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Polish was chosen the HARDEST LANGUAGE in the world to learn... :D


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ebowkiczulak  Oct 25, 09, 15:50    #211
My mother is from Poland, and said that English is a lot harder to learn then polish. My cousins speak both polish and English and say the same... they speak both since they where young. My dad now wishes my siblings and I did learn both.

Now I am looking to learn to speak better in polish I know a few words and can understand it a little. I do not know how to read or write in polish that might be the hard part.

Why now, my husband and I are looking to adopt from, Poland.

so if any one knows information on learning to speak read and write polish as well as adopt, please let me know. My mom is trying to teach me but since I do not live close to her it is hard.
CedThreads: 1
Posts: 62
Joined: Oct 19, 09 ♂ 		 Oct 25, 09, 17:19    #212
joland:
The hardest language to learn is: Polish

it depends for whom i guess.

it can be easier for Russians, Czech, Slovaks and other Slavs and more difficult for people whose languages have very little in common with slavic languages.
MrSchool100  Jan 13, 10, 22:23    #213
Not even for them.

How can you explain to them that in Polish you need DIFFERENT FORMS for numerals, for 1, for 2 for 3 and 4, and for 5 and next... and different numerals for kids?

and 17 forms for simple number "Two" ?

That's purely insanity
mafketisThreads: 17
Posts: 1,880
Joined: Mar 31, 08 ♂ 		 Jan 14, 10, 09:11    #214
MrSchool100:
How can you explain to them that in Polish you need DIFFERENT FORMS for numerals, for 1, for 2 for 3 and 4, and for 5 and next... and different numerals for kids?
and 17 forms for simple number "Two" ?
That's purely insanity

It might be if that's what people actually did. The 17 words for 'two' idea is based on formal prescriptive rules that almost no Polish speaker bothers following. In reality, most people drastically simplify the number system in various ways.

For years I didn't even try to inflect numbers (except for one, which is easy and two to a limited extent) beyond that I just used the nominative and ..... nobody every noticed.

This was partly an accidental strategy that came about after I noticed that most people couldn't answer questions I did have about number forms (or gave very different answers from each other).
Polonius3Threads: 1,005
Posts: 4,833
Joined: Apr 11, 08 ♂ 		 Jan 14, 10, 09:28    #215
Polish also has its own das Mädchen -- dziewczę (neuter for maiden).
jwojcieThreads: 3
Posts: 816
Joined: Jan 3, 09 ♂ 		 Jan 14, 10, 09:52    #216
selena:
I was wondering after reading through some of this thread how native Polish speakers react to novice speakers...

Speaking in the name of a nation is always tricky thing, but well, we not used to it so sometimes reactions can be like surprise, astonishment, sometimes one just cann't help it and burst out laughing... But don't worry about that and go for it...

PS.
Welcome in the polish speaking community ;-)
skysoulmateThreads: 41
Posts: 3,039
Joined: Jan 10, 10 ♂ 		Edited by: skysoulmate  Jan 14, 10, 12:22    #217
osiol:
I'm still tempted to give up Polish and learn Portuguese, Swedish or Fang instead.

Do it! Swedish is easy, logical and sounds great. American women love the "singing intonation" too... At least so I've heard... ;)

On a more serious note, the foreigners trying to learn Polish shouldn't be too worried about not being fluent... I travel in my job and noticed that as long as you make an attempt, try to learn the local language and respect the traditions and show an interest you will be welcomed whether in Poland, Brasil, Taiwan, China, Malaysia or Japan.

...well, I should add don't tell the Taiwanese they are really part of China because then no matter how much Mandarin you've picked up - you're dead to them... LOL
BrutalButcherThreads: 1
Posts: 623
Joined: Nov 10, 09 ♂ 		 Jan 14, 10, 14:04    #218
If you can´t learn Polish ,you may not have a talent for that language. Heck, if a Vietnamese can learn it ,why can´t YOU!?
skysoulmateThreads: 41
Posts: 3,039
Joined: Jan 10, 10 ♂ 		 Jan 14, 10, 17:09    #219
Nomsense:
My favourite example of such a word in English is "queue". I've heard English spelling was heavily influenced by French. That would explain it ;-) .

That's why the American English is so much easier, the spelling is more logical, follows the actual pronunciation a little bit more. Of course I'm biased and it all depends on what you're used to.


By the way, if you mention a "queue" in the US they'll think you're talking about a pool (billiard) "cue".

http://www.makecashwithebay.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2009/05/pool-cue. jpg

(hey, I'm talking about the cue, not her... ;)

Here instead of queueing we simply wait in line. LOL


…and while I’m at it…

Has there ever been a spelling reform in the Polish language? For example would it be possible to abolish the letter ó and only use u? Or to get rid of the spelling difference of h and ch? …how about ż and rz? Different spelling but the same pronunciation, right? At least I think so? Has that ever been considered?


I’m wondering because of the way Webster reformed the English language. Noah Webster is the gentlemen who made our lives so much easier here in the US. In his own words he saved us from the “clamour of pedantry" that surround the (British) English grammar and pronunciation. :)

“…Webster complained that the English language had been corrupted by the British aristocracy, which set its own standard for proper spelling and pronunciation. As a spelling reformer, Webster believed that English spelling rules were unnecessarily complex, so his dictionary introduced American English spellings, replacing "colour" with "color", substituting "wagon" for "waggon", and printing "center" instead of "centre"…”

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Noah_Webster (Off the subject - Note that the statue of Webster in West Hartford, Connecticut which is included in this article was designed by a Polish American - Korczak Ziółkowski)

UK - US

aeroplane - airplane
annexe - annex
cheque - check
doughnut - donut
encyclopaedia - encyclopedia
foetus - fetus
mould – mold
neurone – neuron
disorientated – disoriented
phoney – phony
programme – program
plough – plow
sceptic - skeptic
storey – story
theatre - theater
tyre – tire

Thank you Mr. Webster!


So has there ever been a similar language reform in Poland?
56Polish  Jan 14, 10, 17:16    #220
polish people enjoy polish being the HARDEST MOST ILLOGICAL AND WEIRDEST LANGUAGE in the whole wide world...

They enjoy having to learn 16 years Polish language (wasting their time and efforts actually)
and having an average of 56 out of 100 in Polish at their Matura exam...
while in English they get an average of 88 out of 100 ;)
Wroclaw BoyThreads: 57
Posts: 5,476
Joined: Jul 3, 09  Pictures: 2  Gold Member MEMBER ♂ 		 Jan 14, 10, 17:23    #221
skysoulmate:
Thank you Mr. Webster!

That really is biased it works both ways:

US - UK
zipper - zip
undershirt - vest
traffic circle - roundabout
potato chips - crisps
pocket book - hand bag
intermission - interval

I could go on.
skysoulmateThreads: 41
Posts: 3,039
Joined: Jan 10, 10 ♂ 		Edited by: skysoulmate  Jan 14, 10, 17:42    #222
Wroclaw Boy:
US - UK

traffic circle - roundabout (we simply don't build them here) LOL

pocket book - hand bag HUH? A pocket (small) book turns into a lady's hand bag? Dang feminine Anglos... ;)

You're right, the truth is always somewhere in between.


glaswegians:
The hardest languages in the world are generally far east asian especially mandarin and japanese.

Polack is not the hardest language to learn.

wǒ yī or I agree - mandarin is pretty tough. I'm picking up as much Mandarin as can but the pronunciation is tough. Also the dialects are very diverse. Cantonese (Hong Kong area) and Mandarin (most of China) are basically different languages. However even Beijing (Peking?) and Shanghai dialects are pretty different even though it's all Mandarin Chinese.


By the way you meant to say "Polski is not the hardest language to learn." ;)

Zai jain (good bye) :)
delphidomine  Jan 14, 10, 18:25    #223
mafketis:
This was partly an accidental strategy that came about after I noticed that most people couldn't answer questions I did have about number forms (or gave very different answers from each other).

So most polish people create their OWN language, because the polish language is just to hard
to learn for 99% of polish people even! So nice ! :)

56Polish:
They enjoy having to learn 16 years Polish language (wasting their time and efforts actually)
and having an average of 56 out of 100 in Polish at their Matura exam...
while in English they get an average of 88 out of 100 ;)

That is a very strong argument ;)
Wroclaw BoyThreads: 57
Posts: 5,476
Joined: Jul 3, 09  Pictures: 2  Gold Member MEMBER ♂ 		 Jan 14, 10, 18:28    #224
skysoulmate:
cheque - check

We use check as in lets "check the contents" but prefer to differentiate from the cheque as in (paper money).
skysoulmateThreads: 41
Posts: 3,039
Joined: Jan 10, 10 ♂ 		 Jan 14, 10, 18:34    #225
Wroclaw Boy:
We use check as in lets "check the contents" but prefer to differentiate from the cheque as in (paper money).

...but why, after all the stuff you check for in your bag was paid for with a check (ok, credit card) :)
MichalThreads: -
Posts: 2,408
Joined: Feb 27, 07 ♂ 		 Jan 16, 10, 20:11    #226
joland
They say that the grammar in Finnish is difficult too. I very much doubt if Polish is anywhere near the hardest language to learn.
skysoulmateThreads: 41
Posts: 3,039
Joined: Jan 10, 10 ♂ 		Edited by: skysoulmate  Jan 17, 10, 00:44    #227
Joland - I agree with you, I think it all depends on a person's background. For a Slovak Polish isn't that hard, for a German and an American it's pretty darn hard and for a Chinese and Korean it's almost impossible. Of course the reverse applies too.
So it's all very relative.

As far as Finnish - Long time ago when I lived in Sweden I lived with a Finnish girlfriend so I took Finnish classes; wanted to be able to talk to her folks in Finland (Suomi). The hardest things for me were all the double a's, etc and the fact the prepositions were "backward" - you wouldn't say something is "on the table" - instead the translation would be something like "tableon" - makes for loong words... lol. Makes for pretty sound though (and women ;)
gumishuThreads: 17
Posts: 3,943
Joined: Apr 6, 09  Pictures: 1 ♂ 		Edited by: gumishu  Jan 18, 10, 18:16    #228
skysoulmate:
So has there ever been a similar language reform in Poland?

yes there was one - but not very extensive - in the 30's - it made Jakub of Jakób for example can't remember any other examples
Jakub is a counterpart of James or Jacob in English (King James II Stewart is król Jakub II (drugi) Stewart in Polish)
BevKThreads: 18
Posts: 281
Joined: Mar 20, 09 ♀ 		 Jan 18, 10, 19:58    #229
I'm still sad that I can't have abstract conversations about a variety of subjects rather than just the very day to day Polish I've learned so far but every day brings a new word (or a new varient of a word I know for the various reasons), I will crack the nut with this, I bloody well will if it takes me the rest of my life I will!!!

Patience, practice and much banging your head on the wall!
strzygaThreads: 4
Posts: 986
Joined: Apr 30, 08 ♀ 		 Jan 18, 10, 20:51    #230
BevK:
I will crack the nut with this, I bloody well will if it takes me the rest of my life I will!!!

;))) I really like your attitude :)
violin75Threads: -
Posts: 3
Joined: Jan 18, 10 ♀ 		 Jan 18, 10, 22:18    #231
Im learning to speak polish and I love it! Poland should never speak any other language! Anything worth learning is a challenge and Polish is worth learning!!! Sometimes the sounds mix me up but once I learn them I never forget them. Maybe if more people spoke Polish in different countries around the world then there would be more help in understanding it. For example, at the universities or schools or tutors available, like with the Spanish language. I find most people learning Polish have to learn it on their own. In USA, at University of Florida in Gainesville offers Polish classes and is dedicated to it. I am currently using the book:
Cześć, jak się masz? A Polish Language Textbook Introduction to Polish A1. ISBN: 83-242-0633-7

They have two more levels and it comes with CD so the learner can here the pronunciation.
Any other ideas, I would be happy to hear about them.

A strong language for a strong people
A strong people for a strong Country!

Happy Polish learning!
Lyzko  Jan 20, 10, 14:37    #232
"Poland should never speak any other language..."


Don't you worry, Violin75, it won't (....and it doesn't, believe me!)

LOL
Andy MThreads: 1
Posts: 4
Joined: Jan 20, 10 ♂ 		 Jan 20, 10, 15:29    #233
Polish - 7 cases. Finnish 13! My father assured me that of the two, Polish was significantly easier to learn and he spoke both; amongst others; fluently.

Don't know whether I agree with difficult pronunciation, in point of fact I would say it is relieved of the inconsistencies that English enjoys. Once one has learnt the non changing value of a letter it becomes reasonably straightforward with the obvious exception of extremely unfamiliar letter groupings.
Lyzko  Jan 20, 10, 18:08    #234
Completely agree, Andy.

I started learning Hungarian years ago and found, like with Finnish, the case system daunting. Polish though, has it's hair-raising issues with numbers etc...
Andy MThreads: 1
Posts: 4
Joined: Jan 20, 10 ♂ 		 Jan 20, 10, 20:17    #235
Having spent a couple of weeks in Hungary in the 90's, I found it a completely unfathomable language. We were reduced to making noises like the animal to get the meat we required at the butchers shop. Laughable but effective. On the other hand when we reached Yugoslavia; we toured Europe for three months; the similarities allowed at least some vestige of speech.
Georgiana  Jan 20, 10, 20:27    #236
Lyzko:
Polish though, has it's hair-raising issues with numbers etc...

I sincerely believe that no foreigner who is sane, will ever fill his brain with so much unuseful seven cases, hundreds of possible terminations for each simple word, hundreds of declinations for all three genders

Statistics show that less then 2% of polish people can even write correctly in this criminal polish language. Why bother? You have english, it is 45006070 times more easier than polish


;)
strzygaThreads: 4
Posts: 986
Joined: Apr 30, 08 ♀ 		 Jan 20, 10, 20:39    #237
Georgiana:
less then 2%

Georgiana:
so much unuseful

Georgiana:
more easier than polish

oh... really?
Lyzko  Jan 20, 10, 23:05    #238
...and precisely, Georgiana dear, because you "have" English, as you put it, everyone considers it their personal property (the Poles being no exception!) and tend to use it badly. What's really the difference between putting up with the average Pole's poor English and the average foreigner's poor Polish?

Since many assume they can switch to English, the switching mechanism frequently malfunctions from misuse, thereby miscommunicating the message. But since it's 'only English' (ha-ha!!), noone seems to care much.

Pity.
mafketisThreads: 17
Posts: 1,880
Joined: Mar 31, 08 ♂ 		 Jan 20, 10, 23:52    #239
Georgina, Do the rest of the world a favor and stay in your own country and don't inflict your ignorance on the rest of the world.
angelboyThreads: -
Posts: 1
Joined: Jan 15, 10 ♂ 		 Jan 21, 10, 00:07    #240
Polish is not that difficult to learn. If a South-african can learn the language in 3 years just from dictionaries and people he worked with then it must be quite easy......

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