I learned some Sign Language last year and loved that. This past October, I began teaching myself Korean. It's the first "second spoken" language that I'm really focusing on learning. It really fascinates me as well as the Korean culture.

What language(s) are you guys learning this year? Is there a language you haven't learned but want to?

Hopefully I'm going to start taking Spanish in the fall, and I plan on learning other languages later on. I love trying to understand foreign languages, it annoys me to no end when I have no clue what something says xD

I'm trying with Spanish, but it's really hard to get the balance of exposure I need to understand it as a language. I'm also still working with Elven, because I just like it so much.

What materials are you using for Elven, Kitra?

I'm learning French this year--finally! I took a beginner class last year but didn't get to push through with it, so I made up my mind to do it this year.

I've been learning Spanish for about seven years, but I haven't learned to speak it well yet. I can translate written stuff, and write stuff, and spell stuff, but I can't speak it.

I want to learn Irish Gaelic.

I know some Irish and Gaelic, I'm an 1/8 Irish. Dia Duit. (Hello)

Awesome! I figured you were part Irish, because your name on Skype is Irish.

Most of my family has Irish names (Declan, Liam, Aidan) just to name a few (be warned that's not all of us )

So, so cool.

Yup. When people see our family they never forget us. We're each different and there are 8 of us!

I love learning languages! My mom tried teaching us a little Spanish in elementary school, and I tried self-teaching myself French when I was 16 or 17. I know a few words from 7 languages but nothing that's very useful.

I think one of the reasons I wanted to learn Sign Language and Korean was because it's not a really common one to learn. What I have found fascinating about learning a second language is how much I don't know about my own! I've never questioned how I spoke until this year. It's crazy!

@Kitra: Wow! Elven? How long how you been studying it? I'm also curious of the resources you are using. It the word order very different from English?

I think that's so weird that you know the written language more than the spoken. It's not bad, it just boggles my mind. I'm trying to learn how to write, read, and speak Korean at the same time, so I can't even think about only knowing one element over another. (I admit, I can speak more than I can write. I still don't spell very well in Hangul).

That's cool how you're tapping into your own background language. I'm very mixed, but my great-great grandparents immigrated from Ireland to America, so that's where I get my Irish last name.

Hey I've been learning Elven too! What do you know?
@calenmirial: wow! It was my great great grandparents who immigrated from Ireland too! They were full Irish though. I'm in the Casey clan.

What resources do you guys use for Elven? I've always wanted to study it, but I don't know where to begin and what materials to use. Share, pretty please?

Hmmm let me find it... I'll post it here when I do.

I'm kinda the same way. I learned a bit of Spanish in elementary school, and tried teaching myself more a couple years ago. I haven't studied it enough to speak it or catch any words I recognize when they're spoken, but I can figure out part of some written sentences.

Ooh, I like this thread! I'm actually going to be majoring in languages and/or linguistics so I can be an interpreter or a translator.

I'm taking my second semester of Sign Language and loving it. I've taken a few years of Spanish, so I can read, speak and write it fairly well, but I'm nowhere close to having a native speaker's ability. I want to learn about a dozen other languages when/if I get the chance, especially Irish and related languages. Unfortunately, Irish isn't offered in too many of the colleges I'm looking at, so I guess I'll be learning it on my own!

...and Elvish would be really awesome to learn.

OH! Same here! My major is English right now (working on my associate's) but I'm planning on getting a master's in linguistics eventually.
What I'm doing with it? Not sure yet xD



Yes I realize linguistics isn't actually learning a bunch of languages as much as it is studying them in general (or so I've been told), but learning a bunch of different ones seems like it'd be helpful. And fun!

Sorry. Getting a bit too excited.

Cool! I have no experience yet with interpreting or translating, so I just hope it's something I'll enjoy doing for a living! I love learning languages, so I think it will be a good job choice for me.

*nods head* From what I understand, linguistics talks about the structure of the language, the sounds used, and all sorts of other things about languages in general. Knowing specific languages could only help, especially if you like learning them!

One of the things that I've found very boggling is how much I question my own native tongue now when I try to explain it to foreign speakers who are learning English as a second language.

I'm part of a "language exchange social networking" site that has been really helpful in connecting me with native Korean speakers. They're really helpful when when they edit my (few) Korean sentences. When I edit their English journal entries sometimes I find myself stumped if they ask me questions about English. How on earth are you supposed to explain words like "that", "the", and "be"?!?

夏に日本にいくとおもいます！ I think I am going to Japan this summer!

So I am learning how to speak, read, and write from one of my friends from Yokohama in exchange for helping him with his English...

And Elvish sounds like it would be an extremely fun and note resting language to learn in the future! I used to speak some Sindarin...

I'm learning French, officially, and love it--most of the time. Chances are if you meet me in Chat, I'll say something in French at one point in time or another.

I also am learning pieces of Elvish, and would love to get ahold of Tolkien's dictionaries and such. But I'm not sure it really counts.

Bien! I should try catching you on chat some time because I need to practice with someone.

That'd be fun!