Foreign Languages

[Steve-o]

Yeah I read somewhere that Afrikaans is 75% similar to Dutch, think it may be on wikipedia. A lot of small changes like 'ij' instead of 'y', and Dutch tends to have more 'en' at the end of words. So in that sense Afrikaans is a simplified version of Dutch.
My second cousin was a nanny in Holland for about 3 years and apparently she says it's harder to go from Afrikaans to Dutch than the other way around. I also heard the dialects in the southern part of the country is the most similar to Afrikaans (less windy, if that makes sense), a region or place called Zeeland being the closest if I remember correctly.

I personally can understand Dutch and Flemish much better than German. I only catch like every 5th word in German. Reading any of the Germanic languages is easy compared to listening like you say, all those weird accents and dialects.

 

[Bull]

Dutch is definitely easier than German, my father had German at school and he says anyone can speak German. Also had North Sotho at school but I had no interest in it whatsoever.

 

[Laetca]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Bull @ Sep 19 2008, 10:36 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

Dutch is definitely easier than German, my father had German at school and he says anyone can speak German. Also had North Sotho at school but I had no interest in it whatsoever.[/b]

I'm studying German literature and linguistics, and I speak Dutch as a first language, and though you will understand bits and pieces here and there, and Germans might understand what you are trying to say, it's not that easy. Not anyone can speak German, not if the conversation goes any deeper then 'Schönes Wetter, oder?'

I understand most of what is said when listening to people speaking Afrikaans, but I usually reply in Dutch.

 

[Charles]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Laetca @ Sep 19 2008, 02:56 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Bull @ Sep 19 2008, 10:36 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Dutch is definitely easier than German, my father had German at school and he says anyone can speak German. Also had North Sotho at school but I had no interest in it whatsoever.[/b]

I'm studying German literature and linguistics, and I speak Dutch as a first language, and though you will understand bits and pieces here and there, and Germans might understand what you are trying to say, it's not that easy. Not anyone can speak German, not if the conversation goes any deeper then 'Schönes Wetter, oder?'

I understand most of what is said when listening to people speaking Afrikaans, but I usually reply in Dutch.
[/b][/quote]

The intercomprehension is better when it's written rather than oral.

 

[gingergenius]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Laetca @ Sep 19 2008, 01:56 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Bull @ Sep 19 2008, 10:36 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Dutch is definitely easier than German, my father had German at school and he says anyone can speak German. Also had North Sotho at school but I had no interest in it whatsoever.[/b]

I'm studying German literature and linguistics, and I speak Dutch as a first language, and though you will understand bits and pieces here and there, and Germans might understand what you are trying to say, it's not that easy. Not anyone can speak German, not if the conversation goes any deeper then 'Schönes Wetter, oder?'

I understand most of what is said when listening to people speaking Afrikaans, but I usually reply in Dutch.
[/b][/quote]

yeah, I might be doing old english and old norse. Apparently Fresian Dutch is seriously close to Old English. But modern english speakers can hardly understand it at all.

 

[Fa'atau82]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div>

Apparently Fresian Dutch is seriously close to Old English[/b]

Crap joke time.

What type of cows feel the cold the most?

The ones that are absolutely Fresian.
































*badum-tsch*

 

[Laetca]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (gingergenius @ Sep 19 2008, 07:04 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Laetca @ Sep 19 2008, 01:56 PM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Bull @ Sep 19 2008, 10:36 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Dutch is definitely easier than German, my father had German at school and he says anyone can speak German. Also had North Sotho at school but I had no interest in it whatsoever.[/b]

I'm studying German literature and linguistics, and I speak Dutch as a first language, and though you will understand bits and pieces here and there, and Germans might understand what you are trying to say, it's not that easy. Not anyone can speak German, not if the conversation goes any deeper then 'Schönes Wetter, oder?'

I understand most of what is said when listening to people speaking Afrikaans, but I usually reply in Dutch.
[/b][/quote]

yeah, I might be doing old english and old norse. Apparently Fresian Dutch is seriously close to Old English. But modern english speakers can hardly understand it at all.
[/b][/quote]

I'm glad that I passed the Development of English, the ole English was coming out my ears by the end of the semester :s
Good thing I knew about Dative, Accusative and genitives thanks to German, I would have been lost without it.

 

[shtove]

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE (Fa'atau82 @ Sep 20 2008, 05:50 AM) <{POST_SNAPBACK}></div>

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE

Apparently Fresian Dutch is seriously close to Old English[/b]

Crap joke time.

What type of cows feel the cold the most?

The ones that are absolutely Fresian.
































*badum-tsch*
[/b][/quote]
It's true. So true.








*badum-tsch*

 

[dullonien]

Fluent in both English and Welsh, speaking and writing.

 

[Canadian_Rugger]

I speak french and english with english being my mother tongue... I grew up in a french acadien town where 70% of the population was french and 30% was english so speaking french was kind of a requirement.