Chinese or Japanese?

College Majors
1

<p>I'm wondering if I would fare better taking Japanese or Chinese (Mandarin)?</p>

<p>On of my goals is to study abroad (China/ Japan).. in that respect, I would choose Japanese because It seems Japan has a better education system.</p>

<p>But China was many more people, it's larger and they have been around longer.</p>

<p>Another consideration is the ease of learning the languages.. I am probably tone deaf.. and I know Chinese is tonal, but not sure about Japanese...</p>

<p>I intend to learn both eventually, but I don't know if language learning is my strength.</p>

2

<p>Japanese isn't tonal, the pronunciation is pretty straightforward. And the two are based (somewhat) off of each other, Chinese is undoubtedly more difficult though. If you want to be in a position to know both at some point, learning Chinese first would help the most I think.</p>

3

<p>Yes, learning Chinese would help you with your Japanese later on. The opposite is not as true.</p>

4

<p>I'm attending a CC (with one year to go). the 4 year college teaches chinese, but the CC does not.. but it is require for me to take foreign language in the cc. It offers spanish, french, german and sign language. which one is best?</p>

5

<p>"It offers spanish, french, german and sign language. which one is best?"</p>

<p>That depends entirely on your interests and your goals. We definitely cannot answer that question for you.</p>

6

<p>I mean... I have little intention of pursuing the language (german, spanish, french, or sign language), further. The only reason I have for taking one is to be able to graduate and transfer to a college that has chinese.</p>

<p>I'm assuming Spanish is the easiest... but sign language might be best, because I might get confused having studied two oral languages.</p>

7

<p>Learning Chinese would not help with your japanese much, but it will speed up your time to learn Koreans.
In China, there is a saying that 3 days korean, 3 months french, 3 years japanese, and 300 years arabic. :)</p>

8

<p>leolibby, this is actually a very popular predicament for many students worldwide, and even I, myself, spent countless hours deciding on the "best" language to learn.</p>

<p>In terms of difficulty, the writing systems are for the most part equally difficult. Verbally, Chinese is harder to pronounce and Japanese has more difficult grammar. On the grand scale, their difficulties are more or less equivalent.</p>

<p>As you know, China is poised to have the world's largest economy within a decade or so. Japan, meanwhile, currently has the world's third largest economy (after the US and China). China has many, many more people, both within China and worldwide, whereas Japan has a much smaller and rapidly declining population. On one hand, a bigger population might mean more potential business prospects; on the other hand, a declining population might mean more availability of jobs (and indeed, the need for immigration is a huge, controversial topic in contemporary Japanese politics).</p>

<p>Chinese are very nationalistic and will never see you as a fellow "countrymen", no matter how long you live in China. The Japanese aren't nearly as nationalistic; however, they're very culturally unified and isolated, and, again, you'll always be an outsider, even if you were born in Japan and lived there your whole life (I'm assuming you're ethnically neither Chinese nor Japanese).</p>

<p>Culturally, Chinese has a very impressive ancient culture, though, of course, thanks to the Cultural Revolution and all that jazz, 20th century Chinese culture is very lacking and 21st-century Chinese culture is mainly derivative. Meanwhile, Japan's history has continuously been very rich, and it obviously has quite an appeal worldwide. But most of the younger Japanese do not care for ancient Japanese culture, nor even 20th century Japanese icons.</p>

<p>So...noticing a trend? The two languages will lead to different albeit "equivalent" prospects. However, you should know that both languages are extremely difficult for an adult learner, and you will <em>never</em> acquire native fluency.</p>

<p>If you're doing this for business reasons, you really would be better off just applying these hours and hours to something universally applicable, like accounting/engineering/finance/whatever, rather than focusing on something with only limited regional value. If you nonetheless want to learn an Asian language with good business potential, you may want to consider Vietnamese, which is easier than the latter two, and Vietnam is not nearly as "impacted" as China and Japan (aka, it's best times are ahead, not behind). Also, Vietnam has a <em>very</em> young population (basically the exact opposite of Japan), so make of that what you will.</p>

<p>As you can see, there is no real clear-cut "better choice". I find Japanese more culturally enriching (literature, cuisine, film, etc), Chinese more pragmatic (let's face it, 1/5th of the world's population is Chinese - you can't beat those numbers), and Vietnamese particularly pleasant (I happen to love the Vietnamese language, plus Vietnam is a fairly pro-American country [unlike China, who mainly see us as their enemies], and if you're a guy, the girls aren't quite as spoiled ^_^).</p>

<p>As for myself, after hours and hours of researching and examining all sorts of different languages, I eventually decided it'd just be more productive to pursue non-linguistic endeavors that are universally applicable. But your choice is up to you. :)</p>

9

<p>As for German/Spanish/French/sign language, I happen to <em>love</em> the German language, German culture, and especially contemporary German people (they generally seem to be quite smart, as well as interested in America). Spanish has always bored me, and Latin America's future doesn't seem particularly extraordinary. French...meh. I personally haven't really met any dead people since middle school (where we had a deaf kids program).</p>

10

<p>"Learning Chinese would not help with your japanese much, but it will speed up your time to learn Koreans.
In China, there is a saying that 3 days korean, 3 months french, 3 years japanese, and 300 years arabic." -Pharmakeus01</p>

<p>I don't know where you heard that from or if it's a realy saying.
But Chinese and Koreans have some words that are similar in pronounciation, but it is very hard to figure out that.
Furthermore, Chinese, Korean, and Japanese all have very different writing system, especially Korean since it is the newest of the three.</p>

11

<p>Just a note: I was stationed in germany in the Army, and yes, the Germans are very industrious in their thoughts. They invented the printing press and the automobile. As for the Spanish (no offense), they are behind. Can you name one Spanish scientist at all? </p>

<p>Anyway, Vietnamese sounds great.. but It's not a formal course at any public University to my knowledge. Some Universities have resources for self-study in it. But I think (at least a knowlege of) Chinese would benefit me more, because I might study Buddhism, and some of the sutras for that are in Chinese. There are Buddhist colleges in Japan and Thailand (also India, Sri Lanka), not China that I know of. I have not looked at schools in Vietnam, Laos, Cambodia, or Burma yet. I already studied in the Philippines for 2 years.</p>

<p>What I really want to do is teach somewhere in Asia. Businness does not interest me.
There was a French guy, former UN person, in the Philippines, who taught German and English... although he spoke like 7 or 8 languages.</p>

12

<p>^ Well, if you want to teach in Asia (should have said so, heh >_<), then really it just depends on what type of students you want to teach. Certain students will be busier, humbler, rowdier, etc. Laos/Cambodia/Burma would certainly provide unique experiences, though I'm not sure if this means you're considering learning their regional languages, which of course have very "select" applicability worldwide. If you mean teaching English, then I'd be weary of Korea. English teachers definitely have a bad rap there...</p>

<p>As for Spanish scientists, well, here's a list:</p>

<pre><code>* José de Acosta (1540–1600), one of the first naturalists and anthropologists of the Americas.
* Jerónimo de Ayanz y Beaumont (1553-1613) Registered design for steam powered water pump for use in mines (1606).
* José María Algué (1856–1930), meteorologist, inventor of the barocyclometer, the nephoscope, and the microseismograph.
* Ignacio Barraquer (1884-1965), leading ophthalmologist, pioneer of cataract surgery.
* José Ignacio Barraquer (1916-1998), leading ophthalmologist, father of modern refractive surgery, he invented the microkeratome and the cryolathe, developed the surgical procedures of keratomileusis and keratophakia.
* Ángel Cabrera (1879–1960), naturalist, investigated the South-American fauna.
* Nicolás Cabrera (1913–1989), physicist, did important work on the theories of crystal growth and the oxidisation of metals.
* Juan de la Cierva (1895–1936), aeronautical engineer, pioneer of rotary flight, inventor of the autogyro.
* Josep Comas i Solà (1868–1937), astronomer, discovered the periodic comet 32P/Comas Solá and 11 asteroids, and in 1907 observed limb darkening of Saturn's moon Titan (the first evidence that the body had an atmosphere).
* Pedro Duque (born 1963), astronaut and veteran of two space missions.
* Fausto de Elhúyar (1755–1833), chemist, joint discoverer of tungsten with his brother Juan José de Elhúyar in 1783.
* Carlos Fernández Casado (1905–1988), civil engineer, designer and builder of bridges and viaducts.
* Jaime Ferrán (1852–1929), doctor and researcher, discovered several vaccines.
* Francisco Hernández (1514–1587), botanicist, carried out important research about the Mexican flora
* Manuel Jalón Corominas (born 1925), inventor of the mop (1956) and a world-wide used "two-piece" disposable syringe (1978).
* Carlos Jiménez Díaz (1898–1967), doctor and researcher, leading figure in pathology
* Gregorio Marañón (1887–1960), doctor and researcher, leading figure in endocrinology
* Narcís Monturiol (1818–1885), physicist and inventor, pioneer of underwater navigation and first machine powered submarine.
* José Celestino Bruno Mutis (1732–1808), botanicist, doctor, philosopher and mathematician, carried out relevant research about the American flora, founded one of the first astronomic observatories in America (1762).
* Severo Ochoa (1905–1993), doctor and biochemist, achieved the synthesis of ribonucleic acid (RNA), Nobel prize Laureate (1959).
* Mateu Orfila (1787–1853), doctor and chemist, father of modern toxicology, leading figure in forensic toxicology.
* Joan Oró (1923–2004), biochemist, carried out important research about the origin of life, he worked with NASA on the Viking missions.
* Julio Palacios Martínez (1891–1970), physicist and mathematician
* Isaac Peral (1851–1895), engineer and sailor, designer of the first fully operative military submarine.
* Santiago Ramón y Cajal (1852–1934), father of Neuroscience, Nobel prize Laureate (1906).
* Julio Rey Pastor (1888–1962), mathematician, leading figure in geometry.
* Wifredo Ricart (1897–1974), engineer, designer and executive manager in the automotive industry.
* Andrés Manuel del Río (1764–1849), geologist and chemist, discovered vanadium (as vanadinite) in 1801.
* Pío del Río Hortega (1882–1945), neuroscientist, discoverer of the microglia or Hortega cell.
* Félix Rodríguez de la Fuente (1928–1980), naturalist, leading figure in ornithology, ethology, ecology and science divulgation
* Margarita Salas (born 1938), biochemist, molecular genetist and researcher.
* Miguel Servet (1511–1553), scientist, surgeon and humanist; first European to describe pulmonary circulation.
* Esteban Terradas i Illa (1883–1950), mathematician, physicist and engineer.
* Leonardo Torres Quevedo (1852–1936), engineer and mathematician, pioneer of automated calculation machines, inventor of the automatic chess, pioneer of remote control, designer of the funicular over the Niagara Falls.
* Eduardo Torroja (1899–1961), civil engineer, structural architect, world famous specialist in concrete structures.
* Josep Trueta (1897–1977), doctor, his new method for treatment of open wounds and fractures helped save a great number of lives during World War II.
* Antonio de Ulloa (1716–1795), scientist, soldier and author; joint discoverer of element platinum with Jorge Juan y Santacilia (1713–1773).
* Arnold of Villanova (c. 1235 – 1311), alchemist and physician, he discovered carbon monoxide and pure alcohol.
</code></pre>

<p>...this, of course, doesn't include Latin Americans, and I'm sure there are quite a few Latin American scientists as well (though maybe not quite as "per-capita-dense" as a European country like Spain).</p>

13

<p>Yeah, I would like to teach English in south east asia. Whether it is the Philippines, vietnam, thailand, or indonesia or loas or malaysia doesn't matter (since I spent 2 years in the Philippines, I know what I'm getting myself into). I could just circulate amoung those countries for awhile. Eventually, I would like to buy either a massage business or a restaurant.</p>

<p>The Uni of Cal at Berkeley offers vietnamese and the other south east asian languages. Maybe an Asian studies major would suit me.</p>

14

<p>Perhaps. Though, I'm guessing you're aware that the Philippines is fairly different from most other Asian countries, with the Spanish influence and all.</p>

15

<p>no doubt CHINESE.</p>

16

<p>"I mean... I have little intention of pursuing the language (german, spanish, french, or sign language), further. The only reason I have for taking one is to be able to graduate and transfer to a college that has chinese."</p>

<p>But this doesn't mean that the language has to be temporary. It can still be useful in every way. And your brain has space for more than just Chinese/Japanese, you know. So go with what you like and not what's easier.</p>

<p>I would recommend Chinese. It's spoken in so many places (China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Macau, minorities in US, Australia, Canada, Mauritius and almost everywhere else). It's the booming language and it has very rich history and literature. And personally, I think Chinese sounds better than Japanese. And it has a nicer looking script too.</p>

17

<p>^ Nicer looking script? Are you talking about simplified or traditional? Because mainland China of course uses simplified, and I don't think that necessarily looks any better than Hiragana or Katakana.</p>

18

<p>I do think both traditional and simplified have nicer looking scripts actually. Japanese is too... curvy for me.</p>

19

<p>I should probaby just study Thai, Vietnamese, Lao, Khmer.. and not worry about when or if I achieve fluency in any. Lots of asians (in asia) don't think they are fluent in English-- but it seems to me they are. Except once I asked a girl: "are you thirsty?" and she replied: "no, It's Friday."</p>

<p>I love traditional music from all those countries. (I'm talking about the authentic traditional stuff-- the the 8 octave stuff) The countries of indochina seem more passionate and virile in their culture... While Chinese and Japanese culture seems cold and dispassionate. (no disrespect)</p>

<p>Also, the college I'm looking at offers study abroad in Thailand, Vietnam and Cambodia.. and the Peace Corps works in Thailand and Cambodia, but not vietnam. (I want to join the peace corps)</p>

20

<p>And in my remaining year of community college, I'll study French, because Vietnam and I think Cambodia and Laos were French colonies.. and French is still spoken there too.</p>