Do expats living in Poland speak Polish?

SeanusThreads: 22 Posts: 30,158 Joined: Dec 25, 07 ♂	Mar 27, 10, 16:02 #211
Right on, PennBoy. English is a much more evolving language, period!! We both speak Polish so we are in a position to compare and make that call. 'Read to me, Mummy', ROTFL, nice one!!

frdThreads: 8 Posts: 1,956 Joined: Feb 3, 09 ♂	Mar 27, 10, 18:28 #212
Seanus: English is a much more evolving language, period!! is there even anyone trying to counter this statement? More speakers of the language = more words being created daily = evolving... it's not rocket science really.. and there's no magic to it..

SeanusThreads: 22 Posts: 30,158 Joined: Dec 25, 07 ♂	Mar 27, 10, 18:31 #213
Exactly!

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Edited by: Royaltramp Mar 27, 10, 18:39 #214

I'm only 17 and I've just moved to Poland a couple of weeks ago. I'm half Polish so I know some Polish from growing up, enough to hold conversation, but sometimes I find I don't know the right word/phrase for what I want to say, in which case I'll ask in English if they could tell me the Polish for the word/phrase.

I quite like the Polish language, but I never learnt to read/write in Polish, so this is something I'm now trying to learn. Hopefully GaduGadu will help there :P

As for whether people should speak the language if they are living here? Of course, at least try to learn. Even if you find it hard and don't learn much, people will really respect that you've made the effort to learn. I find it nice to see how many Polish people have a good grasp of English, so I'm sure Polish people like it just as much when they see someone who can speak some Polish, even if it's basic.

Our whole perception of the world is shaped by language. Without language our view of the world would be much more linear. It is vital to at least attempt to learn the language for the area in which you live if you truly wish to understand the people there for who they are :)

frdThreads: 8 Posts: 1,956 Joined: Feb 3, 09 ♂	Mar 27, 10, 18:41 #215
Royaltramp: I quite like the Polish language, but I never learnt to read/write in Polish, so this is something I'm now trying to learn. Hopefully GaduGadu will help there :P Good luck with the learning and welcome to the forums : o

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Edited by: Royaltramp Mar 27, 10, 18:44 #216

frd: Good luck with the learning and welcome to the forums : o

Thanks :)

While we're on the subject, does anyone have any tips for some good ways to learn the written language? Spoken language is easier to learn for me as I can pick it up by talking, watching TV, listening to music, etc. Written language seems a lot harder as with other languages that I learnt (French and German) I was taught them at school, now I have no tutors so I'm having to teach myself :P

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Edited by: Nika Mar 27, 10, 18:47 #217

Royaltramp: I'm only 17 and I've just moved to Poland a couple of weeks ago. I'm half Polish

Welcome in Poland!

Royaltramp: I quite like the Polish language, but I never learnt to read/write in Polish, so this is something I'm now trying to learn. Hopefully GaduGadu will help there :P

All the best with that. Hopefully GaduGadu will help, but don't forget to practice - try to speak as much as you can. And don't worry if you sometimes don't know how to say something - give it some time!

As for good ways to learn the written language, try reading - newspapers, magazines, books. It helped me!

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Mar 27, 10, 18:54 #218

Haha that's a really obvious idea that I didn't think of, thanks for the tip :)

So an interesting question, those of you who moved to Poland a while ago and have a pretty good grasp of the language now, how long did it take you?

I already know the language well enough for most every day conversations thanks to spending a lot of time in Poland when I was younger, but as for the written language, I'm starting from scratch :P

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Mar 27, 10, 19:01 #219

Royaltramp: So an interesting question, those of you who moved to Poland a while ago and have a pretty good grasp of the language now, how long did it take you?

I wouldn't know that Słonko, I'm Polish :) I meant other language when I said that it helped me.

Royaltramp: I already know the language well enough for most every day conversations thanks to spending a lot of time in Poland when I was younger,

That's great, we're proud of you! Your parents did a good job :)

Royaltramp: but as for the written language, I'm starting from scratch :P

Do you have any friends, family you could write e-mails, or letters with? You can write poems as well.

Albo od czasu do czasu możesz pisać z nami, jak chcesz :)

RoyaltrampThreads: - Posts: 6 Joined: Mar 27, 10 ♂	Mar 27, 10, 19:13 #220
Moje rodzice nie uczyli mi tego :P I guess I must have just picked it up by listening as I was very young at the time. I have some friends here that I've known for years, and soon I'll have a lot more, so we'll be talking on GG and by email in Polish when we need to. The hardest bit for me is getting the grammar/spelling right, as I never really learnt grammar when listening to people speak :P

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Mar 27, 10, 19:56 #221

Royaltramp: I have some friends here that I've known for years, and soon I'll have a lot more, so we'll be talking on GG and by email in Polish when we need to.

There you will be practicing your writing, so no worries, I'm sure you'll pick it up quicly. Just make sure that you don't use spell check, or do copy / paste when writing your e-mails. If you are not sure of how to write a word, look it up in a dictionary and write it yourself.
Again reading is very helpful - pick a magazine about something you like, and read it regularly.
Also, there is a Polish language section on here, maybe try to ask for some more advices there?

Powodzenia nasze 17-letnie Słońce :)

RoyaltrampThreads: - Posts: 6 Joined: Mar 27, 10 ♂	Mar 27, 10, 20:08 #222
Dzięki :) Ah I only just saw the language forums, I'll check them out :)

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