Italian versus Spanish
Sep 14th 2006, 1:13 pm
#1
Guest
Posts: n/a
Italian versus Spanish
I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to this
thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
from a multiple-purpose point of view? To put it another way, is it
easier for a Spaniard to understand Italian or vice versa? I've already
tried to study both of them and have come to the conclusion that I do
not have the linguistic skills to keep them both straight, so I will learn
one or the other. I read somewhere that Spaniards can understand
Italian easier than the reverse, but I have no idea how true that is.
thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
from a multiple-purpose point of view? To put it another way, is it
easier for a Spaniard to understand Italian or vice versa? I've already
tried to study both of them and have come to the conclusion that I do
not have the linguistic skills to keep them both straight, so I will learn
one or the other. I read somewhere that Spaniards can understand
Italian easier than the reverse, but I have no idea how true that is.
Sep 14th 2006, 1:26 pm
#2
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Italian versus Spanish
"vermillion" <[email protected]> wrote in
news:[email protected]:
> I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to
> this thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a
> language- challenged person like myself, which would be the better one
> to study from a multiple-purpose point of view? To put it another
> way, is it easier for a Spaniard to understand Italian or vice versa?
> I've already tried to study both of them and have come to the
> conclusion that I do not have the linguistic skills to keep them both
> straight, so I will learn one or the other. I read somewhere that
> Spaniards can understand Italian easier than the reverse, but I have
> no idea how true that is.
It should really come down to your purpose. Spanish is the more likely
to learn simply becasue more people speak it; however, if you are
planning to go to Italy often and not so much to Spain or Latin America,
then Italian is your choice.
--
Joseph Coulter
Cruises and Vacations
http://www.josephcoulter.com/
news:[email protected]:
> I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to
> this thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a
> language- challenged person like myself, which would be the better one
> to study from a multiple-purpose point of view? To put it another
> way, is it easier for a Spaniard to understand Italian or vice versa?
> I've already tried to study both of them and have come to the
> conclusion that I do not have the linguistic skills to keep them both
> straight, so I will learn one or the other. I read somewhere that
> Spaniards can understand Italian easier than the reverse, but I have
> no idea how true that is.
It should really come down to your purpose. Spanish is the more likely
to learn simply becasue more people speak it; however, if you are
planning to go to Italy often and not so much to Spain or Latin America,
then Italian is your choice.
--
Joseph Coulter
Cruises and Vacations
http://www.josephcoulter.com/
Sep 14th 2006, 5:27 pm
#3
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Italian versus Spanish
"vermillion" <[email protected]> ha scritto nel messaggio
news:[email protected]...
>I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to this
> thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
> challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
> from a multiple-purpose point of view? To put it another way, is it
> easier for a Spaniard to understand Italian or vice versa? I've already
> tried to study both of them and have come to the conclusion that I do
> not have the linguistic skills to keep them both straight, so I will learn
> one or the other. I read somewhere that Spaniards can understand
> Italian easier than the reverse, but I have no idea how true that is.
i really do not understand the question..
Italian and spanish are similar.. but it takes a little bit to understand
each of the two languages.
I would study spanish. as it is more widely spoken.
then i would learn the similarities to italian.
as I can speak both. I can tell you that most of the words are similar, but
not all of them.
you will have difficulties in declinating verbs.. in both languages I mean.
on the other hand, words that are similar have sometimes completely
different meanings
( Italian burro is butter, in spanish donkey.. and so on.. )
so. try to learn one and then try to learn the second one
news:[email protected]...
>I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to this
> thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
> challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
> from a multiple-purpose point of view? To put it another way, is it
> easier for a Spaniard to understand Italian or vice versa? I've already
> tried to study both of them and have come to the conclusion that I do
> not have the linguistic skills to keep them both straight, so I will learn
> one or the other. I read somewhere that Spaniards can understand
> Italian easier than the reverse, but I have no idea how true that is.
i really do not understand the question..
Italian and spanish are similar.. but it takes a little bit to understand
each of the two languages.
I would study spanish. as it is more widely spoken.
then i would learn the similarities to italian.
as I can speak both. I can tell you that most of the words are similar, but
not all of them.
you will have difficulties in declinating verbs.. in both languages I mean.
on the other hand, words that are similar have sometimes completely
different meanings
( Italian burro is butter, in spanish donkey.. and so on.. )
so. try to learn one and then try to learn the second one
Sep 14th 2006, 7:48 pm
#4
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Italian versus Spanish
On Thu, 14 Sep 2006, vermillion wrote:
> thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
> challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
> from a multiple-purpose point of view?
Don't know what you mean by multiple purpose here. So I cannot answer.
Either do first the language you think to be needing more ... or try
to do them in parallel (Schliemann learned languages that way).
> is it easier for a Spaniard to understand Italian or vice versa?
Cannot comment for Spaniards myself.
As an Italian I understand written Spanish without any study, better
than I understand French also without any study. Of course I'm talking
of some formal written text (a timetable or a technical document) not a
piece of literature or a transcription of informal speech.
I do NOT generally understand spoken Spanish when I over-hear it,
because I have the impression is spoken too fast. I DO understand it
when it is spoken slowly, directly to me.
I'd never dare to write Spanish or French because I have not studied
them and I'm likely to make lots of grammar errors. For the same reason
I do not dare to speak French (I may participate to a working group
where some people speak French and I answer in English). But I dare
speak "invented" Spanish ... I did that when in Chile, both with people
in restaurants and alike, and even when I was training the Observatory
operators to use the laser cutting machine we supplied. They did
understand me.
--
----------------------------------------------------------------------
[email protected] is a newsreading account used by more persons to
avoid unwanted spam. Any mail returning to this address will be rejected.
Users can disclose their e-mail address in the article if they wish so.
> thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
> challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
> from a multiple-purpose point of view?
Don't know what you mean by multiple purpose here. So I cannot answer.
Either do first the language you think to be needing more ... or try
to do them in parallel (Schliemann learned languages that way).
> is it easier for a Spaniard to understand Italian or vice versa?
Cannot comment for Spaniards myself.
As an Italian I understand written Spanish without any study, better
than I understand French also without any study. Of course I'm talking
of some formal written text (a timetable or a technical document) not a
piece of literature or a transcription of informal speech.
I do NOT generally understand spoken Spanish when I over-hear it,
because I have the impression is spoken too fast. I DO understand it
when it is spoken slowly, directly to me.
I'd never dare to write Spanish or French because I have not studied
them and I'm likely to make lots of grammar errors. For the same reason
I do not dare to speak French (I may participate to a working group
where some people speak French and I answer in English). But I dare
speak "invented" Spanish ... I did that when in Chile, both with people
in restaurants and alike, and even when I was training the Observatory
operators to use the laser cutting machine we supplied. They did
understand me.
--
----------------------------------------------------------------------
[email protected] is a newsreading account used by more persons to
avoid unwanted spam. Any mail returning to this address will be rejected.
Users can disclose their e-mail address in the article if they wish so.
Sep 14th 2006, 8:47 pm
#5
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Italian versus Spanish
On Thu, 14 Sep 2006 19:13:21 -0600, "vermillion"
<[email protected]> wrote:
>I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to this
>thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
>challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
>from a multiple-purpose point of view? To put it another way, is it
>easier for a Spaniard to understand Italian or vice versa? I've already
>tried to study both of them and have come to the conclusion that I do
>not have the linguistic skills to keep them both straight, so I will learn
>one or the other. I read somewhere that Spaniards can understand
>Italian easier than the reverse, but I have no idea how true that is.
I know this isn't a conclusive analysis, but here is my experience.
The first time I came to Italy, I knew no Italian, but had studied
Spanish rather extensively in school. I managed fairly well in Italy
using Spanish, spoken slowly and assisted by hand signals. Since then
I've married an Italian and now live in Italy. My husband and other
Italians I've asked tend to agree that Spanish is fairly
understandable. I have noticed that sometimes when a Spanish person is
being interviewed on Italian TV, especially for something brief, the
service doesn't bother to furnish a translation.
A few years ago, my husband and I took a vacation in Spain. My husband
thought that if he spoke Italian, a Spaniard should understand him.
However, he mostly just got blank looks. So that would seem to
indicate that Italians understand Spanish better than Spaniards
understand Italian. However, in general the level of education of the
listener has a large effect. A highly educated Spaniard or Italian is
likely to know what the main differences are in the two languages,
whereas a person with limited schooling will be much less aware of
these differences.
I agree with you that it is difficult to learn two languages that are
so similar. While learning Italian, I had to consciously suppress my
knowledge of Spanish, because it kept getting me confused. (This
wouldn't be the case for someone who is a native speaker of one of the
languages.)
I also agree with someone else who said that it would depend on where
you want to do most of your travelling. A knowledge of either language
will help you a lot with reading signs, train schedules, and menus in
the other language. Just remember that "aceto" is vinegar in Italian,
while "aceite" is oil in Spanish!
--
Barbara Vaughan
My email address is my first initial followed by my surname at libero dot it
I answer travel questions only in the newsgroup
<[email protected]> wrote:
>I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to this
>thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
>challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
>from a multiple-purpose point of view? To put it another way, is it
>easier for a Spaniard to understand Italian or vice versa? I've already
>tried to study both of them and have come to the conclusion that I do
>not have the linguistic skills to keep them both straight, so I will learn
>one or the other. I read somewhere that Spaniards can understand
>Italian easier than the reverse, but I have no idea how true that is.
I know this isn't a conclusive analysis, but here is my experience.
The first time I came to Italy, I knew no Italian, but had studied
Spanish rather extensively in school. I managed fairly well in Italy
using Spanish, spoken slowly and assisted by hand signals. Since then
I've married an Italian and now live in Italy. My husband and other
Italians I've asked tend to agree that Spanish is fairly
understandable. I have noticed that sometimes when a Spanish person is
being interviewed on Italian TV, especially for something brief, the
service doesn't bother to furnish a translation.
A few years ago, my husband and I took a vacation in Spain. My husband
thought that if he spoke Italian, a Spaniard should understand him.
However, he mostly just got blank looks. So that would seem to
indicate that Italians understand Spanish better than Spaniards
understand Italian. However, in general the level of education of the
listener has a large effect. A highly educated Spaniard or Italian is
likely to know what the main differences are in the two languages,
whereas a person with limited schooling will be much less aware of
these differences.
I agree with you that it is difficult to learn two languages that are
so similar. While learning Italian, I had to consciously suppress my
knowledge of Spanish, because it kept getting me confused. (This
wouldn't be the case for someone who is a native speaker of one of the
languages.)
I also agree with someone else who said that it would depend on where
you want to do most of your travelling. A knowledge of either language
will help you a lot with reading signs, train schedules, and menus in
the other language. Just remember that "aceto" is vinegar in Italian,
while "aceite" is oil in Spanish!
--
Barbara Vaughan
My email address is my first initial followed by my surname at libero dot it
I answer travel questions only in the newsgroup
Sep 14th 2006, 9:03 pm
#6
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Italian versus Spanish
On Fri, 15 Sep 2006 09:48:18 +0200, in rec.travel.europe, Giovanni Drogo
<[email protected]> arranged some electrons, so they looked like this:
... On Thu, 14 Sep 2006, vermillion wrote:
...
... > thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
... > challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
... > from a multiple-purpose point of view?
...
... Don't know what you mean by multiple purpose here. So I cannot answer.
... Either do first the language you think to be needing more ... or try
... to do them in parallel (Schliemann learned languages that way).
I do NOT advise doing it. For a while I learned French and Italian in parallel. As chance
(read "bad luck") would have it, for many months the classes were the same days of the
week, one hour apart. It was hell.
<[email protected]> arranged some electrons, so they looked like this:
... On Thu, 14 Sep 2006, vermillion wrote:
...
... > thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
... > challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
... > from a multiple-purpose point of view?
...
... Don't know what you mean by multiple purpose here. So I cannot answer.
... Either do first the language you think to be needing more ... or try
... to do them in parallel (Schliemann learned languages that way).
I do NOT advise doing it. For a while I learned French and Italian in parallel. As chance
(read "bad luck") would have it, for many months the classes were the same days of the
week, one hour apart. It was hell.
Sep 14th 2006, 9:24 pm
#7
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Italian versus Spanish
On Thu, 14 Sep 2006 19:13:21 -0600, "vermillion"
<[email protected]> wrote:
>I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to this
>thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
>challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
>from a multiple-purpose point of view? To put it another way, is it
>easier for a Spaniard to understand Italian or vice versa? I've already
>tried to study both of them and have come to the conclusion that I do
>not have the linguistic skills to keep them both straight, so I will learn
>one or the other. I read somewhere that Spaniards can understand
>Italian easier than the reverse, but I have no idea how true that is.
Allora...
I'm mother-tongue English, but speak fluent Italian (as I live here).
The major difficulties you encounter with this and Spanish are
basically the same, namely the conjugations of the verbs, and making
everything agree in number and gender.
Of course Spanish is much more useful in a global sense. Italian is
only really of value in Italy, and to a far lesser degree Argentina,
Croatia, Albania, and north Africa.
Once you know one, learning the other is easy. I have never ever
studied any Spanish, but can now understand a heck of a lot both
reading and listening. I doubt it would take more than a few months to
become fluent in Spanish for me, and I would say that's the same the
other way round too.
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--
<[email protected]> wrote:
>I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to this
>thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
>challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
>from a multiple-purpose point of view? To put it another way, is it
>easier for a Spaniard to understand Italian or vice versa? I've already
>tried to study both of them and have come to the conclusion that I do
>not have the linguistic skills to keep them both straight, so I will learn
>one or the other. I read somewhere that Spaniards can understand
>Italian easier than the reverse, but I have no idea how true that is.
Allora...
I'm mother-tongue English, but speak fluent Italian (as I live here).
The major difficulties you encounter with this and Spanish are
basically the same, namely the conjugations of the verbs, and making
everything agree in number and gender.
Of course Spanish is much more useful in a global sense. Italian is
only really of value in Italy, and to a far lesser degree Argentina,
Croatia, Albania, and north Africa.
Once you know one, learning the other is easy. I have never ever
studied any Spanish, but can now understand a heck of a lot both
reading and listening. I doubt it would take more than a few months to
become fluent in Spanish for me, and I would say that's the same the
other way round too.
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--
Sep 14th 2006, 11:55 pm
#8
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Italian versus Spanish
"vermillion" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to this
> thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
> challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
> from a multiple-purpose point of view?
When I've asked Italians this question they respond that I should learn
Spanish first, then Italian. The reason is that Spanish (or so they tell me)
is a better organized, more regular language that follows set rules more
closely. Italian has a lot of exceptions that have to be memorized. Italians
tell me that the view Spanish as something like a simplified version of
Italian.
--
Donald R. Newcomb
DRNewcomb (at) attglobal (dot) net
news:[email protected]...
> I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to this
> thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
> challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
> from a multiple-purpose point of view?
When I've asked Italians this question they respond that I should learn
Spanish first, then Italian. The reason is that Spanish (or so they tell me)
is a better organized, more regular language that follows set rules more
closely. Italian has a lot of exceptions that have to be memorized. Italians
tell me that the view Spanish as something like a simplified version of
Italian.
--
Donald R. Newcomb
DRNewcomb (at) attglobal (dot) net
Sep 14th 2006, 11:59 pm
#9
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Italian versus Spanish
Magda wrote:
>
> I do NOT advise doing it. For a while I learned French and Italian in parallel. As chance
> (read "bad luck") would have it, for many months the classes were the same days of the
> week, one hour apart. It was hell.
>
It can be hell, even with languages which are not so close to each other.
I had an end-of-year exam in German, twenty minutes after my end-of-year
exam in Spanish. Some of my translations were _very_ odd......
>
> I do NOT advise doing it. For a while I learned French and Italian in parallel. As chance
> (read "bad luck") would have it, for many months the classes were the same days of the
> week, one hour apart. It was hell.
>
It can be hell, even with languages which are not so close to each other.
I had an end-of-year exam in German, twenty minutes after my end-of-year
exam in Spanish. Some of my translations were _very_ odd......
Sep 15th 2006, 2:47 am
#10
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Italian versus Spanish
On Fri, 15 Sep 2006 07:59:43 -0400, in rec.travel.europe, S Viemeister
<[email protected]> arranged some electrons, so they looked like this:
... Magda wrote:
... >
... > I do NOT advise doing it. For a while I learned French and Italian in parallel. As chance
... > (read "bad luck") would have it, for many months the classes were the same days of the
... > week, one hour apart. It was hell.
... >
... It can be hell, even with languages which are not so close to each other.
...
... I had an end-of-year exam in German, twenty minutes after my end-of-year
... exam in Spanish. Some of my translations were _very_ odd......
You have all my sympathy... :))
<[email protected]> arranged some electrons, so they looked like this:
... Magda wrote:
... >
... > I do NOT advise doing it. For a while I learned French and Italian in parallel. As chance
... > (read "bad luck") would have it, for many months the classes were the same days of the
... > week, one hour apart. It was hell.
... >
... It can be hell, even with languages which are not so close to each other.
...
... I had an end-of-year exam in German, twenty minutes after my end-of-year
... exam in Spanish. Some of my translations were _very_ odd......
You have all my sympathy... :))
Sep 15th 2006, 3:52 am
#11
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Italian versus Spanish
On Fri, 15 Sep 2006 10:47:59 +0200, B Vaughan<[email protected]> wrote:
>I also agree with someone else who said that it would depend on where
>you want to do most of your travelling. A knowledge of either language
>will help you a lot with reading signs, train schedules, and menus in
>the other language. Just remember that "aceto" is vinegar in Italian,
>while "aceite" is oil in Spanish!
Here's a short list to learn:
http://www.syllabos.com/it/falsiamici/faspait-it.html
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--
>I also agree with someone else who said that it would depend on where
>you want to do most of your travelling. A knowledge of either language
>will help you a lot with reading signs, train schedules, and menus in
>the other language. Just remember that "aceto" is vinegar in Italian,
>while "aceite" is oil in Spanish!
Here's a short list to learn:
http://www.syllabos.com/it/falsiamici/faspait-it.html
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--
Sep 15th 2006, 4:06 am
#12
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Italian versus Spanish
On Fri, 15 Sep 2006 06:55:11 -0500, "Donald Newcomb"
<[email protected]> wrote:
>"vermillion" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...
>> I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to this
>> thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
>> challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
>> from a multiple-purpose point of view?
>When I've asked Italians this question they respond that I should learn
>Spanish first, then Italian. The reason is that Spanish (or so they tell me)
>is a better organized, more regular language that follows set rules more
>closely. Italian has a lot of exceptions that have to be memorized. Italians
>tell me that the view Spanish as something like a simplified version of
>Italian.
That's quite interesting!
No doubt, Italian is composed largely of exceptions and odd
constructions, plus the ever difficult double consonants. I find it
comforting that perhaps Spanish is simpler!
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--
<[email protected]> wrote:
>"vermillion" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...
>> I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to this
>> thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
>> challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
>> from a multiple-purpose point of view?
>When I've asked Italians this question they respond that I should learn
>Spanish first, then Italian. The reason is that Spanish (or so they tell me)
>is a better organized, more regular language that follows set rules more
>closely. Italian has a lot of exceptions that have to be memorized. Italians
>tell me that the view Spanish as something like a simplified version of
>Italian.
That's quite interesting!
No doubt, Italian is composed largely of exceptions and odd
constructions, plus the ever difficult double consonants. I find it
comforting that perhaps Spanish is simpler!
--
---
DFM - http://www.deepfriedmars.com
---
--
Sep 15th 2006, 5:56 am
#13
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Italian versus Spanish
On Thu, 14 Sep 2006 19:13:21 -0600, "vermillion"
<[email protected]> wrote:
>I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to this
>thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
>challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
>from a multiple-purpose point of view?
(snip)
From your ISP I would assume that you live in the U.S. (Colorado,
maybe?). Apologies if that's not so.
If you do, it's hard to imagine that Italian would be as generally
useful as Spanish, even from a travel standpoint. There are lots of
places in the Americas that are much more travel-friendly if one
speaks Spanish.
(I know this doesn't answer your basic question about which transfers
better.)
Zane
<[email protected]> wrote:
>I hope one of our resident linguists like Giovanni will contribute to this
>thread. Obviously Italian and Spanish are similar. For a language-
>challenged person like myself, which would be the better one to study
>from a multiple-purpose point of view?
(snip)
From your ISP I would assume that you live in the U.S. (Colorado,
maybe?). Apologies if that's not so.
If you do, it's hard to imagine that Italian would be as generally
useful as Spanish, even from a travel standpoint. There are lots of
places in the Americas that are much more travel-friendly if one
speaks Spanish.
(I know this doesn't answer your basic question about which transfers
better.)
Zane
Sep 15th 2006, 7:20 am
#14
Guest
Posts: n/a
Re: Italian versus Spanish
B Vaughan wrote:
> On Thu, 14 Sep 2006 19:13:21 -0600, "vermillion"
> <[email protected]> wrote:
> The first time I came to Italy, I knew no Italian, but had studied
> Spanish rather extensively in school. I managed fairly well in Italy
> using Spanish, spoken slowly and assisted by hand signals. Since then
> I've married an Italian and now live in Italy. My husband and other
> Italians I've asked tend to agree that Spanish is fairly
> understandable. I have noticed that sometimes when a Spanish person is
> being interviewed on Italian TV, especially for something brief, the
> service doesn't bother to furnish a translation.
It's exactly the same the other way around, most italians on Spanish tv
(footballers, Valentino Rossi, etc.) are not usually dubbed or
subtitled unless it's an exceptionally long or unclear intervention.
Both languages share most of the words, although the version in current
everyday use in Italian may well be upper-crust Spanish.
I also invent my Italian as I try to speak it, and it generally works.
Knowing Catalan and French also helps as nearly always there will be a
language pair with very similar words.
As others have said, Spanish has a good advantage in being 100%
pronounciation consistent and having relatively few exceptions to the
grammar rules, but the verb system is more complicated (that's not a
problem in conversational Spanish as you can get along using a single
present, past and future).
Anyway, there will be quite a substantial difference between the
Spanish learnt in the US and the one the OP will find in Europe (unless
he's visiting the Canaries).
J.
> On Thu, 14 Sep 2006 19:13:21 -0600, "vermillion"
> <[email protected]> wrote:
> The first time I came to Italy, I knew no Italian, but had studied
> Spanish rather extensively in school. I managed fairly well in Italy
> using Spanish, spoken slowly and assisted by hand signals. Since then
> I've married an Italian and now live in Italy. My husband and other
> Italians I've asked tend to agree that Spanish is fairly
> understandable. I have noticed that sometimes when a Spanish person is
> being interviewed on Italian TV, especially for something brief, the
> service doesn't bother to furnish a translation.
It's exactly the same the other way around, most italians on Spanish tv
(footballers, Valentino Rossi, etc.) are not usually dubbed or
subtitled unless it's an exceptionally long or unclear intervention.
Both languages share most of the words, although the version in current
everyday use in Italian may well be upper-crust Spanish.
I also invent my Italian as I try to speak it, and it generally works.
Knowing Catalan and French also helps as nearly always there will be a
language pair with very similar words.
As others have said, Spanish has a good advantage in being 100%
pronounciation consistent and having relatively few exceptions to the
grammar rules, but the verb system is more complicated (that's not a
problem in conversational Spanish as you can get along using a single
present, past and future).
Anyway, there will be quite a substantial difference between the
Spanish learnt in the US and the one the OP will find in Europe (unless
he's visiting the Canaries).
J.
Sep 15th 2006, 7:56 am
#15
Guest
Posts: n/a
Thanks! (was: Italian versus Spanish)
Thanks to everyone for the replies. As usual, Barbara's reply was
especially relevant because her first language was English, as was
mine. A few posters commented that Spanish is more useful for
someone living in the USA, especially the Southwest, and I agree
completely. FWIW, my use of the term "multiple-purpose"
referred to my naive wish to use one language for multiple countries,
a belief from which I have been completely disabused. I did not
know that Spanish was more consistent than Italian. For lots of
reasons then, I will attempt to learn Spanish first. Too bad, because
the female speaker on my set of Italian language CDs has such a
nice voice! ;-)
especially relevant because her first language was English, as was
mine. A few posters commented that Spanish is more useful for
someone living in the USA, especially the Southwest, and I agree
completely. FWIW, my use of the term "multiple-purpose"
referred to my naive wish to use one language for multiple countries,
a belief from which I have been completely disabused. I did not
know that Spanish was more consistent than Italian. For lots of
reasons then, I will attempt to learn Spanish first. Too bad, because
the female speaker on my set of Italian language CDs has such a
nice voice! ;-)
