[EDM]

I posted the same thing on MafiaManiac, but felt I should post it here too.....

Here's the post in a quote....

I love learning about languages.....i'm not that good but i find them fascinating......I was wondering: What languages do you like? Do you think that the languages are part of what bring people together? and do you think it will help bring peace among countries by overriding hatred due to religion and race differences...???

Also.....Do you think it's right to make up new slang and to use bad language to insult people??? doesn't it just diminish one's character...???

All opinions are welcome.......just don't hate me for bringing this up.....

Edited May 14, 2010 by EDM

[andromeda]

I love learning about languages.....i'm not that good but i find them fascinating......

For those that still don't know this, or haven't checked my profile, my native language is Serbian and I speak/write/read English and speak Hungarian. I would like to learn many more I started learning Persian online, but then I discovered BD...

On the list of my must learn languages are Persian, Spanish, German, Russian and hopefully one more Asian... maybe Mongolian but it's still all just a big maybe

I was wondering: What languages do you like?

Check the list above.

Do you think that the languages are part of what bring people together?

Well English is bringing us here together but it's not necessary for two people to speak the same language to understand each other. Children are a great example. You can have two kids from different continents, but give them a(n) <insert whatever toy> and they'll talk and play all day even though they don't actually understand what the other person is saying.

Speaking the same language does not guarantee that the individuals will understand each other, example - The Christan Discussion on this Forum

...and do you think it will help bring peace among countries by overriding hatred due to religion and race differences...???

Learning a new language enriches you on so many levels and I think that it's also a sign of respect for all the people that natively speak that language, since you put a lot of time and effort to learn it. Most of the time, it's not just a language that you are learning but also customs, tradition, culture, religion, history... the more you learn, the more you understand different cultures.

I think that learning about other nations/languages can only help people on a personal level, cause those that are empowered to bring peace and override hatred have respect for no one

Also.....Do you think it's right to make up new slang

Off course!! Language is a dynamic, alive entity that constantly evolves, some new words make their way into dictionaries and some others, while still in dictionaries, are obsolete and not in use anymore, but are still valuable "fossils"

...and to use bad language to insult people??? doesn't it just diminish one's character...???

Totally agree, HOWEVER there's one exception, sometimes when I'm behaving like a total <the other word for female canine animal> I want my friend to tell me to stop acting like that! In that case it's not an insult, but a wake up call

And last, to explain my vote, I did once....but only once.....or maybe twice.....

My mom is Hungarian so she mixes genders in Serbian (that's always quite a laugh ) and I only tease people jokingly (it's never malevolent or condescending) when they make an honest mistake the same way I accept and laugh at jokes that are addressed to me when I make one

Edited May 26, 2010 by andromeda

[Guest]

As a typical 'ugly American' I don't know enough of any other language to carry on an intelligible conversation. I got by in Germany where so many people speak English that I often didn't feel the need to try to use my very limited German. But I was visiting distant relatives and other acquaintances who spoke virtually no English. I always felt that I *should* be making the effort to speak in the native tongue, and always feel some sense of undeserved priviledge that English seems to be becoming the international language. I managed to get by in northern Chile where almost nobody speaks a word of English - my Spanish is a tad better than my German. In Japan I was entirely dependent on sign language, not knowing anything beyond 'sayonara'.

The language I've always wanted to learn is Chinese, more for the elegant caligraphy - written language as visual art. What a concept!

On a completely different tack, if I'm going to make fun of anyone, it is the 'illiterates' in their own native tongue: People shouldn't be aloud to prophet from there misteaks.

Edited May 26, 2010 by seeksit

[EDM]

time to give my own opinion.....

i love all languages, no matter how different they may sound.......

i do believe that language is 'one' of the ways to bring people together.....it may just help to override differences.......

i think it's ok to use slang words to make it easier to communicate in this fast-paced world, but not all the time.....

I also completely hate it when people use foul, festering (), insulting language on others......it gives a very bad impression of that person.....

[Framm 18]

What languages do you like?

Ich spreche sehr klienes Deutsch, aber es ist nicht so gut.(I apologize to anyone who speaks German, if I butchered that sentence.) I would like to learn Japanese or continue trying to learn German fluently (unlikely either will happen though).

Do you think that the languages are part of what bring people together?

Yes and No. I think that having the same language is great since it makes it a whole lot easier to communicate, but people have trouble getting along even when they have the same language. Just look at all of the civil wars that have gone on throughout the centuries.

and do you think it will help bring peace among countries by overriding hatred due to religion and race differences...???

Nope, As long as there are people on Earth, there will always be bickering and fighting.

Also.....Do you think it's right to make up new slang and to use bad language to insult people??? doesn't it just diminish one's character...???

Slang if used correctly is ok, but not when people are to lazy to try and use whole sentences. As for bad language, I personally don't use it and cannot stand when others do. It does diminish what they are saying and typically makes me want to tune them out, since there is no reason for it.

[Guest]

As a typical 'ugly American' I don't know enough of any other language to carry on an intelligible conversation. I got by in Germany where so many people speak English that I often didn't feel the need to try to use my very limited German. But I was visiting distant relatives and other acquaintances who spoke virtually no English. I always felt that I *should* be making the effort to speak in the native tongue, and always feel some sense of undeserved priviledge that English seems to be becoming the international language. I managed to get by in northern Chile where almost nobody speaks a word of English - my Spanish is a tad better than my German. In Japan I was entirely dependent on sign language, not knowing anything beyond 'sayonara'.

The language I've always wanted to learn is Chinese, more for the elegant caligraphy - written language as visual art. What a concept!

On a completely different tack, if I'm going to make fun of anyone, it is the 'illiterates' in their own native tongue: People shouldn't be aloud to prophet from there misteaks.

I learned a little bit of French and Spanish in school and by all accounts I was pretty good at it, but it was never really my interest to learn a new language (not to denigrate any other language of course), but there are enough fascinating words in English to keep my occupied for a eternity. I'm also something of a perfectionist, so I would generally get very self-conscious trying to (mis)pronounce various words in other languages (or screwing up the grammar).

Slang if used correctly is ok, but not when people are to lazy to try and use whole sentences. As for bad language, I personally don't use it and cannot stand when others do. It does diminish what they are saying and typically makes me want to tune them out, since there is no reason for it.

I generally avoid slang since as I said above, there are enough words to go around in English that you don't need to start slingin' you 'g's away and inventing new "words." Also, it has been said (accurately in my opinion) that swearing says far more about the person using foul language than it does about the target of said speech.

And as for language bringing us together, you know what they say about the Americans and the Brits: Two peoples separated by a common language!

In all seriousness, language can be the best means to defuse tense situations since too many conflicts have started because the opposing sides didn't understand each other. As Framm pointed out, it isn't a panacea, but it certainly doesn't hurt.

[Izzy]

What languages do you like?

I don't "like" languages. I mean, language as a form of human communication is an awesome thing, but I think if what we're trying to do with portray a thought with complete clarity, the more languages involved, the more the original thought is mangled. I mean, there's even already quite a bit of ambiguity when people are using the same language. Shakesphere comes to mind, but from a poetic standpoint, what he did was brilliant.

However, I speak German and English fluently. I'm taking French and will continue with it until I've finished high school. I took a year of Latin online, but meh. Also a bit of HTTP, Java, and math. Math is my favorite language.

Do you think that the languages are part of what bring people together? and do you think it will help bring peace among countries by overriding hatred due to religion and race differences...???

No. Common interests, cultural or otherwise, bring people together, language is how they communicate. I'll occasionally get dragged to these boring German fests to meet new people that speak German, and they bore me to death. There's no point to sharing a language if you're doing so with people you have nothing to talk about. Conversely, every summer or so, I'll actually go to Germany (where I was born) and hang out with my cousin and his friends, go out to concerts and stuff. That's where the fun begins, but it has nothing to do with the language we're speaking. It's what's being spoken.

How can language override hatred when it is one of the primary ways for hatred to be voiced? I mean, you can negotiate.. Look, if people speak the same language, but they're mad at each other over an arbitrary thing like race (..which, doesn't exist, tbh), something needs to be fixed, sharing a common language won't bring them together.

Also.....Do you think it's right to make up new slang and to use bad language to insult people??? doesn't it just diminish one's character...???

Of course it's okay. ;P The witter the remark, the more cool points. A respectable manipulation of language requires a great deal of dexterity, and an awesome diss is just as awesome as a compliment. It adds character to someone, whether or not you like that supplement is up to you. Personally, if it's been well said, the more kudos to you.