Just amazing how many languages he has learned and so quickly:
Just amazing how many languages he has learned and so quickly:
I'd be in this category, although I'm surprised it's so low actually.Trilinguals — 13%
It's not everyone though. But those in your example may also be a bit mono-minded.. It's plain stupid behaviour.The funniest nationalistic trait I've observed is when an (monolingual) American tourist visits a foreign country: Even fully knowing that the person(s) they are speaking to do NOT understand English; they continue to speak English but they slow down their speech.... like that is going to make the person(s), all of a sudden, start understanding English.
It's a classic.
I've seen American tourists getting very angry with people because they don't speak English, basically yelling at them... in some ways it's hilarious, but also cringe-worthy.The funniest nationalistic trait I've observed is when an (monolingual) American tourist visits a foreign country: Even fully knowing that the person(s) they are speaking to do NOT understand English; they continue to speak English but they slow down their speech.... like that is going to make the person(s), all of a sudden, start understanding English.
It's a classic.
Thanks!I wonder if he speaks Audiophile?
In Belgium, category 3 or above represented 26.9% in 2016.Merci beaucoup, @amirm,
Oh, to be a polyglot!
It would be worth a poll to see how many languages each of the members have mastered. (IMO - Nearing #3 below.)
Types:
- Monolinguals—40% of the world population
- Bilinguals — 43% of us (majority)
- Trilinguals — 13%
- *{?Quadrilinguals?} - x% 4 languages?
- VIP polyglots — 3% more than four languages.
All polyglots:
Fact or Fiction? “Polyglot personality shift”
- Queen Elizabeth I of England
- Nikola Tesla
- Ho Chi Minh
- J.R.R. Tolkien
ADDED: *I did not find enough information on the 4th group (includes me)
Those are strange stats where in 5 years 20% of a population can lose one or more languages…In Belgium, category 3 or above represented 26.9% in 2016.
In Luxemburg, 51.2%.
(See here for other European countries)
A language is a dialect with an army and navy!Those are strange stats where in 5 years 20% of a population can lose one or more languages…
I’m at 3, 4 if you count dialect (which isn’t officially a language on the could of being slightly different in every village)
There is no such thing as a dialectic scale. In fact dialect isn’t very well defined in the first place.A language is a dialect with an army and navy!
Lots of examples of languages where differences from one nation to the other are of dialectic scale.... German/Dutch/Flemish
In France I think this is rather typical.A funny story... I was in Paris 25 years ago travelling with some friends. We were a bit lost on the archaic Paris metro network and decided to ask for some help at a ticket window. My friend tried, but the lady at the window just said "no English" over and over. So I tried, however I explained first I was Australian and not English, then mentioned kangaroos. Suddenly she smiled, said "oh, Australian" and broke into fairly fluent English, gave me a free map and even marked in pen on there where we needed to go. I learnt that day the idea that the French don't like the English was alive and well.
There is no such thing as a dialectic scale. In fact dialect isn’t very well defined in the first place.
There is something like dialectic continuum, which deals with intelligibility of languages over short distances, forming long geographical chains, yet on either end of the chains, people still can’t understand each other.
Like wise, my Dutch (Limburgs) dialectic translates fairly well to the German dialect spoken just a few km away (by very few to be fair nowadays, far less than the Limburgs dialects). Yet the Germans coming to visit where I live, cannot understand normal Dutch (for the most part)… well they do have to, because in all the shops your spoken to in German anyway . Like in Amsterdam your spoken to in English most of the time.
A funny story... I was in Paris 25 years ago travelling with some friends. We were a bit lost on the archaic Paris metro network and decided to ask for some help at a ticket window. My friend tried, but the lady at the window just said "no English" over and over. So I tried, however I explained first I was Australian and not English, then mentioned kangaroos. Suddenly she smiled, said "oh, Australian" and broke into fairly fluent English, gave me a free map and even marked in pen on there where we needed to go. I learnt that day the idea that the French don't like the English was alive and well.
Since I just grand-fathered myself into that lonely 'elite' linguist club, I would like to invite you to join me!I speak 3 and 2 poorly. I could add them to OK list at least if I used them more.