English is usually touted as one of the most difficult languages for any non-native speaker to learn. For better or worse, it has its ambiguities and it regularly borrows heavily from other languages all around the world. Mastering English is indeed a workshop in learning multiple languages. In addition, with English, there are any number of neologisms coined every year. It is indeed a vibrant and ever-changing language.
In short and simple terms, the mastery of the English language is extremely difficult.With that said, on the other hand, the mastery of English does not imply a concomitant mastery of other languages. In fact, knowing English can often be an impediment to learning other languages. It is simply too easy to depend on others to learn your language. With those thoughts in mind, we thought we would introduce several languages that most native English speakers perpetually struggle with:
Greek – Predating English by several millenia, this language is still a devil to understand. The alphabet is not the same and in most cases, the sentences are longer and more convoluted – a definite disadvantage to those trying to learn. Still, the learning of Greek has been a mainstay of most liberal arts education for over two centuries.
Russian – Derived from the Greek but with its own distinct alphabet, the Russian language bears little resemblance to any of its nearby “Romance” cousins in Europe. In fact, the Cyrillic alphabet is comprised of only 24 letters. For almost all Westerners, reading Russian is essentially an impossible task. Even so astute a man as Marco Polo was stumped in learning this language.
Arabic – On the scale of incomprehensibilty for Westerners, written Arabic must be close to the very top of the list. While the mellifluous tones of its spoken word are readily accessible, the sweeping grace of its curved – and very foreign looking – letters are quite mystifying to the uninitiated observer. All in all, learning Arabic is a labor of love. Insha’Allah.
Urdu – Another language with a non-Arabic alphabet, Urdu is also unpredictable in its use of vocal stresses. Urdu is difficult to write properly but is quite accessible in its spoken form.
Chinese – Whether you would like to learn Cantonese or Mandarin – the two most ubiquitous Chinese dialects – you will have a devil of a time learning the various intricacies of the language. In addition to having pictograms instead of letters, the language also uses inflection to make the same word mean something else. Its subtlety surpasses English.
Khoisan – More familiarly known as the “click” family of languages, Khoisan is easily the most foreign of languages to the average speaker of English. There are actually several different types of “clicks’ that make the language even more impenetrable to learn for the newbie. In short, there is no overlapping structure between this language and modern English making it very difficult to master.
Interpreting and Translation Blog 