Advantages in knowing a second language?

Question

What are the advantages of knowing a language apart from your mother tongue, besides being able to communicate with people from other countries? Right now, I am learning German and French. If I lived in, or visited either of those countries the language would of course be very useful. But if I lived in the US, how could those languages help me? Say I learned to speak French but didn't like French people (this isn't true at all so don't get offended!!), then what use would French be?

Answer 1

1. Money. More languages = more work opportunities = higher salary. In government jobs, they are more like to hire bilinguals. Or do you not mind not getting US$7/hour until 2008 when the minimum wage goes up?

2. Career opportunities. The number of places you can work increases - other countries, travel as part of your job, interpreting, paid holidays, etc. Anyone who passes up a chance to live in another country is crazy, even if it's only for a year; I've lived overseas for five years and I love it.

3. More people you can talk to. The only reason you "wouldn't like French people" is your own attitude, not them as people. And even if there _was_ genuine dislike between you and the other country, you can always curb your tongue while in their country or avoid them at home when you're not working with foreigners.

4. More entertainment to read, hear and see. There are dozens of great French authors - Balzac, Godot, Verne, Sartre, Rousseau; if you could read French, you could read their original works, not mistranslated English versions. If you understood French, you could watch Jean Reno's older movies or Audrey Tautou's "Amelie", all without subtitles. You could hear French pop music, including Canadian (the Quebec music industry is stronger than France's). The same is true of any other country and language.

5. Private conversations and eavesdropping. You can speak in private when nobody speaks the language except you and the person you're talking to; or, you can deviously listen in on people who think they're having a private conversation....

Why the hell *wouldn't* anyone except a jingoistic redneck refuse to learn a second language? 30 million Spanish speakers in the US isn't a problem, it's a benefit and an opportunity.

The more languages you can speak, the more people you can talk to. I'd let my left AND right legs be cut off if I could know a second and third language instantly.


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Answer 2

Well, for one thing, there are many French words in English, so knowing French can give you insight about English vocabulary that you wouldn't necessarily have known before.

Also, even if you don't interact with French-speaking people in the U.S., you might have occasion to use French. For example, you might want to surf some French-language pages on the Internet, or read a book in French, or listen to French-language music, or even chat online with someone in French.

Also, learning new languages gives us a better idea of how language works in general. As a linguist, I often study examples from many languages as a way to understand how all human language works. Being familiar with the languages of other cultures can help us to be familiar with those cultures, and I think that gives us more options when we decide about our personal culture. It's expanding.

Answer 3

it's not just about learning another language to be able to communicate with others,... it's about gaining knowledge on other cultures... when you learn a second language (and if u plan to use it in other countries) most likely u will learn that other culture, and maybe be able to identify with those from that country...
my first language is english and since i was little i'm fluent in brazilian portuguese... still tryin to learn spanish!!! before i learned the language it was like, i didn't feel the obligation to learn but afterwards, u get this gratification of telling people how u learned, and u gain culture... when my family and i used to travel to other countries we used to speak portuguese amongst ourselves because we know how certain countries look down on americans... suprisingly they were friendlier when they were told that we were brazilian than when we said we were american!!!
there are so many benefits and its a really good experience!!!

Answer 4

I have also read studies which claim that bilingual people are less likely to suffer from dementia in old age. It has something to do with the brain's ability to switch between different patterns of thinking. (Kind of the same reason they tell people to do Sudoku puzzles and Crossword puzzles to avoid dementia.)

I wish I could give you an article source for the information, but it's been a while since I read about it. You can probably google for more information about it.

Answer 5

hi. every language is a new life.
if you learn a new language , you can live with it , and you say that you are the native of that language.
you know most languages are originated from one source, indo european languages
if you know english, learning other languages in that family of language is easier

Answer 6

It means you can flirt and slag people off in two languages, (preferably slag them off in the language they won't understand). And in my job it means I can call friends in Mexico and have long conversations and I don't get caught because people think I'm selling stuff. Oh that and the academic advantages....

Answer 7

go to ANSWERS.YAHOO.FR to have advantage of ur hard earned knowledge.
And more... u can research over the origin of the extra languages u know.
And i know translators earn per hour in their home countries!
apply for it at the appropriate institute or agency

Answer 8

Your brain expansion. Quite litterally it helps you think in new ways.

It also indicates to any employer that you're quite intelligent if you're multi-lingual. It's usualy a bonus even if you will never, ever have to speak the language.

Answer 9

companies love people that can speak more than one language and so does the state department.

Answer 10

there are many jobs where its is an advantage to speak another language. like airports, schooling, government jobs and travel agencies. its great to have those skills. good luck.