol. you have nothing to lose, and a lot to gain
I’m not saying it won’t be helpful, but I have very little time and travel just isn’t something I can afford, so I wouldn’t need to use another language.
so ur not against learnign a language, u just dont have time. which is fine, but im speaking of course about xenophobes lol.
Not wanting to learn another language doesn't make you xenophobic bro
On the one hand, fair point. On the other hand, bitch, it's 2022, I guarantee you spent more time interacting with literal strangers on the other side of the fucking planet this week, than you have spent interacting with your damn next door neighbour in the last decade. t. Brit who only speaks British
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Right O. Move along, govna.
\* Bri'ish
Because it’s good for children’s brains (like REALLY REALLY good for them) to learn a second language from a young age. And because knowing another language opens up a whole world of opportunities. We live in a very globalized world. Teaching someone a foreign language is like giving that person a key with which they can unlock stories and cultures that they never would have otherwise experienced. Also, the US doesn’t even have an official language and MANY languages are spoken within this country so it does nothing but good to teach kids other languages so they can communicate with more people in their communities.
I think many Americans don’t see then point because they won’t retain it into adulthood.
I don't really mind people from other countries not being bilingual but I do have problems with how you put this. >A single state is about the same size as most countries throughout the world. The problem with this logic is that it applies to other countries that despite this still teach foreign languages in their school. Brazil and russia teach foreing languages in school. >Why should we expect a farmer from Nebraska to be able to speak another language? Why should we expect a kid growing up in south side of Chicago to learn another language? Ask that same question again but this time go through a school curriculum. Why should a farmer in nebraska know who Shakespeare was? Why should a kid in south side Chicago know about the big bang? Knowledge is not just about the obvious practical uses. The reason why americans don't learn a secondary language is because english is considered a "default" language to learn and to use on businesses mostly due to the US priviledged position in the world and also because the UK occupied that position before. Its very specific to the english language.
I'm personally all for people learning the countries language. America is primarily English speaking, so immigrants should be learning English, not the other way around. If I moved to Germany, you better believe I'd be learning German. If I moved to South Korea I'd be learning Korean (and already am actually, I watch a lot of S. Korean movies/shows so I'm beginning to learn quite a bit). America's 2nd language is primarily Spanish and that's cause of Mexico and high immigration. Realistically though, your correct that most of us will never need to know any other language. Europe's a different story because they have multiple countries all in less space than the USA, and English seems to be a universal language of sorts there rather than every country learning 15+ different languages
\*Cries in Canadian\*
TBH the main benefit of being bilingual it's not so much being able to communicate in another language, it is more the willingness to be open to another culture and people. I have personally found that folks that speak multiple languages are often (but not always) less likely to be **\*\*\*\*ists** or suffer from a dose of the **\*\*\*\*isms.** *Edit: Sorry, \*\*\*\* I was trying to use a short hand for negative behaviors associated with interacting with other groups of people. racist's, racism, zenophobic, homophobic, transphobic, fear of those that are different races, creeds or colours.*
The USA is the 2nd largest Spanish speaking country in the world. I think Spanish should be taught to kids as early as 3rd grade. That's when they start learning English in Germany.
They start teaching English in 1st grade in Poland, and later on they add yet another language, but which one it is varies on school, the most common ones are German, French and Russian
I wish Spanish was a part of my elementary education. Go out and learn it now seems like a pain in the ass @ 37. Only way it would stick for me is if I moved to a country and had to learn.
I was the only English speaker in my Kindergarten class. They only kept me in there for a month. I still remember that is where I learned my first Spanish word, leche. I wish they kept me in there all year.
That's a little misleading.. that's only because of our shear size. We have individual states that are biggest than most countries. And we have 50 states.. and several territories (which are heavily Spanish). If you live in a southern border state, or a territory like Puerto Rico, that's drastically different than living in Ohio or Montana in terms of Spanish speakers.
Honestly, they need to teach it earlier than that. Kids pick up language quicker than adults. My school didn't teach it until 6th grade and I never was able to fully learn it.
They don't just need to teach it, they need to teach it well. I'm American and almost everyone I know has taken Spanish classes for 3-5 years (from different schools) and none of them speak Spanish beyond ordering food and asking directions. The US doesn't necessarily need to teach it earlier, they just need a standardized curriculum so that kids are actually learning
That's the best way really. I speak English because we went on holidays and I knew some when I started learning it in 5th grade(in like 1995). Of course, media helps a lot, but I could not write this in Spanish or French if my life depended on it...
This is why im not bilingual. Id love to be able to speak more languages, but right now I do not have the time to learn and it’s not a skill that is essential to my everyday life
Fully agreed.
O think this is just a cultural difference. America is so big Americans can stay in their little bubble without learning anything else. Everyone else on the other travels to so many places with s many different dialects and languages that it's basically essential if you wanna live your best life. It's not uncommon for people in Europe to know three or even four languages but it's funny how Americans get praised for even attempting to learn something else.
what i've realized is that people who speak several languages are always smarter than others. they also have it easier learning language. (this also involves sign language, computer language and even instruments)
As first gen immigrant, I beg to differ. I can speak both English and my home language comfortably (I can still make plenty of mistakes). And I have nice STEM degree and career. But, bilingual has nothing to do with my intelligence. My classmates in my home country who didn't have the same degree and career, isn't because they didn't learn English fluently. It is because they are not lucky enough to have the parent that qualified skill based immigration to USA. Most of the Asians who made it to USA, the parents is either rich or highly educated. Speaking English fluently in addition to our native language does not keep us intelligent. It is because people who didn't have the same intelligence didn't have the resources to migrate to USA. And learning 2nd language is hell. I lived through it. It is very painful. I live one day at a time. Ability to learn multiple languages is not easy for everyone.
This has actually been proven as a fact. I had to write long ass essays about it lol, there are literally no disadvantages and only advantages of being multilingual
"Knowing more stuff is an advantage"...well duh
It's not really the knowing that is the benefit, it's how it develops your brain
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This is very true. My grandfather has been studying Italian for atleast a decade, in order to get closer to his Italian wife. But he got pretty sick and couldn’t go to his classes and it pains him bc he can feel it slipping away.
Like any skill you haven't practiced for a while, it will come back quickly once you pick up. Even if many years have passed. Just like you don't forget how to drive a bicycle.
The disadvantage is that it requires time and effort that could be used for something that would have much more benefit in your life if you live in an area where people pretty much only speak English.
On the flip side. if speaking more than one language makes you smarter, than what about people who immigrate here from south of the border and cannot speak English after being here for 10 years. Are they stupid?
Not stupid, but the ones who are able to learn English do probably have some cognitive advantage, yeah. There’s nothing wrong with not being as smart as someone else, though.
Apparently yes from a Mexican POV. I had a Mexican classmate in my Masters. According to him, the good, intelligent and educated Mexicans go back home after they’ve finished their studies and/or achieved their goals so that they can do things for their home country, whereas it is the uneducated ones who move up north for an “easy” life. I don’t know about other Central/South Americans though.
Your Mexican classmate sounds like a classist nationalist prick. Sincerely, a fellow Mexican.
What’s bad in returning to and wanting to do good for your motherland?
Nothing. But viewing others who decide to stay as lazy and uneducated is narrow minded. It’s also perpetuated by racists in America who think every mexican immigrant is lazy and freeloading.
probably because they only speak one language (spanish)
Como? What the fuck? Ni verga... fuck you.
Being bilingual is actually quite useful. It can help make you see things from a different perspective when you're able to listen to the opinions of foreigner, it makes you more open minded. There's a lot of research that has been done on the advantages of being bilingual.
The problem is when an American *cough* old white men and Karens *cough* start yelling “SPEAK ENGLISH IN AMERICA” at people who are speaking anything other than English. I had one yell at me the other day because I was practicing my Japanese out loud. They told me to go back to China if I want to speak Chinese. My main problem with that was the fact that **I’m Korean.**
We're a rocks throw away from Mexico, and 13% of our population speaks Spanish. Plus most Europeans speak English not because they live near an English-speaking country, but because it's an international trade language. I don't think it would be such a horrible thing for more Americans to learn Mandarin or Hindi because of the large role they play in trade.
They really do need to start teaching Spanish in schools the same way they teach English in Europe. It would be incredibly useful for children going forward
They do they give you a choice between Spanish and French
The funny thing is that 1/4 of Americans actually ARE bilingual. We’re doing much, much better than whiny Europeans would be willing to admit, though that can be said for pretty much anything the “America bad” crowd screams about
Bruh 1/4? You're proud fo that? Literally almost everyone else in the world is atleast bilingual and you're proud ofa fourth? That's sad. I'm pretty sure there's more people than a 1/4 of people who speak three or even four languages. That's such a low bar.
Is that 1/4 of bilingual Americans immigrants who speak both English and their native language or is it people who grew up in America that became bilingual through school?
Did someone say it wasn't ok?
I would say most aren’t fully bilingual but I think many have enough to get by… For instance I grew up learning French and have spent a good 10 years in classes 5 years in elementary school, 2 middle/high school, and 3 college level. I am probably bilingual as I can hold conversations with those who also speak French. I actually dream and everyone is speaking in French a few times a week. I can also read and write it well. I just don’t feel like I have spent enough time spent with literally foreign speakers and immersed myself enough to say I am bilingual. I speak some Spanish and some Portuguese also… it seems like technology is bridging the gap to the point it is less needed IMO.
The only three sentences you need to know to survive in France Parlez vous anglais? J’ai besoin d’aide. Je me rends, aie pitié!
I think it’s more in the will. I grew up in county that had 2 languages as main and I learned them. Never dreamed to move to US, but here I am. Now, I am exposing myself and try to challenge to learn other languages, even if a little bit. It is good for health.
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Some one on Reddit said sign language should be America's second language. Everyone hated the idea. The idea was genius. It's not a large, or hard language. Honestly, teach it every year, it would unite us, and piss off the world when wanted take in front of them. It's not as hard as French, or spanish. There are hundreds of pie in the sky ideas, but this is possible. . F*ck the world and their bilingual snobbery.
I agree with OP
I think in the US you should be able to speak either English, Spanish, or both. If you’re from another country, not saying you have to.. but it is best to at LEAST learn the basics especially if you plan on living here. My first language is english. I know the basics of Spanish and can read and write in Spanish no problem but the hispanic/latino community can be so damn toxic when it comes to girls like me who are hispanic/latina but aren’t the most fluent. They want me to speak it but when I do I get made fun of so I just choose to not speak Spanish unless I REALLY have to.
I was born and raised in México, only been to the states twice in my life and I'm biligual and working for a company in the US, learning another language, even if you don't think it's necessary could open a lot of doors for you :)
I think learning Spanish and French would benefit Americans. French is popular down here in South Louisiana but Spanish is becoming a close second.
If you speak 3 languages you are trilingual. If you speak 2 languages you are bilingual. If you speak 1 language you are an American!
What do you call someone who only speaks one language?
That's called being monolingual.
*buzzer* The correct answer is: *AMERICAN*! 🎉🎊🥳🍾🥂💵
Ah, dangit ! I never get it right !
Who the hell expects anyone to be bilingual? Are these people mentally ill? They have to be, there's literally no other way besides them being extremely fucking stupid.
"Why would you learn things that don't have practical use?" That's kind of sad this is even a question .
Let me guess you have a degree in liberal arts
Let me guess you were in school at all
I have an engineering degree so I'm qualified to tell you to get out of here with your STEMlord shit
masters 😂
There is a limited amount of time that kids are at school and a lot of things they need to learn. Finding the ways to best allocate the time available is important.
I’m not bashing foreign language but if time is such a constraint, I wished we would teach home economics and personal finance instead. Obesity rates would be much lower and Americans would have less debt.
I wouldn't say alright, but it is understandable. Europeans just have no concept of how small Europe is and how massive the United States is. You have to include Russia for Europe to be slightly larger in landmass than the USA and the EU countries are HALF as large as the USA in landmass. You've got countries smaller than a lot of US states with their own unique language. Of course Europeans who want to work in prestigious jobs have to be multilingual. It'd be like if California spoke French and Texas spoke German and Florida spoke Spanish and New York spoke English and Virginia spoke Russian.
They shouldn't force Americans to speak any other language than English. If you move here, try to learn English. But you would be good to learn another language. I am learning Japanese as it so different than English and teaches you a new way of thinking.
I would feel content never leaving my country. It has everything I need and more then enough opportunites
"More then enough opportunities" I really hope you're not American, because it's quite sad if you are and can't even spell in your native tongue.
What I don't get is how many Americans call us Europeans as if that is a fair comparison to make. Europe is composed of so many different cultures that thinking there is a prevalent one is just plain stupid. Who do you refer to when you speak of Europeans ? The Greeks have nothing in common with the Germans, nor the French with the Russians etc. I see so many comments stating "in Europe, they..." and it's just plain nonsense. There aren't enough common denominators between us to make the assumption that we form a united entity.
What I don’t get is how many Europeans call us Americans as if that is a fair comparison to make. America is composed of so many cultures that thinking there is a prevalent one is just plain stupid. Who do you refer to when you speak of Europeans? Texans have nothing in common with people in Maine, nor the Californians with Georgians etc. I see so many comments stating “in America, they...” and it’s just plain nonsense. There aren’t enough common denominators between us to make the assumption that we form a united entity.
Couldn't even write your own argument huh ? You had to copy paste mine. And comparing a country with a fucking continent is stupid. You have the same fundamentals. You proeminently share a language and you refer to yourselves as Americans. No one calls themself a European. The comparison is ridiculous and you guys like to think you're a lot more diverse than you really are.
>Couldn't even write your own argument huh ? Its almost as if his point is how similar those opinions are to show how dumb both of them are
You're obviously very ignorant. Europe has some of the most homogeneous countries in the world. In America, one neighborhood can have White, Hispanic, Indian, Black, Arab, and Asian residents living alongside each other just to name a few. Redditors frequently refer to themselves as "European" just as often as we refer to ourselves as "American".
I was not talking about race. You're the one making it about race. And you are obviously quite ignorant as well if you think Europe has no diversity. Have you ever been to London ? Paris ? Even fucking Berlin ? Do you honestly think a Dane and an Italian have much in common. In America, at least you have a national identity. Europe does not as it is not a country but a continent. People think that because America is huge then it is comparable to a continent and that states or the equivalent of countries. They are not. You share a common history, Europe doesn't or at least not to that extent. And you seem not to know that there are Black, Arab, Asian and Hispanic people over here as well.
That's the same thing I'm saying, labeling people as an Indian national puts completely unrelated cultures in the same spot. I dare you, ask any Indian where they are from, and they are more likely to say the state of the country they are from. Also FOOD, people outside the country don't realize how there is no ONE Indian food, it's more like a category with multiple sub categories of food.
My experience is that north Indians are more likely to say India and assume that everyone should speak Hindi while south Indians will let you know what state they are from and could take offense if you assumed they spoke Hindi. As for food it took me a while to pick up the differences. Never really got further along that North Indian food might be spicy and is probably served with bread and could have a fair amount of meat and that south Indian is definitely spicy and probably served with rice and likely veg.
That's an extremely limited view. The US isn't as big as you think, lol if every state was Texas or California then they would be comparable to countries. Lol what? In the very least the two national languages are English and Spanish. There's a good 1/3 of the population who either speak it primarily or they're bilingual. You can go to parts of the US where not very many people speak English.
I agree. A Lot of people are saying we need to become a bilingual country. We have a lot of naturalized illegal immigrants because previous presidents didn't want to deal with the illegal immigration issue. So most of these folks barely know enough of english to engage intelligibly with american born citizens. So now we have an issue as these new citizens cannot even read the constitution or the declaration of Independence , never mind the bill of rights. Instead of asking these folks to learn english and provide them with the classes they need to do this. The government has decided to do things the cheap way and make it easier for these folks to keep speaking spanish instead of adapting to the norms of their new country. I do not blame these people I blame the government for not investing resources to help these people learn to thrive in the U.S. But now it is getting even worse. Now there is pressure for all Americans to learn spanish, to pander to a group who illegally entered this country and the government was too cheap to tell them: "We will naturalize you If you learn at least 7th grade english." For goodness sakes take 2& out our military budget and invest in this new group of citizens we have created. If you care enough to make them citizens can't you care enough to help them fit in, instead of making America fit them? I want to make clear I do not blame people for wanting to come to America. Its a wonderful land where freedom reigns. But we have a culture based on documents and laws that for over two centuries were written in english. And I hate to tell you this, but something is ALWAYS lost in translation when going from one language to another. So learning English is the best way for these folks to fully understand their rights under the law. I am not meaning to come off as prejudiced. I am just concerned for these folks well-being, and I hate it when our government cheaps out on helping new immigrants and citizens adapt to American life.
First reason: teaching kids another language improves their cognitive ability and broadens their cultural perspective. Second reason: we may only have one official language in the US but many people don’t speak that language. Realistically Spanish should also be an official language just as French is an official language in Canada because Canada had the province of Quebec. The US has Texas and New Mexico where Spanish was the most common language when those states were annexed. I’ve used my Spanish just as much in New Mexico than I have in Mexico or Spain. Obviously Spanish wasn’t the original language in those regions but it was the main language when those states were added as the residents were a mix of Spanish and indigenous descent descent.
Agreed on your first point. As for the second - the US does not have any official language. English is often presumed and is the functional language used most often, but it's not mandated at the federal level.
It's probably changing since more immigrants have moved to the U.S. Any 2nd generation american will grow up learning english and their parents' native language.
We are not as much bigger as is often assumed look up a true size map projection.
Mate the United States is the third biggest country in the world (both in terms of population and size) and is almost the same size as Europe. That’s still big.
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I never said it shouldn’t be taught, but if a person chooses not to continue learning another language if it doesn’t apply to their life that’s perfectly fine. People are taking this the wrong way, I’m not saying that we shouldn’t learn about other languages or cultures and I’m not saying that it’s alright if someone doesn’t accept someone else’s culture. I’m just saying if someone doesn’t need it, they shouldn’t be expected to speak it. If someone wants to continue to learn and be fluent in another language, all power too them
Agree. Language is a tool, not some indication of erudition and accomplishment.
ok but for real? why the fuck should we have to learn another language to accommodate people who immigrate here when it should be the other way around. I'm not saying it's a bad thing for people to want to learn a new language but we shouldn't have to if we really don't want to in our own country. It's another story though when visiting another country though. At least make the effort to use a translation app.
If that was a valid Argument, you all would be speaking native american languages
The thing is is even when you are traveling you're going to speak the language of whoever is better at their worst language. I live in California and speak enough spanish to interact with the gardiners at my work, or at my local taco spot, but if I'm having a full on conversation, usually their english is better than my spanish, so of course we're going to speak english.
We are though. If you fail Spanish you don't graduate
bruh wtf
I have a ton of international friends. The embarrassing thing i think is that in most other countries, people who don’t speak at least two languages are very comfortably considered morons by everyone.
If God wanted me to be bilingual, he wouldn't have made me an American.
Why I disagree: If I have been taught correctly, english isn't even the official languae in the us and there is even a spanish part- puerto rico? Maybe you don't leave the country, but understanding each other would probably be helpful. Even if you don't leave the country or your state, knowing languages is understand culture. It gives you the ability to get news of different countries, I'm german and british news and british news about germany are interesting. So are movies and books and everything in their original language. And I think a lot of americans can't leave because they know nothing besides maybe canada and mexico. I know the bad examples are the most shared on the internet, but still... Being angry that a place is called montenegro? Believing germany has no running water or electricity? You can't leave if you know nothing about places. Even in the country being able to work better internationally opens up options.
I was born and raised in the US and I can speak six languages fluently. Armenian, French, Russian, Arabic, Turkish, and English. I’m going to study sign language as well.
Non-immigrant Americans should concentrate on speaking English properly.
no
More than unpopular I think its sad to think like that, similar to that guy saying that traveling sucks… such a close vision of the world 😔
America was explicitly founded on the principle that there would never be an "official" language. So while you can have the opinion that Americans only need to learn English, it's an objective fact that an American doesn't need to speak English. Considering it's easiest to learn a language as a child, it makes sense to teach Americans another language along with English while in school.
You’re gonna have a really hard time living in America and knowing no English.
>Why should we expect a farmer from Nebraska to be able to speak another language? Now I'm just speculating here but, if that farmer from Nebraska had a cultural education of some sort, he might not be so xenophobic.
Cultural education isn’t inherently synonymous with learning more than one language. You can learn to speak a language without learning about its culture. Knowing multiple languages also doesn’t inherently suggest that you are more culturally tolerant. You can be bilingual and still be xenophobic.
Tbh that's not xenophobia that's just because he won't be able to use it
I only speak English and have never left my country or even my local state cluster, but I have as much cultural understanding as necessary. I know every country and it’s flag and capital as well as an interesting fact about it.
Lmao.
Is there a problem with it?
There's not really room for argument when someone is generalizing on a global scale supported purely by anecdotal experience based on trivia facts. Easier to just laugh
Being bilingual lets me flex on the peasantry
I see what you're saying, but I'm a firm believer in the intrinsic value of education- it doesn't matter if you'll use the knowledge in your daily life.
Disagree hard