America The Melting Pot

Audio Spanish Lessons — By Shopping Blogs on November 18, 2009 6:18 am

Languages play a large role in cultures. Nations may be geographically defined by natural borders and longitude or latitude lines, but the language is what really glues together a  nation.

In history, the conquering and colonization of countries has sometimes resulted in the death or extinction of native languages. For example, Biblical Hebrew, Latin, Old Church Slavonic and Coptic are all languages that have died. These languages are not considered extinct because each remains used in some form for scientific or religious purposes.

It is estimated that there are roughly 6,000 languages in the world today and our language system continues to evolve and restructure.

Part of the evolution or wave a culture can create is by inhabiting a new region. This can be seen as the influx of Spanish culture and language become more and more popular in the United States.

Spanish is the most common language in the United States, after English. The largest percentage of this language in any one State is found in New Mexico and the State with the lowest concentration is Maine. New Mexico is split nearly evenly with over 43 percent of its residents using Spanish as their primary language. By contrast, Maine is a mere 1 percent.

There is no question that U.S. citizens who can fluently speak English and another language will have more job opportunities and may even be paid better than monolingual workers.

The easiest time to learn a language is when you are young. However this does not eliminate an old dog from learning a new trick. Though it requires commitment and diligence, adults can learn to speak another language.

One way to enhance the learning of another language is to immerse yourself in the culture of that language. By spending a week or month in another country, where native speakers are interacting with one another and you, you are more likely to learn the dialect. The amount of time you put into learning a new language may be the largest determining factor in your success.

Not everyone wishing to learn a second tongue can afford the time or money to take a month away. This is okay too and there are many courses you can study individually or in a group. Many communities offer night classes to teach entry level and even advanced language courses.

Some say that classroom learning is not as beneficial as say, listening to a book on tape while at the same time reading it. Although you many not be able to understand everything right away, you will get used to the feel and sound of the words and eventually you will be able to comprehend both spoken and written word.

It can also be easier to learn phrases rather than piece by piece words. For example, learning how to ask for the nearest restroom, how to order a meal, how to get directions, etc. will give you the tools necessary to build a foundation of conversation.

The good news is that citizens in the United States need not travel to Mexico or South America to learn how to speak the Spanish language. Because there is so much integration already in the U.S., you could probably find the Spanish translation of a book on tape and printed page at your local book store. Also, there are television channels and radio stations dedicated to the language and culture. One of the most rewarding ways to pick up the language would be to make a few friends who speak it as their primary language and get to know them better.

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