Learn any language in six months?

[pne]

I read a blog entry entitled Learn Any Language in 6 Months.

One of the key components is immersing yourself in the language: listening to the language on YouTube, reading newspapers, etc.

So I guess he's not really saying "Learn any language in six months", but "Learn any major language in six months - one which has enough material available easily that you can consume lots of it".

For example, I think I'd have a tough time finding significant content in Inuktitut: audio is the most problematical, but even written is probably tough if I don't want to read the minutes of parliamentary meetings or government brochures on avoiding AIDS. And even Romansh would be tricky: quite a few books, but I'm not sure whether I could get audio (RTR is mostly music, for example).

So, yeah. Good for you if the language you want to learn is Japanese. But something like Walloon? Is tougher.

Comments

[steorra]

I have some Inuktitut reading material... but that doesn't help you. I have an Inuktitut New Testament, and I think the book of Ruth (the book of Ruth is in a small pamphlet-sized book), and a magazine that's in three or four languages - a syllabically-written variety of Inuktitut (from the eastern Canadian arctic, I think), and a Latin-alphabet variety of Inuktitut (from the western Canadian arctic, I think). And probably also French, but I don't actually remember that.

I thought biblegateway might have Inuktitut bible materials, since it has a lot of obscure languages, but it doesn't, and a cursory Google isn't turning up an actual online Inuktitut bible, only discussion of Inuktitut bibles.

Not what I was looking for, but contains Inuktitut religious audio: http://globalrecordings.net/en/program/C10361

Actually, if you like, I could give you my copy of Ruth in 'Eastern Arctic Eskimo' (as the English title calls it). It's small enough that it shouldn't be difficult to mail. And if I ever get around to learning any Inuktitut, I'm more likely to want to practice on my New Testament.

[pne]

a magazine that's in three or four languages - a syllabically-written variety of Inuktitut (from the eastern Canadian arctic, I think), and a Latin-alphabet variety of Inuktitut (from the western Canadian arctic, I think). And probably also French, but I don't actually remember that.

Ah - that reminds me of a magazine or two I once saw available for download in PDF. I should follow up that route, too.

Not what I was looking for, but contains Inuktitut religious audio: http://globalrecordings.net/en/program/C10361

"Wrong" dialect for me, but I see it has lots of other options, so thanks for pointing me towards the site!

Actually, if you like, I could give you my copy of Ruth in 'Eastern Arctic Eskimo' (as the English title calls it). It's small enough that it shouldn't be difficult to mail. And if I ever get around to learning any Inuktitut, I'm more likely to want to practice on my New Testament.

That would be nice, yes. My address is in http://pne.dreamwidth.org/1974/11/16/ .

[steorra]

Okay, I have it in an addressed envelope, but it'll probably be a bit before I get to a post office for correct postage.

[pne]

Thank you!

[steorran_worulde]

It's sent off.
(Don't feel like logging out of this account at the moment while I have another post in the making.)

[pne]

It arrived today. Thank you very much!

[steorra]

You're welcome!

[pne]

Do you remember where you got your Inuktitut New Testament from? I wonder whether I can get a hold of one, too.

[steorra]

I bought it in person in Iqaluit when I was there in 2000 with the fiddling group I belonged to. I believe it was published by the Canadian Bible Society, and their online store has a New Testament and Psalms available that looks like mine, though if mine has Psalms I've forgotten it. (I can't check because it's at my parents' house.)

[pne]

Thanks for the link! I've ordered a copy there, now.

[steorra]

Some other resources I've found:

A children's book in North Baffin Inuktitut downloadable as a PDF

Resources from Nunavut Arctic College, including a downloadable animal and plant book also in North Baffin Inuktitut. And more downloadable books recommended by them. That last link in particular has probably got a good deal of useful stuff.

(What dialect are you trying to learn?)

Some sort of online dictionary - I haven't explored it to see how it works

[steorra]

And because apparently I can't resist a good resource hunt, here are some Inuktitut audio and video resources:

Audio recordings of Elders. Lots of singing, some talking. Brief English summaries, but no translations.

Interviews with Inuit midwives. Inuktitut audio, Inuktitut and English transcripts.

IsumaTV. I found it through a link to a particular person's Inuktitut videos on the site, but it apparently has a lot of Inuktitut video and audio, as well as video and audio in other languages. Poking around the site, I found it hard to navigate, but the How to use IsumaTV page has instructions, including how to search according to language.

[pne]

Thank you very much!

Children's books are probably particularly good.

One difficulty with Inuktitut is that it tends to do with morphology what English does with syntax, so the words can look rather overwhelming and it can be difficult to recognise the bits you know. (The fact that many suffixes delete the final consonant of the chunk in front of them doesn't help: you can't even recognise, say, a -tuq- chunk since it could look like -tu- depending on what's following.)

And I think I'd like to learn North Baffin and/or Igloolik speech; I like the fact that it's phonologically a bit more conservative than South Baffin / Iqaluit speech, and appreciate the fact that the two are otherwise fairly close, so if I should ever get there, things should be easier than if I had learned something more distant (such as Nunavik, Labrador, Natsilingmiut, Inuvialuktun, or whatever, let alone Inupiaq or Greenlandic).

Now I shall have to bookmark this entry so I'll find the links you gave me again more easily later.