Are there any dutch people living in the Netherlands who can only speak Dutch and English and no any other languages???
No German no French, only Dutch and English????
2007-05-17 14:50:46 · 6 answers · asked by Anonymous in Society & Culture ➔ Languages
I'm finishing high school this year and i learned to speak english, french and german. I finished french and german 2 years ago with an 7/10 and a 8/10. But i dont get to speak those languages a lot so i forget how to speak french and german.
2007-05-20 05:03:52 · answer #1 · answered by koooone 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Sure there are. Some of the elder Dutch don't even speak English. Many Dutch pretend to speak German, but don't do so in fact; they speak Dutch but make it sound German. French used to be the second language but many young people today cannot speak or understand French anymore. Still, in my circle of friends (most of them had university education and traveled quite a bit), everyone speaks more then 2 languages - be it not all fluent.
2007-05-18 06:41:46 · answer #2 · answered by deborah 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Lots of Dutch people speak just those two languages. French is not very common and even German is not spoken as much as you would expect. I guess Dutch have a reputation for being good at languages since we are and have been a trading nation for centuries and go out and just try and speak whatever language we run into. I'm pretty sure Dutch people tend to accredit themselves with greater language skills then they actually possess. They're just not as afraid to try a new language and not too modest about claiming fluency.
2007-05-19 09:57:12 · answer #3 · answered by polodaan 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I lived in the Netherlands for a year when I went to study Dutch at the Universiteit van Amsterdam. Also, my sister lives in Amsterdam. I found plenty of people that could only speak English and Dutch. I'm French and I was surprised that many people didn't understand my language. There is even people that can only speak Dutch, no English at all.
2007-05-17 22:15:03 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Most of the Dutch ONLY speak Dutch and/or English, despite what they might tell you. Trust me I am Dutch-English and I am sitting in Utrecht right now typing this.
There is myth that we Dutch are language geniuses, but it is just that, a myth. The saddest thing is that many Dutch can't even speak German, the closest language to Dutch.
2007-05-17 23:52:17 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Older generations. Younger ones speak minimum 3 languages. My kids do.
It all depends what sort of education you had. The good schools teach 3 languages minimum.
2007-05-18 18:41:26 · answer #6 · answered by Martha P 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋