<p>I believe we need to take a stand on illegal immigration. There isn't a way to make it fair, but it's causing HUGE problems in this country, and we're just sitting around and not doing much about it.</p>
<p>At least we agree on something lol.</p>
<p>CHINESE!!! in 10 years or less CHINESE will make u sooo rich!!! especially if u want to do something international.</p>
<p>for the record: Spain Spanish and other spanish ARE completely different. TRUST me. :)</p>
<p>I'm a first-generation American, and Spanish is my native language. My parents are from El Salvador. I have a few things to say:</p>
<p>European Spanish and American (from the North and South American continents) Spanish are different. However, that is not to say that they are completely different languages. There are differences, yes; but a Latin-American person (that speaks fluent non-colloquial Spanish) could easily go to Madrid and communicate with a Spaniard speaking Castilian--the Spanish dialect most closely related to the Spanish of Latin American countries--without a problem. </p>
<p>I think Spanish is a very beautiful language. There have been texts written in the Spanish language that ought to be read by all in the original language in which it was published (reading Don Quixote in English does not count :-p). </p>
<p>I believe that because of heavy (mostly poor, non-white) Latin-American immigration to the U.S., America, whether subconsciously or consciously, views the Spanish language as second class without giving regard to the fact that it is a European language that has existed long before the first mestizo (person of mixed Spanish and indigenous descent; these people populate most of Latin America) was born. And as a result of the Spanish conquest of the Americas, the world has witnessed beautiful literature emerge out of Latin America, such as Gabriel Garc</p>
<p>Oh. And I've been to Madrid. I did encounter some arrogance from the Spanish. Well--once, but still; all I did was say "We're watching" instead of "We're looking" and the employee at the make-up counter of a popular department store corrected me (in an arrogant tone, I might add). But I did receive a few compliments on my Spanish: "You speak very good Spanish for an American." :-p</p>
<p>well, they get offended because they feel their language has been butchered. and arrogance is not a Spanish quality; you would probably find the same response (or worse) if you were to incorrectly speak french in France :) sometimes, the accents in which we (spaniards) say words or phrases may make a listener think we are speaking in a mean tone, but it is simply the regional manner of pronouncing such phrases. for example: you go up to the northwest and you'd think that people were about to attack you or let loose their cows on ya (loud, forceful, spanish mountaineers).</p>
<p>Well, I hate it when people speak colloquial Spanish, so I could understand the whole butchering deal. I know arrogance is not a Spanish quality. The woman did indeed correct me in an arrogant tone, I'm sure of it. I encountered aggressive tones that I perceived as natural to the Spanish and I only recognized the unusual (to me) forcefulness because it's not usual to me.</p>
<p>I've been to France as well.</p>
<p>Some Spaniards might look down upon Latin American Spanish, but Portuguese look down upon Brazilian Portuguese, the French look down upon Quebequois French, the British look down upon American English, and even many Americans from the north look down upon southern accents/dialects. It's not a Spanish (or even European) phenomenon. People are naturally proud of their language, and any deviation is going to be seen by at least some segment of the population as less refined/baser/etc.</p>
<p>ok, i just realized that fiesta said the same exact thing. Whoops...</p>
<p>Actually, one'll find that it is indeed less refined in Latin America as a whole. Although, I'm sure that that is not the case in Argentina. The fact that Latin American nations' citizens are overwhelmingly poor and thus uneducated contributes to the lack of refinement and eloquence in their speaking skills.</p>
<p>Isn't that sort of beside the point?</p>
<p>Probably <em>laughs</em></p>
<p>"CHINESE!!! in 10 years or less CHINESE will make u sooo rich!!! especially if u want to do something international."</p>
<p>How so? Please elaborate.</p>
1 Like
<p>I'm sure if learning chinese was the key to wealth, it would have been discovered by now</p>
1 Like
<p>Chinese and Spainish are most usful.
French seems like a great language to express your romantic side.
German is good for technology.
Greek and Latin make you like a well- educated person.</p>
<p>Is Austrian considered a language or is it just a dialect of German because I think that would be beneficial for economics professors or the like because of the vast influence of the Von Misean Austrian Economists.</p>
<p>its similiar to the bayerish<em>bavarian</em> dialect of german. unless your a native speaker of it, chances are you will never learn it. its just that hard to understand, speak and all that jazz. but its not that important for chances are they wrote down stuff in hochdeutsch<em>proper german</em> for bayerisch is kind of a lower class dialect, and hoch is the written form normally</p>
<p>So as long as I can read formal German, I should be alright when it comes to Austrian documents?</p>