Non English Earth languages and alien languages?

[Crewman47]

We've seen that most of the races in Star Trek will come to speak English as Federation standard, and we all know that on our planet English is harder to learn than almost any other language on Earth, if you're not english that is, so what races do you think could cope with learning and speaking an Earth language other than English?

Could you imagine Klingons speaking German or Russian, or maybe Vulcans learning to speak in Hebrew (just a random choice)?

 

[scotpens]

Vulcans would probably find Modern Hebrew quite easy to learn, since it's a highly logical language. While based on the classical Hebrew of the Bible, much of Modern Hebrew is an artificially constructed tongue, like Esperanto.

Besides, from what we know of the real-life origin of the hand salute, Vulcans may be the descendants of one of the lost tribes of Israel!

And knowing the Klingon aesthetic sense, some Klingons might want to learn Dutch. They'd consider it a pretty-sounding language. To most anglophones, Dutch sounds like a cat coughing up a hairball.

 

[Myasishchev]

It's very likely that Worf speaks Ukrainian.

 

[iguana_tonante]

and we all know that on our planet English is harder to learn than almost any other language on Earth, if you're not english that is

What made you think English is the most difficult language to learn?

Could you imagine Klingons speaking German or Russian, or maybe Vulcans learning to speak in Hebrew (just a random choice)?

I have a feeling Italian is the language of choice on Risa.

 

[Myasishchev]

and we all know that on our planet English is harder to learn than almost any other language on Earth, if you're not english that is

What made you think English is the most difficult language to learn?

Indeed. It's got some of the hardest words to spell, but that's about it. True, as an Anglophone, this is merely a view from the inside, but modern English probably is easier than many languages and has shed difficult features like tone, inflection, and formality. (Fun fact: Thor is being a disrespectful dickhead when he uses thee and thou to refer to people he doesn't know, although as a god who considers himself on par with YHWH, this may be intentional. Only dickishness explains why he talks to other gods in this manner, however.)

English also doesn't have that many irregular verbs--maybe thirty, all of which other than "to be" are easily understandable even if only the basic rules are used ("he runned", "he eated" sound childish, but their meanings are immediately recognizable). Also, our irregular verbs are not as pervasively irregular as in some other languages, nor do we pointlessly have two different irregular verbs for "to be." I'm looking at you, Spanish.

Something I'm really interested in is whether non-English languages are suitable for realtime translation.* I think Spanish is (even if many constructions would be rendered in the passive voice in English), but I'd like to see a survey on the subject.

*Or even if English is. I believe it is--homonyms are the only stumbling block that comes immediately to mind.

 

[Nerys Ghemor]

And knowing the Klingon aesthetic sense, some Klingons might want to learn Dutch. They'd consider it a pretty-sounding language. To most anglophones, Dutch sounds like a cat coughing up a hairball.

Nah, doesn't bother me...now FRENCH...THAT sounds like a cat coughing up a hairball. With a cold.

 

[iguana_tonante]

Yeah, English spelling is a nightmare, but you get used to it. Syntax and grammar, on the other hand, are extremely simple, especially if compared with German, Russian, or even Italian. English lacks gender, it has only a small use of grammatical case, the plural is mostly a matter of sticking an "s" at the end of the word, adjectives don't need to match with nouns, and the verbal conjugations are ridiculously easy.

 

[Sector 7]

Contemporary English has become the lingua franca. It used to be Latin, then French (hence lingua franca). English is an amalgam of many languages; it has borrowed from Latin, German, French, and more to create a rich and growing language.

Because so many Earth languages have contributed to English, I can see it evolving into a Standard language for our planet, at least in Trek.

 

[iguana_tonante]

Contemporary English has become the lingua franca. It used to be Latin, then French (hence lingua franca).

The "lingua franca" was was mostly Medieval Italian with some Provençal influence.

Because so many Earth languages have contributed to English, I can see it evolving into a Standard language for our planet, at least in Trek.

I agree English is a very inclusive language (it tends to absorb foreign words much more than any other language), but its role as the international vehicular language has much more to do with the preponderance of American culture and media than with linguistics. As for its use in Star Trek, I would say it is mostly because it's an American tv show.

 

[Nerys Ghemor]

Some colonies (especially those settled before the Federation, or who deliberately broke with the Federation) might choose not to speak English, though, so I think if aliens had a first contact with humanity through one of those colonies, then they might end up learning a different Earth language.

 

[scotpens]

and we all know that on our planet English is harder to learn than almost any other language on Earth, if you're not english that is

What made you think English is the most difficult language to learn?

Indeed. It's got some of the hardest words to spell, but that's about it. True, as an Anglophone, this is merely a view from the inside, but modern English probably is easier than many languages and has shed difficult features like tone, inflection, and formality.

Not to mention gender. The concept that words, in and of themselves, can be masculine or feminine seems a tad absurd to most English speakers, especially to children learning a second language.

. . . Also, our irregular verbs are not as pervasively irregular as in some other languages, nor do we pointlessly have two different irregular verbs for “to be.” I'm looking at you, Spanish.

Of course, to a native Spanish speaker, estar and ser are two different verbs with different meanings, confusingly conflated by the use of the single verb to be in English. It all depends on your point of view, right?

And knowing the Klingon aesthetic sense, some Klingons might want to learn Dutch. They'd consider it a pretty-sounding language. To most anglophones, Dutch sounds like a cat coughing up a hairball.

Nah, doesn't bother me...now FRENCH...THAT sounds like a cat coughing up a hairball. With a cold.

You must be joking. French is beautiful music to the ears. Second prettiest language: Brazilian Portuguese.

 

[Nerys Ghemor]

I have no idea what is possibly appealing about French. It's a combination between speaking through your nose and hocking up a hairball. There's nothing romantic about it. If you want something that really sounds romantic, Italian is the way to go. Melodic sounds, no speaking out of the nose or hocking hairballs.

Portuguese isn't as bad as French, but does have some of the same drawbacks.

 

[scotpens]

^ I suppose some folks are born contrarians; they have to zig where everyone else zags.

Chacun à son goût, as they say.

Would Tellarites be interested in learning Pig Latin?

 

[Nerys Ghemor]

It's not just being contrarian...it's my honest opinion.

 

[RegFan]

and we all know that on our planet English is harder to learn than almost any other language on Earth, if you're not english that is

What made you think English is the most difficult language to learn?

Indeed. I'm Finnish and I find English to be easier to learn than any other language I've studied. Even the spelling isn't so hard if you learn English as a second language. Finnish grammar, on the other hand, is extremely complex, unlike that of English, although we do have phonemic spelling.

 

[Timo]

I'm not sure aliens would bother to learn any of our languages, not when they have the Universal Translator.

Then again, the UT would probably ensure that no human learns any of our languages, either. If it's implanted at early enough an age, it may be that no human has a native language, even: everybody just invents his or her own language, which the UT translates as needed. It's just certain silly jingoists who still bother with actually learning French or English...

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Crewman47]

and we all know that on our planet English is harder to learn than almost any other language on Earth, if you're not english that is

What made you think English is the most difficult language to learn?

Indeed. I'm Finnish and I find English to be easier to learn than any other language I've studied. Even the spelling isn't so hard if you learn English as a second language. Finnish grammar, on the other hand, is extremely complex, unlike that of English, although we do have phonemic spelling.

I just assumed it was as it was something I heard some time ago when I was doing a short course on Spanish. I think it was mentioned by the tutor that us learning a foreign language is easier than a foreign person learning English, maybe becuase of the gender difference etc in the words.

 

[Timo]

Then how come the whole world is speaking English, but the English (of any geographic persuasion) aren't speaking whole world?

I guess phonemic spelling is a nice tabula rasa for learning pronunciations. Doesn't mean my own English would be particularly articulated, tho. But at least it's a neutral, flat sort of pidgin where alien inflections don't confuse the listener.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Mr Darcy]

I just assumed it was as it was something I heard some time ago when I was doing a short course on Spanish. I think it was mentioned by the tutor that us learning a foreign language is easier than a foreign person learning English

I would probably classify it as an attempt to build up his students confidence.

 

[iguana_tonante]

I have no idea what is possibly appealing about French. It's a combination between speaking through your nose and hocking up a hairball. There's nothing romantic about it. If you want something that really sounds romantic, Italian is the way to go. Melodic sounds, no speaking out of the nose or hocking hairballs.

Portuguese isn't as bad as French, but does have some of the same drawbacks.

Different strokes for different people, I guess. Personally, I love French's "purring" sounds, and Portuguese has a sing-song quality that I find enchanting. As for Italian, I must bow to others people's opinions since, being my first language, it sounds completely neutral to my ears.

I just assumed it was as it was something I heard some time ago when I was doing a short course on Spanish. I think it was mentioned by the tutor that us learning a foreign language is easier than a foreign person learning English, maybe becuase of the gender difference etc in the words.

I can't see why, especially since it's way more simple for a Spanish-speaker to ignore gender when speaking in English, than for an English-speaker to remember if some words are masculine or feminine (something which isn't immediately obvious). My guess is that your teacher was trying to motivate by nagging at your pride.