Annyeonghaseyo~!
For the past seven months, I've been learning a new language. For me, it’s been a bit tough, because I pick it up every now and then, and I don’t really stay consistent with my learning. It’s extremely important to be consistent in the language I’m learning, because Korean isn't an easy language to learn. To me, it’s easier to learn than a lot of languages, but that’s mostly because a high interest is peaked in learning this language. In fact, it’s pretty tough.
There’s the Hangul writing system (which isn't terribly hard to learn. I learned how to read and write the characters in about 30 minutes). Then there’s the language itself. It’s centered around a lot of vowels, and some sounds that native English speakers aren't used to making. There’s also the past, present, and future conjugations, as well as the “we, you, I, us, them, he, she” conjugations. That’s when you delve into the hard part.
So I’m writing this to help anyone who is trying to learn a new language. Some tips, hints, and places/websites to go may help out anyone who is trying to be fluent in a new tongue.
First, don’t try to learn multiple languages at once. I've tried to learn Japanese, Mandarin Chinese, and Korean all at once. Three different East Asian languages, each with their own characteristics. Though, I can’t count how many times I've mixed up words. I've also found myself saying the beginning of a sentence in one language, then ending it in another. Unless you have an amazing memory, and don’t mix things up easily, I suggest you focus on one language at a time. When you feel as if you’re quite well in it, move on to another (but don’t forget the one you learned!).
Continuous study is needed for learning a new language. I’m not saying you need to have your nose in a language book all day. Thirty minutes to an hour of language learning will help you be more proficient. Go on language learning sites like
Livemocha (you have to have an account, but it's 100% free) to become more fluent. Don’t be afraid to mess up. You’ll mess up a lot in the beginning. But continuous practice helps you to become a better speaker.
Find a pen-pal. Pen-pals are amazing friends to have. No, you may not have met them in person, but they can help you learn a new language and learn about the culture. For people who are looking for pen-pals who speak Korean, you can go to
PenpalKorea.com. I met so many people on there; they all help me with my language learning and are great friends. Also, keep in touch with them. There are many apps to message your friends in different countries. The two most important ones I (and many people in Korea) use are Line and KakaoTalk.
Don’t give up. Learning a new language is hard. It may seem like it’s easy at first, when learning phrases and random little words. Then you get to the conjugations and pronunciations, and you feel like you want to tear your hair out. If you don’t understand something, ask someone who speaks the language. Ask your pen-pals. Look it up. Research. Don’t just give up because it gets tough. Learning takes time, effort, and research.
Learn the essentials. When learning a new language, you don’t need to dive right in to conjugations and advanced grammar skills. Learn a few helpful phrases such as “how are you”, “my name is….”, “what is your name?”, “nice to meet you”, etc. Always learn the polite way to say things, especially if you are dealing with a language like Korean, which has multiple ways to say one word, depending on the politeness. Learn the essential “please”, “thank you”, etc., as well as “hello” and “goodbye”. These phrases are usually easy to remember, and will help you make more friends who speak the language. Also, learning the 150 most often used verbs will definitely give you a boost in learning the language.
Don’t just focus on phrases. At the beginning, learn essentials. But when you’re good at those, don’t just rely on a phrasebook, and don’t always ask your friends to be your walking translator. Research and start learning grammar rules once you feel as if you have essential phrases down. Once you begin learning the way a sentence is structured, learn conjugations (after you've learned the essential verbs). Once you know these conjugations and sentence structures, making a sentence in a new language won’t be as hard.
Learn about the culture. One mistake I've made in the past is trying to learn a language, while neglecting learning about the culture. You can’t learn a language without knowing the way people live or use certain words. There are some words in Korean that don’t quite translate over to English without sounding odd. There are certain customs in Korea that Americans don’t do. I was confused at first when I learned some of these words, such as “oppa” (오빠), "nuna" (누나), "hyeong" (형), and "eonni" (언니). I wondered why people were calling others “older sister” and “older brother” when they weren't even related. After doing research, I found out that it’s what you can call someone who is close to you, like a close friend. (This is the short explanation. For more info, research!) If I never wanted to learn the culture of this language, I never would have fully understood the explanation of these terms. Learning the history is part of it. I’m not a history person. Not at all. But I've found that learning a bit about Korean history has given me a greater love for their culture and language now.
Finally, apply it! Don’t just learn a new language and then set it on a shelf in your mind to collect dust. This is where having pen-pals comes in handy. Speak to them in their own language. Travel to a country that speaks that language. Get a job translating. Or, volunteer to subtitle videos in that language (or subtitle them in your own language if they are in a different language). Don’t just let your skills sit around. You’ll forget a lot of the words and phrases if you do that. Always apply the language in any way you can. Speak it to your friends. They may call you crazy, but you can get some extra practice in.
I hope this helped all the people who are trying the new adventure of learning a new language~! If you have any questions, feel free to ask! For all my readers, are you learning a language other than your own? Are you fluent in multiple languages? If so, which one(s)? Let me know in the comments!
~이하눌
Links:
- PenpalKorea is a 100% free pen-pal website for global users.
- Livemocha is a free language learning website for global users.
