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.

[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