Say What? Learning Catalan helps with reading signs in Barcelona
By Regina Winkle-Bryan
I’ve got friends from all over Europe and the rest of the world here in Barcelona, and learning Catalan is always a hot topic. Some people are dead set against it, calling it a ‘useless’ language. Why should I learn a language that I can’t use anywhere else in the world? they say. Indeed, Catalan is helpful in Catalonia, and Andorra, and on the Spanish Mediterranean islands of Majorca, Minorca, Formentera and Ibiza….but it’s not spoken in the rest of Spain or much anywhere else in the world. Others say that to know a culture you must speak the language, and therefore if you live in Catalonia, you must have some grasp of Catalan.
Majorca Island
Here are common reasons for and against learning Catalan:
CONS:
No one uses it...well, only the people in the places already listed above.
People are bilingual. Many English speaking friends argue that they don’t need Catalan if they speak Spanish, because all Catalans are bilingual and can as easily speak in Spanish as Catalan. Furthermore, many Catalans speak English meaning a conversation could be had in English or Spanish, rendering Catalan unnecessary.
It’s ugly. Yes, some people don’t like the sound of Catalan. This is a motivator, or not, with all languages. If it sounds pretty to the learner’s ear, he is more likely to feel inspired to practice.
It’s hard. Well, if you speak Spanish it’s not that hard. However, there are some big differences in grammar, vocab and pronunciation, and it does take work to learn Catalan, especially if your mother tongue is not Latin based.
Catalan is not used in other parts of Spain
PROS:
It’s the language here. If you live in a country, most people would agree that it is a good idea to have some idea of the language. Many Catalans feel that Catalonia IS a country (it’s not, legally anyway), and Catalan therefore is the national language. By the way, Catalan is one of Spain’s national languages along with Basque, Gallego and Valenciano.
People will like you. If you make an effort, locals will appreciate that you are trying to learn their language and will be warmer towards you.
It helps you learn stuff. A lot of information in Catalonia is written in Catalan which means you’ll get more out of your experience if you can understand it. Also, many presentations and workshops are in Catalan, not to mention music, theater and other entertainment.
Helps you get a job. Many places will not hire someone who doesn’t speak Catalan.
Gets your closer to the culture. Our languages are deeply connected to our cultures. Expressions are a great example of this or vocabulary words that so perfectly describe something we all feel. Learning another language gets you closer to the culture it comes from, opening little windows into the soul of a place and a people.
Cultural events are often in Catalan
Conclusion?
I’ve lived here for six years. My Catalan is not great. I have taken two courses in basic Catalan, which were really eye-opening and have proven useful. In the long run, I plan to live here and need to learn Catalan to work and socialize at dinner parties. I know this, and it’s a goal, but it’s slow coming.
The writer, trying to remember the past tense....
The truth is that I speak Spanish and English and can get by with these languages. My desire to speak and understand Catalan is more personal than anything else. I don’t want to be one of those English speakers living in a bubble (or non-English speakers, plenty of Spanish people also refuse to learn Catalan). That said, I almost never have a conversation in Catalan, though many times a month need to be able to listen to or read Catalan and understand something. My main-squeeze is Catalan, but we speak in Spanglish, with Catalan lacing.
Spanglish? Catalanish?
If you feel inspired to learn Catalan, sign up for free classes given by the Catalan government at :http://www.cpnl.cat/xarxa/cnlbarcelona/
If you hate Catalan and see learning it pointless, then living in Catalonia long-tem is probably not a fabulous idea.
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16 Comments
I thin that learning Catalan is a very good idea if you intend to live here for any considerable length of time. I’m afraid I totally disagree with the opinion that it sounds “ugly” (what is “ugly” anyway?), and it certainly isn’t as difficult to learn for English speakers as, say, French, and nowhere near as hard as German.
Without going into the tedious debate about the “obligation” to learn Catalan, I would argue that there are tremendous advantages for the foreigner who makes the effort to do so. Never mind “knowing the culture” and all that – if you want to do business here and be taken seriously by Catalan companies, Catalan is a must. You can get by with Spanish, as many do, but you will be very much smiled upon by the locals if you make the effort to learn what is, for most people, their mother tongue.
It is, after all, a sign of respect.
I agree John. And just to clarify, I don’t think it’s ugly, it’s just an excuse I’ve heard before. Catalan has grown on me a lot over the last 6 years….I listen to a lot of music in Catalan which has turned me on to the sound of it more. While I am not fluent, I love learning expressions in different languages – gives me another way to see the world and express myself.
Thanks for your comment.
Regina
If you live in Catalunya, sure … I have no reason to learn it so I wouldn’t. I would, however, concentrate most on my castellano so as to be more proficient. I don’t like sounding like a bumbling foreigner.
I hear you Kaley. That’s been a struggle for me, in that I don’t have time to study both languages as much as I would like and still make dinner, walk my dog and do yoga….oh yeah, and work! This is why I’ve always done intense 1 month Catalan courses. I’ve also taken private and group Spanish, but at this point, only a private teacher will work (I have very specific grammar issues after so many years in Spanish speaking countries). Anyway, in a way you’re lucky in Madrid because you only have to focus on Spanish! Not so in Valencia, Catalonia, Basque Country or Galicia….or the Balears or Andorra (I realize it’s not Spain).
Cheers!
I wholeheartedly believe learning the native language is essential if you’re going to live any extended time in a place, especially if it’s not a big urban area. I lived in Menorca for two years working as an English assistant. I went there thinking that I wouldn’t need or want to learn Catalan. I wanted to focus on my Spanish and I thought that not knowing Catalan wouldn’t be an issue. After a couple months I realized that in order to truly feel integrated I didn’t need Catalan at all; I needed Menorquí! Sure, people spoke to me in Spanish but they spoke around me in Menorquí and I always felt like an outsider. I can’t count how many times I was in the teacher’s room or with some friends, drowning in a sea of Menorquí. When I started to learn the language, I instantly saw new doors opening. I made oodles of friends, not just native speakers either. Plus, I joined Amb tu en Català, an organization that pairs you up with a native volunteer. Through that I got to know the island, the people living there, and the culture much better. Plus, Menorca is such a small place with very few Americans (let alone ones that speak the language) and I felt like a celebrity. So many times I was introduced like this: “Hey, you have to meet this girl! She’s American and she speaks Menorquí!” And of course, then they’d ask me to say something. Now that I’m in Madrid, I miss the language a lot. I don’t speak perfectly but there are still things that I feel I can express better in Menorquí, and I’ve been studying Spanish for over a decade.
I can see how you would need Menorqui on such a small island. Thanks for sharing. I’ve often thought that if I lived in a place where I HAD to speak Catalan more, I’d be better at it, like in Girona or something. In Barcelona it’s not critical, just polite. I wonder how similar Menorqui and Catalan are?
Regina
hola
i need to learn catalan fast . i wish to be informed were to find
a free , totally free online place . please , if any body know
something , be kind to inform me .
gracias , merci
adeu ,
M CARMEN
Hi, I don’t know of any online sites, but contact the link in the post, they may know!
I agree with John B (the 1st comment) if you intend to live in Catalonia for an extended time it´s important to get a basic handle on the language. I think that learning the language of a place is the first step to understanding the culture and the people of a new region.
I lived in Barcelona for 9 years and learnt Catalan although I didn´t need it for work at the time.
It is so self-centred and egomaniacal to carry this attitude that you’d move to somewhere and not need to learn the native local language. Swedish is useless, too, in the grand scheme of things. But they wouldn’t think those moving to Stockholm should pooh pooh learning it. True, you can live in Barcelona with just Castilian. But if you want to do anything of substance you’d eventually need to know Catalan because inevitably it will cross your path. And though all Catalans are bilingual, people don’t realize Castilian for many is actually a second language learned later in life. So many prefer to speak their first and native language because they are better at it. In essence, these people are forcing natives of a land they move into to adjust to their language choice. Again, what egomaniacs!
Thanks for your comment Andrew. Sometimes I feel like my Catalan would improve by leaps and bounds if I lived OUTSIDE of Barcelona in any nearby village. Here, in the city, people see me and go to Spanish, not Catalan, because I look foreign (or at least I think that’s why they do!). If I go to say, La Garriga, it’s Catalan all the way.
Thanks for sharing! As a tour guide, a catalan, and mainly a peaceful soul I really want to say you made me smile. For a Catalan it is always big emotion to feel someone try to learn our language.
I speak fluidly 6 languages, and so I know that nobody really gets to the inner depth of a culture or a person without the language. Si mai et puc ajudar, compta amb mi!
With English and a little bit of Spanish it’s enought
John, I agree it’s enough in Barcelona but not in smaller towns outside Barcelona.
I am learning catalan but if you think this will make it easier to make catalan friends forget it. The catalans are famously closed to the point of rudeness and in my experience speaking to them in their own language makes no difference. The impression is that they have their friends already from childhood and no amount of catalan speaking is going to make them welcome a stupid guiri into their circle. To a degree I respect that but an occasional friendly gesture, stranger to stranger even, wouldn’t go amiss. After living here for a few years, visiting places rumoured to be closed, like London or Berlin, is like being surrounded by family. Thank god there are enough non catalans living here to make foreigners not remain completely friendless. Before this page explodes with nationalistic fury, of course this is a generalisation and I will continue learning catalan out of respect for the few catalan friends I have, and the culture of my host nation. In my opinion catalan culture needs to confront this issue of closedness before it is ever going to become an attractive language for a foreigner to learn. A language is attractive to foreigners because of wanting to be part of the inviting, attractive, welcoming culture it represents rather than feeling despised for not doing so. More carrot less stick in other words.
You have echoed what many believe and I find that the more people you know individually, then the openness begins. Sales people, folks on the Metro, are not usually up for a chat. While I would like to learn Catalan, learning Spanish is difficult enough for me! No thanks to learning another language.
Nancy