A Semester Surrounded by Language

Dragon from the Halloween parade I mentioned :)

On a bus trip to a Halloween parade, I was surrounded by French--French singing, French shouting, French chatter. On another bus trip, this one to some well-known sites around the Causeway Coast of Northern Ireland, I heard more Spanish than I ever have in my life.

In my flat, I will sometimes hear my two Belgian flat mates speaking in Dutch and my two flat mates from Hong Kong speaking in Cantonese, though typically they'll speak English when I'm around. From two other friends, I'll sometimes hear German.

They may need to speak in their own tongues to figure out the word for something in English or simply because it's natural and easier when doing something together, like cooking. Other times people will share how to say something in their language, like, "I love you," or will wish me a good meal with a phrase in their own language.

Though I am in Northern Ireland, an English-speaking country, there is no question that I am more exposed here to other languages than I've ever been in my life. For me, a big part of my study abroad experience has been about getting to know other international students, not just getting to know this country. Hearing snippets of conversation in other languages is now a familiar experience, and I wonder if it's something I might be a bit nostalgic for when I'm back in Selinsgrove, surrounded by English spoken in American accents like my own.

I've come to have such respect for my fellow international students who speak English as a second language. My flat mates, for instance, are all great at English and speak it as much as possible while here. One of my German friends, particularly in the beginning, made an effort not to spend much time speaking German with other German students, so as to work on her English. Many of them also speak, or can get by, in other languages, in addition to English and their first language. It does make me feel a bit inadequate in comparison. I have learned a little bit of German from my education, but not enough that I'd feel comfortable conversing with German friends! When it comes to speaking fluently, I really only have this language.

I also admire them for how they have handled this semester abroad so far. It's a tough adjustment, I think, to get used to a different college in a different country. I certainly had my own difficulties, and I've certainly grappled with my own home-and-Susquehanna sickness. That adjustment would be so much harder if I had to be constantly speaking in a language that was not my first language, which I know requires a lot of thought and effort.

While I get to speak English and can basically understand the Northern Irish accents without too much difficulty, this exposure to other languages does have some ramifications for me and my relationship with English while I'm here. I often am thinking more deeply about the English I'm speaking. Friends will ask me when we use certain phrases in English, what the word would be for something, for correction, etc. When I'm speaking, I sometimes more intentionally consider what words I'm using, if it's slang or colloquial, if the concept is something very American that I would have to explain, etc. Though I know our language is complex and confusing, associating with people for whom English is a second language is a great reminder of that.

And this experience leaves a bit of room to poke fun at myself and my English, too.

Recently, some of my international friends and I were gathered in a flat, and one of the students, who is studying translation back in Spain, pointed out that Americans say "like" a lot. Now that this has been pointed out to some of the people I talk to, I have been caught living up to it. Oh well, that's one American stereotype I admittedly embody (as well as enjoying fast food and having a lot of televisions at my house)! We can't subvert them all!