In general how long does it take a person to learn a new language?

Answer 1

The length of time it takes for an individual to learn a language depends on a few factors. The first one is how closely related the language of interest is to one's native language. For example, as a native English speaker, it would not take one very long to learn French, Spanish, or German since they are closely related Indo-European languages but languages from other family groups would take a much longer period of time such as Arabic, Chinese, and Korean. Through college courses, it's believed that fluent Spanish or German can typically be achieved within four years while Chinese or Arabic would require approximately 8-10 for a native English speaker. Of course if your native language is related to Arabic or Chinese, it would be much easier to learn, such as a native Hebrew speaker learning Arabic or a native (Cantonese) Chinese speaker learning (Mandarin) Chinese. There are some languages that are so closely related, that it's more like learning a dialect. For example, if a native Norwegian speaker learned Swedish or a native Spanish speaker learned Italian, it would probably only take two or three months of exposure to become fluent.

The second factor would have to be the time of exposure to the language. The quickest and most efficient way to learn a language is to become immersed in the culture. One would learn Japanese more quickly, if they lived in Japan than he or she would in Japanese courses while remaining in his or her own country. I believe immersion could increase an individual's linguistic ability ten fold and would be much quicker than the amount of time expected from college courses mentioned above.

The third factor is linguistic capacity and methods. Some people seem to have a gift for language and can absord languages with little effort. They're like linguistic sponges. Other people may experience a great deal of frustration regardless of how much effort they exert. Not all people learn well by the same method and the technique one employs for him or herself also contributes to their level of success in a language. Some people learn more comfortably on their own with a book and grammar exercizes and other people prefer social group interaction or visual aids.

Last but not least, effort and ambition play a major role in language learning. Obviously, the more time and effort one puts into learning a language, the quicker he or she will learn it. Even if he or she is one of those individuals who finds language learning to be a very frustrating ordeal, a worthy effort and whole-hearted ambition will eventually overcome any linguistic hardships.

Answer 2

I think that's an incredibly broad question - it depends on so many variables.

How good is the person at learning languages? How old are they? (Children learn languages faster and better than adults.) What language is it? (A language that's similar to their first language will probably be easier to learn that one completely different.) How much effort are they putting into learning - is it like a lesson for half an hour a week, or total stranded-in-a-strange-country immersion? How much of the language do they need to know in order for you to consider them as having learnt it? I mean, I can order food, book myself into a hotel room, and buy train tickets in Italian, but I wouldn't say I 'know' Italian other than a few phrases... The list goes on! Sorry not to be more help, but I don't know that there's a definitive answer to this one!

Answer 3

It depends on the person. I pick up languages pretty quickly, but I have a hard time with other subjects (like math). But if you work at it and have a good teacher, you should be able to at least carry on a basic conversation within a short time.

Answer 4

Varies greatly latan based 6 weeks if you apply Oriental for ever if your lucky