local linguists

Students reflect on joy, benefits of learning new langauges

“To learn a new language is to gain a new soul” is a popular proverb that has similar versions in various languages — but they all impart the same message: learning a new language is like looking at the world through a new lens.

Students learn foreign languages for many different reasons ranging from career aspirations to hobbies to cultural experiences.

For aspiring polyglot and junior Gideon Ong, learning a language is a hobby that he has pursued since the age of six.

“[Learning languages] is a wonderful thing to do,” Ong said. “I’m [currently] in the process of learning French and many [other languages]. It’s fun [and] helps expand your mind.”

Similar to Ong, sophomore Michelle Harry is learning Korean and Javanese — an Indonesian language — which has helped her forge stronger ties with her mother’s Indonesian culture.

“I’ve been multilingual since birth, so it’s just second nature for me to pick up languages,” Harry said. “I hear my friends talk [in Korean] with each other, and I often overhear strangers having conversations. It’s really fun to know what they’re talking about.”

While many learn languages as a hobby, junior Elaina Sawyer’s career aspirations in the field of healthcare encouraged her to study the classical language of Latin, which is the source of many basic medical terminologies.

“Languages change over time,” Sawyer said. “But this language didn’t. [It] died out, but it [also] led to a bunch of new languages and [many] fundamentals of English come [from] Latin.”

Improving one’s language abilities enhances productivity as well as many other cognitive skills.

“It’s a better usage of time than just mindlessly scrolling on useless apps on your phone,” senior Diego Cardenas said. “Instead of spending 20 minutes playing on my phone, I spend 20 minutes on Duolingo practicing [Italian].”

Nevertheless, acquiring new linguistic skills is both challenging and time-consuming.

“I try [to] focus on it a lot, but it’s hard [with] my schedule,” Sawyer said. “But the good thing about using apps to [learn] is [that] in any little break I have, I can [work on it].”

Increasing globalization and technology have further eased the process of studying a language. And when a person is intrinsically motivated, language learning can often make its way into their routine.

“Pop culture allows for greater connectivity,” Harry said. “It’s easier to learn languages from people who make videos online, read articles [or] translate them through Google Translate.”

Enhancing one’s linguistic abilities not only improves one’s communication but also helps one comprehend the cultures that go along with it.

“Language is a facet of culture,” Ong said. “It’s not necessary that you have to have a certain language connected with a culture, but it is a wider element [of cultures].”

Due to the close interrelationship between culture and language, having a proper grasp of culture is vital to understanding a language’s structure.

“The way that sentences are structured and words are emphasized in different languages truly tells a lot about the [demographics] of the region,” Harry said.

Along with providing a worldview, popular proverbs and idioms from a language can give insight into the history of a culture.

“I learned a lot about ancient Romans that I would not have known if it weren’t for Latin,” Sawyer said. “It took [me] through days in their life, which allowed me to learn about their [lifestyle and] culture [as well].”

Additionally, being multilingual also opens the door for many career opportunities because fluency enables meaningful interactions.

“You can get paid more for your job because you know another language [and] can communicate with [other] people [who don’t speak English],” Cardenas said.

Improving one’s linguistic abilities can help bridge the disconnect between cultures and provide lasting benefits.

“[Languages] help you bond with people over the fact that you know the same language and understand the same culture,” Harry said. “[And] since I enjoy it so much, I could [always] turn it into a career and become a translator or diplomat.”