How long did it take you to learn Spanish?

xxsuziexx87 · 21st February 2006, 02:43

how long did it take for everyone to become fluent or almost fluent in Spanish?

xxxx

KirstyJay · 21st February 2006, 11:20

Well, to get to my current level it's taken me about 3 years, however I've not had lessons... just picked it up from living among Spanish people and having to use it.

I'm quite good with languages though.

Mike in Chayofa · 21st February 2006, 11:51

Quote:

Originally Posted by xxsuziexx87

how long did it take for everyone to become fluent or almost fluent in Spanish?

xxxx

I'm not sure that you ever do ... unless you are a child growing up in a bi-lingual situation.

You tend to learn what you need to, but there's stuff that you will never come across in everyday life. When English speaking children start to speak and read, they often come across ogres, trolls, beanstalks etc etc and that vocabulary is with them for the rest of their lives. Totally useless, but firmly embedded. It's embarassing to hold a converation with a 5 year old and not have a clue what they are taking about !!!

I had to go to the garage to get my car window fixed yesterday and suddenley realised that I didn't have the vocab for anything that I needed to say, I had to describe what I meant in another way - mind you, I didn't have the vocab in English either

enfermera · 14th August 2006, 15:52

I went to college with my hubby full time ,when we first moved to the canary islands. We did 2 years of a diploma course in 9 months, so it was pretty intensive. I now have a good grounding but also I know that there is more stuff that I dont know - past tenses are a killer. I know a couple of ways of saying some things in the past tense - I ate, I have eaten etc but i know there are loads of more ways.
Since we have moved from a spanish area into a tourist zone - for business purposes, we have less opportunity to practice and so i feel I am losing some of my spanish. It is essential that you keep practicing.

Alot of people say ' oh the spanish like to practice their english and so you dont get the chance to speak any spanish'. If someone spanish speaks to me in english then i carry on in spanish knowing i can slip in an english word if necessary. That way, we both get to practice.

robby1234 · 14th August 2006, 20:26

hi all
the trick to learning is not to make it seem that you are not learning.
children absorb information as part of growing up adults bash themselfs over the head with what they are trying to learn.
just listen to music or the tv if you have spanish course work get a good piece of music and add you´re spanish and english words as the lyrics it is fun to do and believe it or not the words and their meanings stick.
this is becouse the left side of the brain is good at languages and also really likes music so if you do them together they make associations with each other(why do you think you can sing most of maccarena just by humming the tune).

simplytenerife · 19th August 2006, 12:06

Hiya,
I've been going to Tenerife for over 25 years and at the beginning I was really young and learnt the language in about 2 years by going 4 times a year. Then I spent a year learning Spanish law at the University and found that my language in that 12 months really improved beyond anything I learnt in England. Being in the country really did help - it does give you some bad habits as the Canarian accent is not as strict as the Castillian accent, but definitely being in the country helps loads

chip · 19th August 2006, 12:16

I came here when I was 18 and had a few Spanish boyfriends who didn't speak English....you learn very quick!

Artist-At-Work · 19th August 2006, 12:33

So in the Canaries, do they speak Spanish then, or is it their own language?

If a Canarian went to Spain for a holiday, would they be understood well?

simplytenerife · 19th August 2006, 12:39

If a Spaniard went on holiday int he Canaries he would be understood - they don't have their own language as such just their own dialect like we have over here in UK different regions different accents! There are a few colloquial words but the Spanish would be understood in Tenerife equally a Canarian would be understood in Spain

chip · 19th August 2006, 13:13

Quote:

Originally Posted by Catteaser

So in the Canaries, do they speak Spanish then, or is it their own language?

If a Canarian went to Spain for a holiday, would they be understood well?