Learning Two Languages
hkboy
December 14, 2009, 06:56 AM posted in General DiscussionMy focus has been on Cantonese for the last 2 years. Now, I really want to learn more Mandarin. Obviously Chinese is a handful and to learn it you really need to devote all your time to it. However, I want to do both. I still need to work hard at Cantonese but I’m going to start putting some effort into Mandarin.
Anyone doing the same with other languages?
xiaohu
December 14, 2009, 08:50 AMHKBoy,
Learning two languages simultaneously will always put you at an extreme disadvantage.
Trust me, take them separately, you'll be glad you did!
WillBuckingham
December 14, 2009, 09:03 AMIt does depend, I think, on how different the langauges are. I'm currently trying to learn German and Mandarin. There's not much cross-over (!), and so I don't often find myself saying strange things like "Ich will ins 电影院 gehen..."
But there's also the issue of time. I'm a relatively slack student of German, and manage a few hours a week, whilst I work on Chinese for a couple of hours a day if possible. And I think, even if studying in parallel, prioritising one language makes sense. Or it does for me, at least.
hkboy
December 15, 2009, 12:43 AMThanks for the comments. I guess the old adage, "Jack of all trades and master of none" is true.
changye
December 15, 2009, 01:15 AMHi hkboy
It all depends on your needs, interests and ability. I agree with thinkbuddha. I don't think "mixing up" is a big problem for you as you've already learned Cantonese for two years, but the allocation of time would be an important issue for you. Incidentally, I think you've already started learning Mandarin since you're here. Am I right?
changye
December 15, 2009, 01:19 AMHi hkboy
I have a question. How popular is Mandarin in HK now? Do most young HK guys speak good Mandarin?
pretzellogic
December 15, 2009, 02:24 AMFWIW, I would love to have Mandarin and Spanish under my belt, but I only have time for learning 1 language (and not much time for that). So Mandarin is getting my focus now, and after i've mastered Mandarin to the ground, i'll start on Spanish. It's really cool that you have the time and the focus to do both.
hkboy
December 15, 2009, 11:51 AMChangye,
I don't have many young friends - haha. In my little area here in HK I don't think it is too popular. The kids seem to understand a lot though. What you didn't ask me was how do people feel about me learning Cantonese. If you have 6 minutes have a look at this video. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=18YX8zAbmeU Even my Hong Kong wife thinks I am wasting time trying to learn Cantonese.
pretzellogic,
Thanks for the comment. I used to speak fairly good Spanish. I lived in El Salvador for almost 3 years. Keep up the work with it. Mine is down deep in my brain somewhere. I think I do have the focus but not the time. I have a wife, 2 dogs and 3 cats and a full time job.
changye
December 15, 2009, 12:04 PMHi hkboy
It seems youtube is not blocked in HK. Unfortunately it's blocked here in mainland.
hkboy
December 14, 2009, 07:40 AMYes, everyone says I will mix up Mandarin & Cantonese and listening to Mandarin, I do hear some very close sounds. Yes, I don't know know if that is an advantage or disadvantage right now.
changye
December 15, 2009, 12:15 PMCompared with Finnish, learning Cantonese might be a piece of cake, hehe.
hkboy
December 15, 2009, 12:37 PMShe said something about the 2 languagues were related in some aspect. She should probably tell the story. She is sometimes on a radio show and also teaches Cantonese here in Hong Kong.
bababardwan
December 15, 2009, 01:42 PM2 dogs and 3 cats 听起来 a full house.我想知道如果四大熊猫胜那个。
hkboy
December 15, 2009, 02:06 PMHey Babardwan,
Don't say bad things about my cats and dogs...smile. I'll get my wife to translate that tom.
changye
December 15, 2009, 02:10 PMHi hkboy
I have a wife, 2 dogs and 3 cats
Are they getting along with each other? 小狗和小猫合得来吗？
bababardwan
December 15, 2009, 02:23 PM其实，我应该除我的头像半笑为了有面无表情因为我给你一个扑克开玩笑，哈哈。
hkboy
December 21, 2009, 06:44 AMChangye,
Yes, 1 dog understands only Cantonese and the other only English. I'm not sure about the cats..haha.
andrew_c
December 21, 2009, 06:56 AMHi hkboy,
I would check out the blog of John Biesnecker. He has multiple posts about this very issue. I think he's simultaneously learning Mandarin, Japanese, and Cantonese. I really enjoy reading his thoughts, as they are very insightful, imo. He's on twitter as well.
hkboy
December 15, 2009, 12:08 PMYes, never had a problem with that here. The video is about a lady from Finland or Norway. She has lived in HK for years and speaks very good Cantonese but no one wants to speak with her. At least she wants to express that in the video. It's a bit tongue and cheek but a bit real.
simonpettersson
December 14, 2009, 07:34 AMIn my experience, learning two languages in parallel adds difficulty to both of them, especially if they're related, compared to doing them separately. There are risks of mixing the languages up in your brain. The common advice amongst polyglots is to learn one language to a decent conversational level before starting to study another one, especially a related one. The second one will most likely be much easier to learn if you already know the first one.
I had some interference problems when studying French and Mandarin at the same time, my brain giving me a French word when I was looking for a Mandarin one. I stopped studying Mandarin then and focused on French. After having learned French to a satisfying degree, I resumed my Mandarin studies and have had little problems since then.
This is not said to dissuade you, of course, and there are many who have managed to study multiple languages at the same time. I do think, however, that it adds to, rather than subtracts from, the difficulty. If you already know one language to a pretty good level (Upper Intermediate, maybe), the advantages are great.