What about if you’re learning for work, study or travel reasons? Sometimes the choice might seem obvious, but be careful and do your research! Let’s say you’re going to spend a year studying in Barcelona. Should you learn Spanish – widely understood in many countries across the world – or Catalan, arguably the more local language? Or imagine your employer is sending you to their Chinese branch for a couple of years – will Mandarin suffice for everyday needs like shopping and chatting with the neighbors, or might you want to learn one of the dozens of other languages or dialects spoken in China?
When your motivation is more related to fun and intellectual exercise, choosing a language related to a culture you’re really interested in will keep you motivated when the verb conjugations get you down. If you’re obsessed with eating souvlaki and drinking ouzo, for example, then try Greek! An alternative is exposing your ears to a range of different languages – on a foreign movie channel perhaps – and finding a language that sounds good, literally. A Japanese friend of mine visited Bratislava a few years ago and fell in love with the harsh rolling sounds of the Slovak language – so much so that he moved there to study Slovak language and literature.
How to learn a foreign language
Now comes the hard bit. There are numerous ways to actually learn a language, and a combination of them – depending on what’s available to you and how much time you can put aside – will help bring linguistic success. Let’s look at some key methods for studying a foreign language.
From the bookshop
Self-study textbooks and CDs are good for busy people and to give anyone an introduction to a language. If you’re highly motivated, and especially if you have experience with learning other languages, you can get a long way on your own. What you’ll miss is critical feedback on small errors or pronunciation, and the chance to interact in the language. And if you’re like me, after a couple of excited weeks there’s a strong chance the books will be left on a desk corner to gather dust.