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Aunt Dora Baggins
Immortal
Apr 28 2009, 9:17pm
Post #2 of 13
(117 views)
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Although I think the article is a little misleading. They're learning to sing in those languages, but that's not at all the same as learning the languages ;-)
I've learned lots of songs in Serbo-Croatian, Turkish, Russian and Hebrew, without understanding more than a word or two in any of them. Once I had a Boznian student, and I sang a little of one of the songs I know for her, and she said, "Oh, my teacher knows my language!" I hastily told her no, I had no idea what the words meant, I could just sing them.
When I was a little kid, we learned a Spanish song called "Mi Caballo Blanco", and I sang it without understanding the words at all. Years later I studied Spanish, and it was the oddest feeling to go back and sing the song and have it suddenly mean something, when before it had been only syllables. I had the same thing happen with a German Christmas carol when I learned a little German years later. It really is a strange feeling.
Anyway, it would be fun to hear that concert that was described in the article.
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"For DORA BAGGINS in memory of a LONG correspondence, with love from Bilbo; on a large wastebasket. Dora was Drogo's sister, and the eldest surviving female relative of Bilbo and Frodo; she was ninety-nine, and had written reams of good advice for more than half a century."
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"A Chance Meeting at Rivendell" and other stories
leleni at hotmail dot com
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Huan71
Lorien
Apr 28 2009, 10:22pm
Post #3 of 13
(106 views)
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I'm envious of those who can pick up other languages easily! I had loads of problems back in my school days and it really put me off!
I know what you mean about learning by rote. Their just copying the sounds of the songs, which i'm sure will sound great! But i reckon i could do that. I'm ok at doing vocal impersonations after all! lol
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Ataahua
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
Apr 28 2009, 11:52pm
Post #4 of 13
(108 views)
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we learned songs and haka in Maori as young kids by going over and over the syllables. I'd love to see those lyrics now and pick out the words that I know so that I can understand them fully.
Celebrimbor: "Pretty rings..."
Dwarves: "Pretty rings..."
Men: "Pretty rings..."
Sauron: "Mine's better."
"Ah, how ironic, the addictive qualities of Sauron’s master weapon led to its own destruction. Which just goes to show, kids - if you want two small and noble souls to succeed on a mission of dire importance... send an evil-minded b*****d with them too." - Gandalf's Diaries, final par, by Ufthak.
Ataahua's stories
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Tehanu
PTB
Apr 29 2009, 5:15am
Post #5 of 13
(105 views)
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What riles me about learning languages...
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is that it WAS so easy to learn huge amounts of stuff by rote when I was very young - most children are like that I think. Something about the way children's brains are wired? So it didn't take long to memorise stuff in other languages, and it didn't seem difficult to remember what a lot of the words meant either. Stupidly, schools here didn't offer the chance to learn languages on a regular basis until we were too old to have that rather more effortless ability to learn them! One of the oddities of the education system here.
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Huan71
Lorien
Apr 29 2009, 8:18am
Post #6 of 13
(84 views)
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we learned songs and haka in Maori as young kids by going over and over the syllables. I'd love to see those lyrics now and pick out the words that I know so that I can understand them fully.
...Maori Hakka !! Hey, that's pretty cool!
Did you do all the "scary" warrior faces as well? (Whilst wearing black Short's and top, obviously! lol)
The factory i work at has a lot of Polish staff and some have tried to teach me bit's of their language.
I keep forgetting the stuff they told me...plus i find it a bit ugly. To many Z's, W's and K's ! There's something a bit orcish about it! lol
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Silvanis
Registered User
Apr 29 2009, 5:13pm
Post #7 of 13
(78 views)
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Tehanu: yep, it's what's generally referred to as the cut-off age. Children tend to learn languages quickly and seemingly quite effortlessly up to about age twelve, and after this (this is theoretical, mind) thought processing patterns tend to settle. It's certainly not impossible to learn new languages as an adult, it's just slower, since you have to get around all the mental structures (conventions regarding patterns, grammar, syntax, sound etc.) you've set up according to your native language(s). I know this isn't much of a consolation, though! ;)
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the_argonath
Lorien
Apr 29 2009, 5:20pm
Post #8 of 13
(69 views)
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Although it isn't really "learning" the language just singing the words. I wonder if it prompts some of them to learn it for real? A good age to start really!
(I'd love to learn this beautiful language, but currently having enough trouble with French!!)
~*Haudh-en-Ndengin the Elves named it, the Hill of Slain, and Haugh-en-Nirnaeth, the Hill of tears... the earth beneath which the swords of the Eldar and the Edain crumbled into rust*~
Made it to the Shire!!
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Aunt Dora Baggins
Immortal
Apr 29 2009, 7:57pm
Post #9 of 13
(76 views)
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Which is why it seems so strange to me
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that we were offered foreign languages starting at age 13. It still came pretty easy, but it would have been easier at an earlier age.
On the other hand, my parents were always learning new languages. My mom taught herself French from lessons on PBS, and Spanish by listening to radio stations and talking with foreign wives at the university. She also learned Italian on her own. And at the age of 60-something she learned quite a bit of Turkish, again on her own. She said that was going to be her last language, and it was (at least so far.)
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"For DORA BAGGINS in memory of a LONG correspondence, with love from Bilbo; on a large wastebasket. Dora was Drogo's sister, and the eldest surviving female relative of Bilbo and Frodo; she was ninety-nine, and had written reams of good advice for more than half a century."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"A Chance Meeting at Rivendell" and other stories
leleni at hotmail dot com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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Ataahua
Forum Admin
/ Moderator
Apr 29 2009, 8:09pm
Post #10 of 13
(67 views)
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Some of the boys did the facial expressions, but not the girls - we were still trying to get the actions right without thinking about expressions as well.
The haka we learned was called Taka patu - I learned Ka mate (which the All Blacks perform) by watching A LOT of rugby. 
Celebrimbor: "Pretty rings..."
Dwarves: "Pretty rings..."
Men: "Pretty rings..."
Sauron: "Mine's better."
"Ah, how ironic, the addictive qualities of Sauron’s master weapon led to its own destruction. Which just goes to show, kids - if you want two small and noble souls to succeed on a mission of dire importance... send an evil-minded b*****d with them too." - Gandalf's Diaries, final par, by Ufthak.
Ataahua's stories
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Huan71
Lorien
Apr 30 2009, 7:03am
Post #12 of 13
(59 views)
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the children for embracing the beauty of the music and the words. I can see the seeds of imagination being planted :)
I cant help wondering if the seeds of imagination (and anything else for that matter!) will get covered up by the weeds called "discovering the opposite sex and alcoholic drink" when they get older!? lol
Guillermo Del Toro's Hobbit...
A master piece in the making?!
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AnnaEstel
The Shire
May 6 2009, 7:04pm
Post #13 of 13
(94 views)
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Kids do pick up languages quick..
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And I'm slowly teaching mine Quenya, as I learn it myself. So some kids really are learning that language (ones with crazy geeky moms, anyway!). They are also picking up Spanish from classmates and a little german from their grandparents. It's amazing how well the new words stick with them. That said, I'm finding that learning a new language along side them is easier than by myself, cause I can use it with the kids, and they remind me when I've forgotten something we've already 'learned'.
Galador khiluva mornie. Estel na iluve!
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Children learn Tolkien Languages
