I don't know if I qualify as any sort of language geek. I pick them up well in bits and peices. I learned swedish at 4 being around my uncle and a family friend. Though after the family friend died I had no reason to speak it so gradually lost it. Similar with cantonese. I started to learn it because of my kids(and well some of my exhusbands family refused to speak english). After the split and due to my sons language issues I got to speaking it less so lost some of it. Similar for french too. Oh and ASL...(but sometimes I default to that if I've lost my language)
But yet I can read some of those and some germanic languages or pick them up hearing people speak them. But I can't write in them and I can't speak them. Just odd little bits and pieces. *shrug*
Spinner once said there was some word for that ability. I don't remember what it is. Spinner is a linguistics major and also goes to #asperger irc channel though not seen her for ages.
I find it's just weird. It can take me up to 2 hrs to clue into spoken language. But one time when I was younger I was hanging out with a dutch friend. Their grandma only spoke dutch. I listened for maybe 1/2 hr. Then my friends grandma said to her "does she know what I'm saying?" My friend told her I don't speak dutch but then asked me if I grasped any of it. I said "I'm not sure is she talking about some Vicar who heart broken jumped off a bridge and commited suicide?" And she looked startled and said yes. Then she told her grandma that yes I understood. I said though to tell her I can't talk to her in her language though.
Something similar happened with a german friend. Growing up I was around her family for many years. They spoke german around the house but also would speak english for my benifit or if dealing with english speakers. So when I was around I'd hear mix of german and english. Eventually they got I knew what they were saying. I think they were amused even though I couldn't answer them.
With my one swedish uncle his relatives came over from sweden. By then I'd not spoken swedish in at least 9 yrs. I hadn't really read any in that time either. But they noticed I was paying attention to the conversation. Only one relative could speak english(he also spoke german as did the others). He asked me if I understood. I told him what I thought they were saying. He said I was right and asked if I could speak with them. I explained I couldn't. But I did say in german I spoke a little german. Unfortunately they spoke german way too fast and it was high german in formal. I couldn't respond right so gave up. Instead I just translated for others.
It's handy when languages click tho sometimes they just wont(even my own native one). I think it must be my high reading ability and pattern recognition that lets me translate. Too bad it's onesided and I can't respond in things.
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timeasmymeasure
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Date: 2004-09-18 10:00 pm (UTC)But yet I can read some of those and some germanic languages or pick them up hearing people speak them. But I can't write in them and I can't speak them. Just odd little bits and pieces. *shrug*
Spinner once said there was some word for that ability. I don't remember what it is. Spinner is a linguistics major and also goes to #asperger irc channel though not seen her for ages.
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Date: 2004-09-18 10:39 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2004-09-18 11:21 pm (UTC)Something similar happened with a german friend. Growing up I was around her family for many years. They spoke german around the house but also would speak english for my benifit or if dealing with english speakers. So when I was around I'd hear mix of german and english. Eventually they got I knew what they were saying. I think they were amused even though I couldn't answer them.
With my one swedish uncle his relatives came over from sweden. By then I'd not spoken swedish in at least 9 yrs. I hadn't really read any in that time either. But they noticed I was paying attention to the conversation. Only one relative could speak english(he also spoke german as did the others). He asked me if I understood. I told him what I thought they were saying. He said I was right and asked if I could speak with them. I explained I couldn't. But I did say in german I spoke a little german. Unfortunately they spoke german way too fast and it was high german in formal. I couldn't respond right so gave up. Instead I just translated for others.
It's handy when languages click tho sometimes they just wont(even my own native one). I think it must be my high reading ability and pattern recognition that lets me translate. Too bad it's onesided and I can't respond in things.