Why Learn Spanish?
Spanish for Beginners
Letrero en Chicago. (Sign in Chicago.)
Photo by Seth Anderson; licensed via Creative Commons.
Who's learning Spanish these days? For starters, residents of the
United States, a bunch not known for conquering monoligualism, are
studying Spanish in record numbers. Spanish, too, is becoming of greater
importance in Europe, where it often is the foreign language of choice
after English. And it's no wonder that Spanish is a popular second or
third language: with some 470 million speakers, it's the third
most
commonly spoken language in the world (after English, Chinese), and according to some counts it has more native speakers
than English does. It is an official language on four continents and is
of historical importance elsewhere.
The numbers alone make Spanish a good choice for those wanting to
learn another tongue. But there are plenty of other reasons to learn
Spanish. Here are a few:
Better understanding of English: Much of the vocabulary of English has Latin origins, much of which came to English by way of
French.
Since Spanish is also a Latin language, you will find as you study
Spanish that you have a better understanding of your native vocabulary.
Similarly, both Spanish and English share Indo-European roots, so their
grammars are similar. There is perhaps no more effective way to learn
English grammar than by studying the grammar of another language, for
the study forces you to think about how your language is structured.
It's not unusual, for example, to gain an understanding of English
verbs' tenses and moods by learning how those verbs are used in Spanish.
Knowing your neighbors: Not all that many years ago,
the Spanish-speaking population of the United States was confined to
the Mexican border states, Florida and New York City. But no more. Even
when I lived less than 100 kilometers from the Canadian border, there
were Spanish-speaking people living on the same street as I did.
Wherever I've lived in recent years, knowing Spanish has proven
invaluable in speaking with others who don't know English.
Travel: Yes, it is perfectly possible to visit
Mexico,
Spain and even
Ecuatorial Guinea
without speaking a word of Spanish. But it isn't nearly half as much
fun. I remember about two decades ago — when my Spanish was much less
adequate than it is today — when I met some mariachis on top of one of
the pyramids near Mexico City. Because I spoke (albeit limited) Spanish,
they wrote down the words for me so I could sing along. It turned out
to be one of my most memorable travel experiences, and one unlike what
most tourists have the opportunity to enjoy. Time and time again while
traveling in Mexico, Central America and South America I have had doors opened to me simply because I speak Spanish, allowing me to see and do things that many other visitors do not.
Cultural understanding: While most of us can't hope
to learn the languages of more than one or two cultures other than that
of our own, those that we can learn help us to learn how other people
learn and think. When I read Latin American or Spanish newspapers, for
example, I often find that I gain a sense of how other people think and
feel, a way that is different than my own. Spanish also offers a wealth
of literature, both modern and traditional.
Learning other languages: If you can learn Spanish, you'll have a head start in learning the other Latin-based languages such as French and Italian
8. And it will even help you learn Russian and German,
since they too have Indo-European roots and have some characteristics
(such as gender and extensive conjugation) that are present in Spanish
but not English. And I wouldn't be surprised if learning Spanish might
even help you learn Japanese
or any other non-Indo-European language, since intensively learning the
structure of a language can give you a reference point for learning
others.
It's easy: Spanish is one of the easiest foreign
languages to learn. Much of its vocabulary is similar to English's, and
written Spanish is almost completely phonetic: Look at almost any
Spanish word and you can tell how it is pronounced. And while mastering
the grammar of Spanish can be a challenge, basic grammar is
straightforward enough that you can have meaningful communication after
only a few lessons.
Contact us to start your Spanish lessons :
Our Address :
Bangalore
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Next to Brigade Millennium Signal, J P Nagar,7th Phase,
Diagonally Opposite to the ICICI Bank ATM, Bangalore, Karnataka 560078
E-mail :
info@instituteofspanishstudies.com
Contact : +91 9480208123 / 9538657181 / +91-80-41116473 (10:30 AM -6:30 PM)
Skype : Spanishinbangalore
www.instituteofspanishstudies.com
Contact us for Spanish translation, interpretation and
corporate training services in any part of India.
Delhi
First Floor, Laxman Plaza
104, Munirka, New Delhi-110067
E-mail :
info@instituteofspanishstudies.com
Phone : +91 8826236699 / 9868330995
