Why do We Learn Languages?

[@akyley]

I study languages because it gives me a sense of satisfaction , it's like I live a different life with every foreign langauge that I learn . I am a curios baby once again and everything is so new for me and ready to be explored. After couple of months of studying a language and you start understanding it you get a sense of achievement and joy that is so hard to put it into words. It's like a close relationship that you have with that language .More like a love affair.

[@lesnav23]

I learn languages just because I love them and it gives me access to a lot of information. Thank you for the tip about RAI due and their podcasts because I want to learn Italian. I like your videos and I watch them no matter how often you upload them!

[@rollingmcf]

I started learning Romanian because of the unique language and obscure place it is and for half of my life it was closed behind the 'Iron Curtain' and now a whole new world is now open for us to explore and communicate through the internet. I enjoy your videos very much and look forward to them and prefer them on a weekly basis if possible. Multumesc foarte mult!

[@SubjectAlpha100]

I like learning languages because it offers the opportunity to become a different person. When you understand another language, you understand another culture - a new way of looking at and understanding the world. It's almost like becoming a different person. I personally love the fantasy of it. Everytime I feel I've made an improvement, I fall in love a bit more deeply with the language I'm learning. You've been a great inspiration and a role model - thank you for the vids and insight!

[@floodland99]

Steve, really enjoy your videos. A video every week or two would be great. I'm learning a language so I can communicate better with my family but I also enjoy(for the most part) the long term challenge it poses.

[@ГражинаБальзак]

Hi from Moscow, Steve! It was very interesting to hear what is your causes to learn languages. I started learning English at school and then I continue my study by myself. I learn English because I enjoy it and feel some different happiness when I can understand what I hear or read in English. And there is a lot of information that I can lear only in English. Also I hope it will help me in my future travelings. This year I started to lean Spanish because I enjoy how it sound and I want to go to live in Spain. You asked how frequently you should make videos. It will be great if you do it twice a week. Thank you for your work!

[@miladini1]

regarding the second question, i've to say any frequency is good as long as it is at least once a week or worst case let's say once every other week. The thing with your videos is that, not only they're educational and intellectual, but at the same time they're great source of motivations for your viewers. I am really really motivated to know someone who HAS actually learnt different languages. So, a lot of motivations hence part of the reason why so many of people like your channel :)

[@TheExodus007]

I started because I want a deeper interaction with other cultures. I feel once you begin to dive deeper into another's language, you begin to appreciate their culture, foreign to you, more and gain an interest in learning more about it than when you started. I think every week or two weeks is nice. I like your videos. They're informative and give different views on techniques and the like.

[@vlalimpiev]

Hey Steve! Thanks for another video! I'd like to agree that if you can tell us something interesting, please do tell. Now about why I learn. I'm a native Russian speaker, I've been learning English at school. My initial motivation to learn myself was the inability to speak and a wish to work abroad one day. Then I found that language learning also opens you the whole new fascinating world, and that feeling was great. I can watch movies in English, listen to music understanding the lyrics etc.

[@Nevertoto]

Please do them as often as you like. Your videos are really informative and I never get tired of you. Thanks so much!

[@timtamothy51]

Hey Steve, long-time listener, first-time commenter. I noticed some others have said a similar thing but I thought I'd put in my two cents... I enjoy all your videos and you seem to be the most prolific polyglot youtuber so I appreciate it that you try to put at least 1 or 2 a week -- as much as you can, really! Keep up the great work and all the best!

[@miladini1]

Hello Mr. Kaufmann, Thanks for the videos. Regarding your first question, I must say my ultimate motivation is to enjoy. I believe the real enjoyment comes from communicating with people. In my opinion, learning in any 'passive way' is actually like replacing actual real people out in the world with virtual ones in our brain and try to enjoy communicating and having sympathy with. In my opinion, in this case the 'active' is identical as real and 'passive' is virtual.

[@cherishyork2044]

Hi Steve, This is sort of a first commenting on one of your videos and I enjoy them very much. I would prefer to watch your videos at least once or twice a week. I'm currently learning Japanese and I've been grabbing resources off friends and the internet. I learnt the language because I love watching anime and reading manga. I would like to go towards the extent of understanding the language passively just like English. Keep up the good work Steve!

[@johnparr5772]

I started because i wanted to see if i could learn a language, i haven't achieved that yet but i am in no doubt i will. I started with PIMS but on holiday to Spain i realized i may be able to ask for a beer but had not the slightest idea what they were saying back to me. Found your videos and love the process now. I am convinced the way we learn a new language is no different to how we learn our first language. Now i want to learn spanish because i love the culture and i want to live there.

[@Cuinn837]

I absolutely love to learn languages! Unfortunately, I have Multiple Sclerosis and my strength for learning them is limited. I struggle with them as much as I can. I have joined Lingq to help me, but I have to go slowly. I enjoy listening to your broadcasts, and I often go back and listen to your old ones. I think you should make as few or as many videos as you are comfortable with. The old ones are helpful too!

[@futurez12]

As many as you feel you can produce tbh, your videos are inspiring to a lot of us! As far as reasons to learn, for me, exactly the same reasons as you, to access another world but also to be able to communicate with that world, total fluency and things like perfect accent aren't really a concern, I don't have the kind of time it would take to achieve that anyway.

[@terugi]

Steve, you can do videos whenever you want and I will be very happy, because listening to your words is always a pleasure. I have learnt english through your videos, and I can say a have acquired fluency in listening (as you can see in writing I am not that good) due to going over and over again to your videos everyday. So, keep going amazing videos. Guilherme from Brazil

[@ClementHaag]

I really love this kind of videos, whenever you publish one of them, it drives me to revising languages soon afterwards. Do as many as possible, please :D

[@alansmithee6150]

I'm learning to get in touch with my heritage, but also because it opens up so many doors. Language learning and translation, like speech recognition, is one of those things that is not going to be solved by computers anytime soon because of the imprecise nature of language. All the idioms and special cases and exceptions and the non 1-to-1 mappings of words ensure that learning languages the old fashioned way will remain for a long time.

[@gregg4]

Steve Anytime a good idea pops into your head, that's the right frequency for the videos. Looking forward to the Italian video. Cheers

[@MegaKlorin]

Thanks for your great videos, Steve! Once or twice a week is great if you are able to keep up such a high production rate!

[@surrected4526]

2x a week if you have the time :-) ~I learn languages to enter into a given world of literature, history and culture. My shelves abound in books written in foreign languages. My two Nano’s are full of podcasts from different countries. ~The other day I spoke to a parking attendant in Italian, that lasted 2mins; last night I read & listened to an Italian novella, which took about 2+hours. Both experiences brought me joy, but to engage the language sans limit is the greatest feeling of all.

[@derekyang2939]

Thank you Steve for yet another fantastic video!

[@zerrubabbel]

I learn languages for a few basic reasons... 1- to talk to people, 2- to see how far I can take it, and 3- for traveling and exploring... namely Japan so far, but while im still learning Japanese, I am slowly focusing more on Chinese, been thinking about German, and have done a little Spanish... also... I feel like your video timing is perfect... its not so sparse to be like "I wish I would here from steve more" but its not overwhelming either... dont change a thing ^.^

[@MisterM2402]

Whenever you have a topic to talk about and the time to make a video, that's fine with me. As for the main point of the video: I started studying Japanese on a whim (while unemployed during a year out between high school and university) and continue to do so just because I enjoy it. For me, I don't do it to read manga, watch anime or live in the country or anything like that. I'm not really one for speaking to lots of people in English, so I don't really care *too* much about speaking Japanese.

[@OliNorwell]

Never worry about making too many videos, as unlike TV, remember we can always go back and catch up on the ones we missed. I'd be interested in hearing some anecdotal stories from your 30+ years of learning languages, you must have thousands of anecdotes that are both entertaining and also describe the process of learning a new language.

[@MrJoeMaz]

I've always dreamed of learning other languages. Growing up I always would try to study: getting learn in you car courses, phrasebooks, flashcards, pimsluer, rosetta stone, etc. These were all ineffective for me because I would try to do too much and not be consistent. You have shown that the important thing is not courses or amount of effort but sticking with it and enjoying the process. I have relatives that speak French and I want to be a part of that (my kids too).

[@MrJoeMaz]

I find your videos highly motivating and informative: I always look forward to hearing what you have to say. I like the various short term series that you randomly do: summer sessions or foreign language with a follow up on that language for example. I wouldn't want the establishment of a schedule for frequency of video uploads to hinder creativity by forcing you into a box. How about a range: 1-5/week

[@Kotori147]

Hi there! I LOVE listening to your videos! I always listen to them while I am creating Japanese sentece flashcards in Anki with the words I learned on a given day. So if it were for me you could make a video every day. lol Reasons for learning languages: I learned Japanese to an advanced level because I moved here and am very interested in the culture etc, talk to people , want to read newspapers etc. And currently I am learning Chinese because of my Chinese boyfriend! And I am interested in TCM

[@galloverde9481]

Sono davvero contento che farai un video in italiano, Steve! In Italia idealizziamo l'estero e tendiamo un po' troppo all'autocommiserazione. Sapere che fuori dei nostri confini c'è qualcuno che si interessa addirittura alla lingua italiana è molto gratificante. Se leggi "I Promessi Sposi" hai un livello davvero alto: è una lettura un po' difficile anche per gli stessi italiani (io non li amo tanto). Posso chiederti che città hai visitato quando sei stato in Italia e che impressioni hai avuto?

[@supermonk3y07]

my preffered frequency of your videos is once a week or twice a week because I like your videos a lot. I like the content of your videos and seeing you speak in Japanese and Mandarin Chinese, the languages I am learning. I also like seeing you speak in Spanish because spanish is my native language.

[@iNBungs]

I enjoy watching your videos weekly. But I understand it is time consuming, even once every two weeks would be great. Enjoy Whistler! was just there on the long weekend, gorgeous.

[@ko4536]

I know what you mean! I really do. Using different languages (understanding, speaking, writing) is like travelling between various universes. Within a second one can be in a world of different meanings... I love it, it blows my mind, it is addictive. Why don't you do your videos once a week, please?

[@twodimensionsjhr]

I love watching your videos. I always check out your channel every week. I would prefer to see at least a vid a week =). I am learning Japanese b/c when I was in highschool my family use to have a Japanese student every summer who came to learn English which got me interested in Japan. I didnt think of learnin Japanese till after serveral inspirational Polyglot vids. After I want to learn Tagalog, which is my mothers language. My dad only spoke English (use to speak Welsh) so I only learned Eng.

[@TheMartikaa]

Dieses Gefühl wenn man beginnt die Muttersprachler zu verstehen, das ist wunderschön!

[@Hanayanaa]

once a week or once every two weeks is okay for me. As long as you can do it. Either way I'll still watch. I started learning Japanese because I loved the sound of the language and I wanted to understand the dramas I was watching. I continue to learn because I want to be able to communicate. I've always wanted to be bilingual but now I'm toying with the idea of learning more than one foreign lang since watching so many polyglots online. Inspiring and also curious about other cultures more.

[@nickleonard6296]

Hi Steve, thanks for the tip on Italian podcasts. I've downloaded the ones on Italian cooking and Roman emperors (two of my favourite topics anyway) and I'm looking forward to listening to them. Re: your main topic, I enjoy reading books in Spanish, particularly those by Laura Gallego, who writes fantasy novels for adolescent readers (and non-adolescent Spanish learners!). Reading her books has also really improved my Spanish. I recommend the Memorias de Idhun trilogy for those interested.

[@miladini1]

Mr. Kaufmann, I think I have to take part of what I said back after I thought about this issue once again. Since, I believe the real true sense of joy we all experience-like all types of normal human feelings- comes from within, I believe it's wrong for me to say that passive activities aren't really joyful. And, definitely other cultures might -just might- happen to be very different that ours and by exploring different cultures we are actually becoming better and nearly more complete people.

[@michaelhasfel7]

If not too much trouble for you, I think one video a week would be great. I learn languages ​​​​to know cultures that interest me, and have access to knowledge that is not available in my mother language. I'm currently learning English, which is already good, and starting learning french, but I'm still at the basic level.

[@SteveKaufmann]

Norwegian is a non-supported language. We rely on our members to contribute content to our libraries. If you find interesting content on the Internet, you can imported for your own use. If this material is free of copyright, you can share in our library. Good luck in your Norwegian studies.

[@spoonary]

Well, I started learning Spanish at school and I have since fallen in love with the language. A culture I have always been interested in is that of Italy, hence my current language learning project. As for the frequency of your videos: well I would like to see 2 videos a week but at the risk of you burning out, perhaps once a week is enough.

[@bretttravers5467]

Hi, I'm learning swedish, hungarian, and bulgarian. I like very different languages from other like spanish or italian. I use books and online resources to learn them. I generally try to learn 50 words a week. I learn by writing, reading, and listening to music or watching shows in the languages.

[@SteveKaufmann]

Thanks for dropping by and I hope you enjoy LingQ.

[@Avanz91]

Three times a week is perfect , as far as i am concerned . I agree with you on the enjoyment of reading and listening , for sure if the opportunity arises i like to speak as well , but that is not my main goal . Per quanto riguarda l'italiano vedo che leggi dei libri che non sono semplici neanche per noi , soprattutto i promessi sposi . When i read books in a foreign langauge i prefer some more contemporary stuff because the langauge is more similiar to the one spoken nowadays.

[@PetreLou]

Listening to a podcast, driving and enjoying the landscape at the same time is a 'multitasking' trap that does not lead to very good results, but possible car accident (although, nowadays, we often hear that this is actually the right way to learn). I suggest doing one thing at the time instead. Don't take me wrong - I admire you for learning my mother tongue that is rather difficult :).

[@christiancarrigan3464]

make videos as often as possible yu inspire me I am 13 I speak dutch and English I am American and you helped a lot thanks!!!!

[@TaiFerret]

I'm also learning new languages to have access to other cultures. It isn't always easy to find translations of foreign shows. I hope I will one day understand enough Japanese to watch and understand anime in the original language.

[@hobosorter]

I'll be completely honest, underneath it all, I learn languages for the women. I don't want language to be a barrier to meeting women(and hopefully the love of my life) wherever they may be.

[@NoMoreRoomToWiggle]

Oance or twice a week I love your videos!!

[@coperfield9188]

I love you Kaufman please make a video about the philosophy of language

[@tylerwaye632]

Great video, thanks Steve!

[@TRFrench]

I would probably watch if you podcasted every day (I can catch up on the weekends). Byut Twice a week would make sense.

[@nirwanfiles]

thanks for the video..

[@susanxjx]

Hey Steve, I've been a long time fan of yours. However, today i find an interesting question that you might want to answer: Have you ever found other cultures making you uncomfortable? how do you deal with it and pull through? I am Chinese, trying to learn vietnamese. I really do not like how this language sound, and additionally, i am living in US, i discovered i am not really comfortable with the idea of trying to have fun all the time, and this just discourages my desire to learn about the culture so much more. Thanks!

[@Thelinguist]

There are always things in a culture that I like and things I don't like. I just focus on the things I like.

[@YDoIT95]

italian music and movies is what my method is for Italian also interviews and press conferences with football/musical ''stars''

[@Thelinguist]

Try googling "Alle otto della sera podcast"

[@declan8577]

Because it's hard, because it gives you a different view on a foreign culture and because I want to read history in its original language.

[@zweiosterei]

Me gusta aprender otros idomas porque eso te ofrece nuevas formas de ver el mundo. Te abre los ojos a una nueva dimension de ver las cosas y da entrada a una nueva experiencia cultural y personal. Te hace mas 'rico' como persona.

[@jacquisaysno]

Once or twice a week would be really, really nice.

[@osamahabbas3443]

Thanks.

[@SteveKaufmann]

Dirò tutto in dettaglio nel mio video la prossima settimana.

[@AndreLuiz-cn5hr]

As much as you can

[@Xeon1791]

very nice video mr kaufmann

[@dannyardon1710]

The first almost half of the video seemed more like he promoting the audiobook. Skipped til around half way. KZbin gives us enough ads, you can do better

[@samuraidapreguica7825]

2 videos a week sounds quite fair.

[@alkantre]

Cada idioma es una esplendida casona. Habitar una sola casona y disfrutar de sus esplendores esta bien, naturalmente. Pero el poder habitar y disfrutar de varias mansiones es mucho mejor. El latin tambien es una casona, quiza mas preciosa todavia, pues repleto de bellisimas antiguedades.

[@vincentydl527]

This is why i am learning languages too :-D

[@hokugaijohnson794]

i just have a quick question Steve, I'm learning French and i recently come into contact with a lot of south Africans, and i want to learn Afrikaans but i dont wanna lose my french i dont want to lose the six months of french i have done, what do you think i should do?

[@Thelinguist]

syd newman You won't lose your French. go for the language that you are most motivated to learn at any given time.

[@nirwanfiles]

a gold word for learning language is practice.. so do it for your French

[@dudeonthasopha]

I think my language learning stems from a little identity crisis. I grew up in the usa and i always envied 1st generation americans who still had a connection to an old culture and an old language because i feel like american culture is impoverished and it can't be the "melting pot" if you don't have an identity of your own. although i'm from MN and swedish i know much more french. it's like you get to be a different, more interesting, maybe even exotic person.

[@galloverde9481]

Perfetto, grazie: sono stato troppo impaziente! :-)

[@Xeon1791]

3-4 per week is perfect

[@FlyffAddict]

Twice a week sounds good to me Steve.

[@Sarmatique]

Frequency? The more videos, the better.

[@y0sh1100]

1 video i veckan känns lagom, men tycker inte du ska känna dig tvingad att göra videor med en viss frekvens, det viktigaste är väl innehållet

[@Irinales]

Of course listening to books in a foreign language is fascinating but personally I find that it feels sterile after a while. Being able to communicate to others using a “made up" system of sounds and signs is the best thing about learning foreign languages. As I see it, only your maternal language truly feels "real", all the others seem "make believe". When you learn a language you create a "fantasy world". Who wouldn't want to talk to people who actually live in this “made up world”?

[@JM7Blocks]

Twice a DAY!

[@mlinjiang7618]

Hello everyone,i'm from China.Is there any guy wanna speak Chinese with me.

[@grujcyk]

Twice a week (if you won't run out of ideas too quickly that way :P )

[@briancrichton-clarke8836]

I would like to learn Russian.

[@adambrown7067]

Twice a week

[@darrylcaldwell4492]

Twice a week.

[@don77frye]

How could we want videos once a month ? If you make videos very often and we don't want them ... we can watch something else . It's not like you are invading our homes in any way , Steve . Do as many as you want . There are a lot of people that are interested in your videos .

[@Pakanahymni]

Do videos when you have something to say.