The Linguist is a languages magazine for professional linguists, translators, interpreters, language professionals, language teachers, trainers, students and academics with articles on translation, interpreting, business, government, technology
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30 The Linguist Vol/54 No/2 2015 www.ciol.org.uk OPINION & COMMENT How to make friends when moving abroad Friends often say how glamorous my life must be living abroad – particularly since, at the age of 23, this is the second year I've spent in another country. It's true that I get to travel and have new experiences. however, moving abroad is a big step; there are many things to consider. You are away from family and friends for a long time, so you need to think about how to build a fulfilling social network. By choosing to work as an au pair, I knew I would have company at 'home', and I have been lucky to find a second family in my employers and their two charming children. But it is important to have a social life outside the workplace. using Facebook groups to contact people before you relocate can help. I started by creating an 'event' on Facebook which involved travelling to Annemasse in France over the Jeûne Genevois bank holiday. the result was an exciting multilingual shopping trip with people I had never met. I have also used the event tool to organise day-trips and weekends away with my au pair friends. By christmas we had visited Montreux, Bern and Zürich. every trip was memorable, both socially and linguistically, and I got to share the experience with some lovely and interesting people. Swiss French (and especially Geneva French) isn't dissimilar to that spoken in France, which helps when trying to learn and improve the language. Living with a French family, I notice the differences a lot more than I would otherwise – for instance, if you say soixante-dix (70) to a Swiss person, they won't understand (they use septante). they pronounce the 't' at the end of Vingt and say santé when someone sneezes (rather than à tes/vos souhaits). It is these little nuances, encountered in both day-to-day life and French tuition, that make this experience so rewarding in terms of advancing my linguistic knowledge and confidence in my abilities. the best advice my tutor at university gave me was to try something new on my year abroad. In Germany, I took Irish dancing classes, which kept me fit, extended my German vocabulary, and proved a great way to meet people outside my usual circle. In Geneva, I do Zumba every week and sing in a small all-female group. Not only does this force me to speak French in new and unfamiliar contexts, but it also helps to broaden my social network. the linguistic benefits of full immersion don't come without concerted effort. It is important to find ways to get involved and pitch yourself into unfamiliar and challenging situations. The graduate LUCIANNA HARRISON Lucianna Harrison studied German and History at Exeter University. TL After the publication of a new set of statistics in January, The Financial Times reported that children in kensington were four times more likely to take a language GcSe than their counterparts in Middlesbrough, and the BBc talked of a 'subject desert' in some areas of the country. The Telegraph picked up on the fragile state of specialist language study in universities, reporting that the number of students taking degrees in French and German has declined by 16% since 2007. Meanwhile The Scotsman reported that conservative MSP Murdo Fraser had contributed the gem that 'nobody in the world speaks French' and that children should learn 'business languages' instead. A Lords committee report on the ukraine crisis, noted in The Guardian, highlighted the damage being done by overlooking the importance of other languages, saying that the uk had misread russian strategy due to 'a loss of analytical capacity' and a 'decline in language skills'. In The Telegraph, the cBI commented dryly that 'the jury is out' on whether recent government initiatives will spur a resurgence in language study. Among the more positive language stories, The Telegraph put together a piece on the royal Family's use of foreign languages, including Prince William's greeting in Mandarin to welcome the chinese New Year. According to The Mirror, a British language student has sparked an online craze for singing songs in different languages by posting videos of herself singing in 11 languages, including Slovak and Latvian. And (although this is perhaps not a positive story), according to The Express, pornographic films have been 'hidden' on Youtube using Irish language titles. A number of publications took up the theme of the 'languages apocalypse' threat that 90% of the world's languages may soon become extinct. The Mail highlighted what it saw as the main reason for this – 'because of migration' of course. Teresa Tinsley is Director of Alcantara Communications; www.alcantaracoms.com TERESA TINSLEY