<p>Hahah, I find it funny that the Japanese word for Chinese characters is the most commonly known/adopted into English.</p>
<p>Those nefarious nihonjin!</p>
<p>To be honest, I actually think that while there are more characters (hanzi) to learn in Chinese, Japanese usage of them is more complex and well...annoying.</p>
<p>I'm not an expert (I'm fluent in Arabic, have only a little experience with Chinese), but I see them like skiing and snowboarding: Chinese is easy to learn, but hard to master; Arabic is hard to learn, but easy to master. </p>
<p>They're both useful, but in different contexts. Chinese is better for business, right now. Both are relevant in international relations and politics. You'll need your Arabic skills if you want to go to any Middle Eastern country, because they're just not very America- or tourist- friendly. China is a bit more open of Americans, and many Chinese students speak English.</p>
<p>I don't know any of them, but if you ask me, I think on paper Arabic looks a lot nicer than Chinese - Arabic script just looks so elegant and looks like calligraphy that's why I think it looks real nice.</p>
<p>If you're going to learn to speak it only, I guess Chinese, but if you're going to learn to speak and write, do Arabic - you'll know how to write an amazing script!</p>
<p>Haha, baller, I disagree with you entirely. I don't like the way Arabic looks at all; it feels rough and primitive. Chinese characters, though, seem so graceful; they're pictures with precise, aesthetic strokes of ink on paper. It seems very understated.</p>
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Hahah, I find it funny that the Japanese word for Chinese characters is the most commonly known/adopted into English.
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Heh, it happens subconciously... I know a lot more Japanese than Chinese. </p>
<p>By the way, what's up with all this interest in Japan lately? (not talking about on this board) I hear all these people talking about their favorite manga and anime, and how they want to go to Japan because it's "awesome, amazing place". When will the otaku realize that the Japanese think they are idiots?</p>
<p>I don't know whether to laugh or be horrified:
<a href="http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7997440351334855659%5B/url%5D">http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-7997440351334855659</a></p>
<p>Sorry to hijack the post somewhat, it's just that this stuff amazes/scares me. I found some forum about Japan the other day that said: Most users ever online was 50108 at 5/9/2006 10:21:24 PM. Where do all these people come from?</p>
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When will the otaku realize that the Japanese think they are idiots?
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</p>
<p>Never. Unless they come here. Otherwise, it's the bliss of ignorance for them!</p>
<p>Keep in mind that whichever language you learn, you're only going to be learning one dialect--Mandarin or Modern Standard Arabic. Each are spoken in pretty much one place (MSA is mostly in Egypt, right?).</p>
<p>Chinese's syntax is incredibly simple, Arabic's is very difficult. From what little experience I have with speaking them, Chinese is practically impossible--tones are hard. Plus, I think learning Arabic would be worth it just to be able to say /x/ (it's like you're hacking up a lung/choking... vastly different from English!). Arabic would probably be simpler if you want to read and/or write.</p>
<p>So, uh, yeah... I'd go with Arabic.</p>
<p>Well, you'll be learning Modern Standard Arabic. But nobody speaks it, it isn't used at all. It's just a foundation on which you learn other dialects. So don't expect to graduate after four years of Arabic and be able to actually communicate. The only place Modern Standard is used is on TV channels that reach multiple countries. </p>
<p>If you're looking to be able to actually use your language without extensive extra training and lots of study abroad, I'd go with Chinese.</p>
<p>wow estrella.
sounds like my life story</p>
<p>I'm also torn between Arabic and Mandarin Chinese...
& I'm hoping to enter the Foreign Service or some other gov agency dealing with foreign areas..
I'm also hoping to attend grad school under IR..
So what really would be more beneficial?
I don't really care which is harder.. they are both extremely hard.. and the differences in learning the language don't really matter to me..
I've heard some people on here suggest chinese is good for business?
what about arabic?
I'm interested in both countries pretty equally they both have their drawbacks (terrorists & horrible weather) v.s. (overbearing gov & human rights abuse)...and they both have their pluses...
So, If your entering a field like the Foreign Service, what would you suggest?</p>
<p>I would tell you to do Chinese. It's more needed right now in the foreign service, and if IR doesn't work out, you can always do other things with it. Outside of government work, Arabic isn't very pragmatic.</p>
<p>I think you should take the Chinese course . As you know ,China has become the engine of international economy .So for international relations , China is more impotant . And if you have any problem in learning Chinese ,Maybe I can help you . At least ,i am chinese.</p>
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As you know ,China has become the engine of international economy
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</p>
<p>China may be an engine, but the Middle East is the fuel. ;)</p>
<p>arabic becasue like other said chinese is unncesscary with some many people in china speaking english and its concentrated while arabic is spoken in many countries with little english so, in that respect it wins. </p>
<p>For the next fifty years or your life time the middle east will be the hot spot due to, oil coming from the region.</p>
<p>So Arabic wins</p>
<p>If you're speaking in terms of difficulty, I'd estimate both are equal.</p>
<p>As far as necessity, I'd go with most of the other people and say Arabic is the one you should learn because of communication.</p>
<p>I have a friend who is fluent in Arabic and I've watched him read the daily news in Arabic (he's from the middle east). He said that adjusting to a new way of reading (he had to learn left to right when he learned English) takes a few months before you're comfortable with it. It sounds similar to the learning curve for verb conjugations at the basic level and word order in other languages. Not sure what the verbs/order are like in Arabic though.</p>
<p>From someone who started mandarin from scratch two years ago and is headed to Beijing for the summer, I say take Chinese. The class itself will be fun, because the teachers know the material is tough. It's fun to learn to read and write characters, and after awhile you learn how they relate and piecing things together becomes easier. I guess it is becoming an important language, but who cares about that. </p>
<p>However I think something could be said for taking Arabic, given that the Mandarin you learn is a) simplified and b) colloquial. So, as far as Chinese goes, you can't really get into their long literary tradition because it is written in Classical Chinese, which is basically indecipherable unless you are native born or willing to study for many years.</p>
<p>chinese. =p fun stuff. let me tell you. i think it's easier than arabic, but that's just my impression.
haha.. and it's the language that is spoken by 835 million people. </p>
<p>on a totally facetious note.. it's really impressive to chinese people when americans can speak chinese.. with good accent that is.</p>
<p>MacTech,</p>
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Not sure what the verbs/order are like in Arabic though.
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</p>
<p>Word order in Arabic is rather loose compared to other languages like English, and usually based more on style than semantics.</p>
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Not sure what the verbs/order are like in Arabic though.
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I think that's one of the hardest things about Arabic. Arabic is somewhat like Spanish, in that it drops the subject, but only sometimes (and the conjugation will change based on whether you drop or not. Conjugation is further determined by tense, gender, person, formality, and number.) Prepositions are both difficult and easy, as there are very few prepositions and they correspond to the unusually large amount of prepositions in English. Word order is usually based on style, as UCLAri said, but there are still rules to follow (it's not like you just take words and throw them together, especially because one word in Arabic might translate or three or four words in English). One sort of fun (read: difficult) part is writing. It's right to left, and unless it's formal text, written Arabic omits all vowels. </p>
<p>
[quote]
However I think something could be said for taking Arabic, given that the Mandarin you learn is a) simplified and b) colloquial. So, as far as Chinese goes, you can't really get into their long literary tradition because it is written in Classical Chinese, which is basically indecipherable unless you are native born or willing to study for many years.
[/quote]
The same goes for Arabic. The most classical of Arabic texts, The Qu'aran, is nonsensical for even some native speakers, like my dad. </p>
<p>On the colliquial thing, though, Modern Standard Arabic isn't even that. MSA isn't used anywhere (except multi-country television, like the Lebanese Broadcasting Company). It's just the most simplifed Arabic base, and you build other dialects on top of it.</p>
<p>^ I kind of figured as much. With Chinese, there is Putonghua, which is the official language, then every region has its own dialect. I mean, it is a big country. The cool thing is that the written language is the same.</p>
<p>Either way, with these non-western languages you have your work cut out for you. Have fun with it, whichever you choose.</p>