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puffpuffgive wrote:i kan nu een beetje nederlands spreken! het is heel goed. ik verkeese nederlands boven duits.

yo prima!!! heel goed man!
Ik denk Engels is meer gemakelijk dan Nederlands.
Duits is schijt!

beejun wrote:It is defo rude to live in the Netherlands and not trying to learn the language. Just coz people speak english is not an excuse. If you a tourist you don't need to learn it.

Hey listen, if it's you that's callin me rude I'll take it as a compliment. People just 'speaking' english wasn't what I was referring to, but it's not like you to actually try thinking before opening yer mouth, is it.

I speak 4 languages. 3 fluent. I have lived in the UK all my life, bar an 8month spell when I was 10 when I went to India with my family.

I feel the British people in general have let ourselves, the nation down by thinking we can trudge through life conquering all with the English language - so what if it's the most spoken language in the western world? It doesn't make it the best by any standard... Making a conscious effort to learn another language, especially if we are now native to another land, should be instinctive to our being - not alien... We're human, we connect through communication - and some things make more sense in another language sometimes, or do not translate well into English. All languages have their charms, it's the essences of these languages which allow us to express our thoughts/ideas and become endeared enough with eachother to promote tolerance and understanding...

I was never fascinated in languages or anything like that. I just find that as I get older, I want to learn more languages. Us Brits have a terrible reputation overseas as being arrogant and rude. That is the status quo everywhere I've been in the world. And in my opinion, they aint wrong. Hardly ever do we bother to learn the social customs and practices of the places we visit when on holiday, let alone some basic understandiong of the language! instead preferring to mose through the streets with an almost bemused look on our faces - like we really dont know what's next? It's kinda insulting to the locals...

I'm British and proud - but not arrogantly so... If I was to spend a significant amount of my life in another Land where the national language was not English, I'd have to learn the native tongue...

So I'm all for learning another language - All the way!

2 questions for you Trichome.

1: What are the languages you speak?
2: If English isn't the best language what is?

Boner wrote:2 questions for you Trichome.

1: What are the languages you speak?
2: If English isn't the best language what is?

1 English, Gujurati, Hindi and Urdu...

Hindi and Urdu are similar - but not hte same, they have vital differences which do separate them as two languages... I am not fluent in Urdu, but can understand it, and when confident - speak it back almost fluently, stumbling here and there over grammatical errors lol!

2 What I meant to explain in more detail was this - there is no "Best" language - all languages are the best.... But this is my point - learning more languages allows your mind to absorb more information, accept different cultural concepts and ideas, promotes more understanding between cultural/racial/religious groups ets and all languages hold a fantastic charm which when discovered is a novelty all in its own...

Let me give you an example if I can (I'll try so bare with me Boner)

In English we have many such sayings and the like... or common expressions eg:

East london rhyming slang is always developing... For me, this is a certain charm from the English language, which associates clever wordplay with cryptic rhyming, In much the same way there is a type of Hindi spoken in the suburbs of Mumbai (prev. Bombay) in India which has its' own veriso of slang, I understand it and think its excellently entertaining (wish I could speak that dialect).
However, If you was to ask me which slang I like better - I couldnt choose, it would be an unfair comparison. they rule eachother out as they cannot exist in each others environment without compromising their own charm! The charm of a language is unique to the people who speak it...

All cities in the western world are metropolitan enough to have sub-cultures and races from around the world living in them - these people who are'nt native to the land have mostly all bothered to be accepted by society and their one pass was to learn the language of the Land they live in... It's considered rude not to learn the language of the Land you now inhabit! That is my opinion!

This is no jibe at DC or anything I just read this page over and realised that DC may think I'm calling him rude - mate - in your job, you probably don't have the time to learn another language lol...

If I lived in Holland I wouldn't learn Dutch because it's rude not to, but because it would make life easier. There's bound to be a situation where talking Dutch is required.

English has got to be one of the most confusing languages, with so many words meaning the same thing.

Lamps - The prime reason to learn any language would be so we can communicate - I already put that in my post, you know? the part about about promoting understanding and all that? lol... But yeah, It all amounts to the same - One should learn the language of the Land he/she now lives in as it is the requirement of being accepted in that countries society... Standard!

Totaly agree with what your saying TD , its all about communication i have lived in other parts of europe and made the effort with learning the mother tounge ! people defo appreciate the effort

Trichome_Dense wrote:Lamps - The prime reason to learn any language would be so we can communicate - I already put that in my post, you know? the part about about promoting understanding and all that? lol... But yeah, It all amounts to the same - One should learn the language of the Land he/she now lives in as it is the requirement of being accepted in that countries society... Standard!

I know TD I read your post, just adding my thoughts mug boy!

lampshade wrote:

Trichome_Dense wrote:Lamps - The prime reason to learn any language would be so we can communicate - I already put that in my post, you know? the part about about promoting understanding and all that? lol... But yeah, It all amounts to the same - One should learn the language of the Land he/she now lives in as it is the requirement of being accepted in that countries society... Standard!

I know TD I read your post, just adding my thoughts mug boy!

has REI stolen Lamps log in i.d

Kermit wrote:If we had taken a stance like this maybe our country would not be overun with people who cant, and wont learn English.

What? our country is being overrun by whom? By people who won't learn English? What are you on about Kermit?

DC wrote:Try living here for over 7 years and then tell me it's rude, ya gotta live here to understand what I'm talkin about. Look at the economy and Dutch TV just to start, then compare it with the surrounding countries and you'll see what I mean. It aint rude...just a fact.

Dutch TV is pretty much like all European TV - quirky and crap... But to imply that you let the media hold some over whether you decide to learn a language or not is pretty much weak argument mate! As for the economy, that is also another failed reason for making language a redundant concept... If, however you said that your job keeps you occupied in ways where you found it hard to pick up the Dutch language, as you deal with tourists all day long - that would be understandable!

Pauli Wallnuts wrote:

lampshade wrote:

Trichome_Dense wrote:Lamps - The prime reason to learn any language would be so we can communicate - I already put that in my post, you know? the part about about promoting understanding and all that? lol... But yeah, It all amounts to the same - One should learn the language of the Land he/she now lives in as it is the requirement of being accepted in that countries society... Standard!

I know TD I read your post, just adding my thoughts mug boy!

has REI stolen Lamps log in i.d

It's true that "muggins" is now a stable part of my language, which also includes "cool beans" and "wasted". It's easy to hold a conversation with these 3 sayings

lol what was I saying about language having "charm"? Feckin' Aye Lampshade Laddie... ye can use 'em...

lamps u been pushin the london lingo on those jersey honeys

bet he's been givin it proper large 2'em! lol!