วันอาทิตย์ที่ 15 มีนาคม พ.ศ. 2552

How to Speak Japanese

How to say hello in Japanese largely depends upon when you say it. This is very much like different greetings and salutations used in English at different times of day or night. There are set rules to use "Good Morning!", "Good Afternoon!", "Good Day!", "Good Evening!" and "Good Night!". In Japanese culture, the rules also differ depending upon whether you are on phone or meeting somebody personally or whether you have only formal relations with the addressee or is he a close friend of yours. You see, there is nothing strange or new in it. We too follow the same rules. We don't get formal with our pals. We seldom greet them with "Good Morning!" or "Good Evening!" A mere "Hi!" is enough. Let us see what greetings are to be used when.

Although the most popular and most well known translation for "Hello!" remains "Konnichiwa!" it is not exactly how to say hello in Japanese. Perhaps it is not the most suitable for it. Actually, the correct greeting in English to which "Konnichiwa" is closest in sense, is "Good Day!" or "Good Noon!" and I am sure you won't like greeting a person with a "Good Day!" at any time, more so when you actually want to say "Hello!" whose meaning is very close to "Hi!" or "How do you do?" or "What's up?", and neither do Japanese like saying "Konnichiwa" when they want to say "Hello!"

So, What to do? The problem still remains how to say hello in Japanese. Let's do it the way Japanese do. Use "Ohaiyo Gonzaimasu!" for "Good Morning!" or use "Konnichiwa!" when its noon or use "Konbanwa!" to greet somebody when its afternoon, which is same as "Good Afternoon!" Things differ when you are on phone. Just say "Moshi, Moshi!" which is actually similar to saying "Hello!" over the phone, because one seldom uses "Good Morning!" or "Good Afternoon!" or "Good Evening!" right after one picks up the phone. It is invariably the sweet old "Hello!"

As in many countries greetings are very important in Japan. In the morning your co-workers will greet you with a very genki "O ha yo go za i ma su". It's the "gozaimasu" which makes it polite, just like the super polite "Thank you" is "A ri ga to u go za i ma su".

Then in the afternoon the greeting changes to the familar "Kon ni chi wa".

Then if you meet your friends in the evening it will be "Kon ban wa".

"O ya su mi na sa i" is "good night", but only just before you go to bed, so it's mainly used in families. If you leave work late at night you'll have to say "shi tsu re i shi ma su" - "Sorry for being rude and going home before you all"!

วันเสาร์ที่ 7 มีนาคม พ.ศ. 2552

How to Speak Chinese

What is pinyin?

Pinyin is the most widely-used system of writing Mandarin Chinese and uses the Latin alphabet. It is a great tool to help you learn the accurate pronunciation of Mandarin words.

First, you need to learn how to read pinyin, as Mandarin contains some sounds which do not exist in English.

Have a look at our guide, listen to the voices in Real Chinese and our tone and character games to hear how native speakers pronounce the sounds.

Don’t worry if you don’t get it right first time, learning pinyin needs a fair bit of practice.


chá
- ch in chá, tea, is a bit like ch in 'cheap' but with the mouth in a round shape.
érzi
- i as in érzi is very different from i in nǐ hǎo. Say z like ds and then keep the mouth shape unchaged when saying i.
Gěi nín
- g in gěi nín, here you are, is pronounced like g in 'girl'.
The tones
- In Mandarin Chinese, there are four tones. Each syllable in isolation (e.g. ma) has its tone, and the same syllables with different tones can mean different things. For example, with the first tone means 'mum', má with the second tone 'linen', with the third tone means 'horse' and mà with the fourth tone 'to swear'. The first tone, represented by ¯ , is high but remains level. The second tone, represented by ´, goes up and is abrupt (raise your eyebrows while saying it). The third tone, represented by ˇ, is a falling-rising tone (drop your chin onto your neck and raise it again). The fourth tone, represented by ˋ, is a falling tone (stomp your foot gently).
nǐ hǎo
- i in sounds like ee in 'need'. When a third tone is followed by another third tone, it changes to a second tone in real speech although it is still marked as a third tone. So, in nǐ hǎo is pronounced with a second tone .
nǚ'ér
- ü in nǚ'ér, daughter, is like the u sound in French. But when j, q, x and y precede ü, ü is written without the two dots. For example, u in júzi zhī, orange juice, is still pronounced as ü.
qīngcài
- q in qīngcài, vegetables, is pronounced a bit like ch in 'cheese', but with the tongue further forward.
ròu
- r in ròu, meat, is like r in 'roll' but with the tongue rolled loosely in the middle of the mouth.
shì
- sh in shì, to be, and shuō, to speak, is similar to sh in 'shut'.
xìng
- There is no sound in English which is similar to the sound x in Chinese. Place the front of your tongue behind the lower front teeth, then let the air pass through. It's a bit like sh in 'sheep'.
zàijiàn
- In zàijiàn, goodbye, the sound z is a bit like ds in 'heads' and the sound j is similar to g in 'gentle'.


Programme 1 : Greeting people and saying your name

People are saying greetings.

Group 1: Nǐ hǎo! Hello!
Group 2: Zàijiàn! Goodbye!
Group 3: Zǎoshàng hǎo! Good morning!
Group 4 Nǐ zǎo! Good morning!
Children are saying their name.

Mu Tong: Wǒ jiào Mù Tóng. My name's Mu Tong.
Bao Yuqin: Wǒ jiào Bāo Yǔqín. My name's Bao Yuqin.
Sun Yiping: Wǒ jiào Sūn Yīpíng. My name's Sun Yiping.

People are saying their name.

Chen Zhixin: Wǒ xìng Chén, wǒ jiào Chén Zhìxīn. My surname is Chen, and my full name is Chen Zhixin.
Qian Sainan: Wǒ xìng Qián, wǒ jiào Qián Sàinán. My surname is Qian, and my full name is Qian Sainan.
Qiyang Yushu: Wǒ xìng Qíyang, wǒ jiào Qíyáng Yùshū. My surname is Qiyang, and my full name is Qiyang Yushu.
Zhu Bing: Wǒ xìng Zhū, wǒ jiào Zhūbīng. My surname is Zhu, and my full name is Zhu Bing.
Wang Lanjun: Wǒ xìng Wáng, wǒ jiào Wáng Lánjūn. My surname is Wang, and my full name is Wang Lanjun.
Zhang Hao: Wǒ xìng Zhāng, wǒ jiào Zhāng Hào. My surname is Zhang, and my full name is Zhang Hao.
Wang Zhen: Wǒ xìng Wáng, wǒ jiào Wáng Zhēn. My surname is Wang, and my full name is Wang Zhen.

People are saying greetings.
Group 1: Jiérì kuàilè! Happy holiday!
Group 2: Wǎnshàng hǎo! Good evening!

How to Speak Italian

Speaking Italian: Before You Begin

  1. BBC Languages Cool Italian
    Figure 1: BBC Languages Cool Italian
    First look at why you're learning Italian and how much time you have. Learning a new language can be a big time commitment, so consider how much time you can spend learning Italian.
  2. If you're going to Italy for a vacation, a few key phrases that you study phonetically for ten minutes a day may suffice.
  3. Knowing how to say just a few words will help you communicate, and understand what others are saying to you.
  4. To speak, read, or write on a higher level, lessons with audio and written elements are necessary.
  5. To get the best return on these lessons, studying regularly is important.
  6. No matter what your level of Italian is, take advantage of any chance you get to practice your Italian, however the occasion arises.
  7. Speaking (and understanding what is said to you) may be hard at first, but it will get easier with every word.

Italian Pronunciation Tips

  1. Indo-European Languages Italian Pronunciation Guide
    Figure 2: Indo-European Languages Italian Pronunciation Guide
    The first step to learning how to speak Italian is knowing how to pronounce the words. Once you know how to pronounce the vowels and certain consonants, you can say any word.
  2. Indo-European Languages has a list of how to pronounce vowels and consonants here.
  3. About.com includes practice words in its pages on how to pronounce Italian Vowels, Consonants, Double Consonants, and also General Word Pronunciation. WARNING: Pop-ups
  4. The "r" in words is always trilled.
  5. Italians stress the second to last syllable in words, even if the word only has two syllables. So "Signore" would be pronounced "Seen-YORE-ay", and "Scusi" would be pronounced "SKOO-see".
  6. For a fun, 10 minute video on pronunciation, go here.

Basic Italian Phrases

  1. Visit the BBC's page of essential phrases.
    BBC Quick Fix Italian Phrases
    Figure 3: BBC Quick Fix Italian Phrases
  2. Listen to the phrases being spoken as you read along.
  3. Download the MP3s to listen to whenever you can.
  4. Practice saying the phrases yourself.
  5. Record yourself so you hear how you sound.
  6. Print pages out to take with you!

Sample Italian Phrases MP3s

Fodor's has a great Living Language page that lists many helpful Italian phrases. Here are some samples:

Introductory Italian Lessons

  1. Go to BBC's Italian Steps, a great introductory 24 step course on Italian.
  2. Listen to the online dialogues.
  3. Watch the dialogue once with the text in English.
  4. Watch again with the text in Italian.
    Italian Steps Lesson 1
    Figure 5: Italian Steps Lesson 1
  5. Test your comprehension with the exercise Guess the Words.
  6. If you've understood the vocabulary, go to Build Sentences.
  7. Complete your half of a dialogue, both speaking and writing, at Speak and Write.

Intermediate Italian Lessons

  1. The BBC offers lessons and transcripts about their 20-part TV series, Italianissimo.
  2. Click on one of the topics listed on the page.
  3. Study the Key Language for the topic.
    Italianissimo Key Language Lesson
    Figure 6: Italianissimo Key Language Lesson
  4. Click on the words in dark green for detailed grammar explanations.
  5. Watch or listen to the clip of the conversation for the topic.
  6. Read the transcript of the conversation in Italian.
  7. Read the English translation of the transcript.
  8. Listen to the conversation again, and see how much you can understand.

Intermediate Sample Italian Phrases MP3s

Advanced Italian Lessons

Corso di Lingua

  1. RAI International Online offers an advanced course on Italian called Corso di Lingua.
  2. On the first page, choose the language you want the course taught in - choose Italian if you're really advanced!
Corso di Lingua Page 1
Figure 7: Corso di Lingua Page 1
  1. On the next page, choose the style you want the information presented - either with cartoon drawings or real life pictures.
    Corso di Lingua Page 2
    Figure 8: Corso di Lingua Page 2
  2. Then choose the curriculum, either "Situations", "Linguistic Function", or "Storytelling".
    Corso di Lingua Page 3
    Figure 9: Corso di Lingua Page 3
  3. On the next page, click the blue "play" symbol on the top right corner of each box to start each lesson.
    Corso di Lingua Page 4
    Figure 10: Corso di Lingua Page 4
  4. Once on a lesson, click the icons on the top left toolbar in order to listen, read, and study the phrases and words presented.
    Corso di Lingua Lesson 1
    Figure 11: Corso di Lingua Lesson 1
  5. Finally, click the upper left pencil icon in order to practice writing and constructing phrases on your own!

BBC's Italian Journey

  1. The BBC also offers advanced level transcripts of an Italian travel documentary, called Italy Inside Out.
  2. Select an episode transcript to focus on.
  3. Download both the Italian and English versions of this transcript.
    BBC's Italian Journey
    Figure 12: BBC's Italian Journey
  4. Read the Italian version of first.
  5. Then read the English version, and see how much you understood.
  6. Study the phrases and sentence construction.
  7. Select another transcript, and repeat!

Fun Italian Lessons

Italian Hand Gestures

  1. Italians are known for using hand gestures while speaking, so if you really want speak like a true Italian, you'll need to learn some basic Italian hand gestures!
  2. About.com has a lot of great drawings depicting common hand gestures. WARNING: Ad-heavy
    About.com's Italian Hand Gestures Guide
    Figure 13: About.com's Italian Hand Gestures Guide
  3. For a brief visual demonstration, check out this video.

BBC Cool Italian Lessons

  1. Once you've mastered some basic phrases, learning Italian slang phrases can be a lot of fun.
  2. Check out the BBC's Cool Italian page.
    BBC's Cool Italian Argument Lesson
    Figure 14: BBC's Cool Italian Argument Lesson
  3. Listen to the Cool Italian phrases (check out an "argument" BBC MP3 here).
  4. Print out a transcript of the expressions, as you can here for the argument.
  5. Practice saying the Cool phrases yourself - and don't forget those hand gestures!
  6. Tape yourself to hear how Italian you sound!

Italian Podcasts

  1. Podcasts like LearnItalianPod are another great resource.
  2. This podcast is free to listen to.
  3. Play each installment of the podcast either on the main page, or download and save it to your desktop.
  4. Listen to every podcast until you feel you've understood what's going on.
  5. If you want to do more advanced lessons, or read transcripts, then you must subscribe to this podcast for a small fee.

Resources for Studying Italian

  1. While studying Italian, it is extremely useful to always reference the:
  2. Indo-European Language's Italian page has a wide range of lessons and vocabulary lists, from beginning to advanced. Without audio files, however, it's best used in addition to other lessons.

More Tips for Studying Italian

    • Check out Mahalo's Guide to the Italian language.
  1. Read Italian magazines and newspapers, like La Repubblica. This will help you practice your comprehension skills, as well as giving you a window into life in Italy.
    RAI's Home Page
    Figure 15: RAI's Home Page
  2. Also check out RAI, a great website that provides live streams of many Italian radio and tv shows.
  3. Check out your local university to see if they offer Italian classes, or if there is a professor or student who can tutor you.
  4. Create or buy flash cards to test yourself. Have pictures or English words on one side, and Italian words on the other. Flash cards are an excellent way to study Italian on the go.
  5. Rent movies in Italian. Turn off the subtitles, or try to understand what they are saying before you look at the subtitles.
  6. Listen to Italian music; try to understand the lyrics.
  7. Go see an Italian opera; see how much you can understand without looking at the subtitles.
  8. Visit Italian restaurants or delis where you live; if there are Italian speakers on staff, practice your Italian!