| Pages in topic: [1 2] > | Poll: Do you think that living in a foreign country can affect your native fluency? Thread poster: ProZ.com Staff
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| | | Can, but does not have to | Jan 27, 2016 |
I know quite a few sad examples from people who think they have to adjust to their host country so much that they neglect their mother tongue, but then again, most of these people are not translators.
As a matter of fact, speaking a different language in every day life does influence you in some way. But on the other hand, the world got smaller. Back in those days, you would wait weeks for a letter from home, now you can videochat for free and local tv content is mostly available worldwid... See more I know quite a few sad examples from people who think they have to adjust to their host country so much that they neglect their mother tongue, but then again, most of these people are not translators.
As a matter of fact, speaking a different language in every day life does influence you in some way. But on the other hand, the world got smaller. Back in those days, you would wait weeks for a letter from home, now you can videochat for free and local tv content is mostly available worldwide. So nothing keeps you from maintaining your native fluency. ▲ Collapse
| | | | neilmac
Spain
Local time: 09:54
Spanish to English
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Of the top of my head, I imagine this will be an issue more likely to affect minority language speakers. Globally widespread languages like English or Spanish are virtually ubiquitous nowadays and easy to access via technology if expats need to keep up with how their language is developing back home.
| | | | | no, not at all | Jan 27, 2016 |
Motivation, not living in a foreign contry, is important. I know quite a few people who lived many years in the US and know very little of English
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EvaVer (X) 
Local time: 09:54
Czech to French
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I have never lived abroad for more than a few weeks, but I have friends who did or still do - some still speak perfectly, some deteriorated very fast.
| | | | Kay Denney
France
Local time: 09:54
French to English
When I first came to France I wanted to learn French so I very purposely avoided anyone who wanted to speak to me in English. I actually noticed my English getting worse, and found that French expressions were creeping in, to the extent that I found it hard going to talk with people who didn't speak French.
Then I had my children and since I was determined to teach them English, I then made a point of seeking out English-speaking friends so that they could be exposed to more langua... See more When I first came to France I wanted to learn French so I very purposely avoided anyone who wanted to speak to me in English. I actually noticed my English getting worse, and found that French expressions were creeping in, to the extent that I found it hard going to talk with people who didn't speak French.
Then I had my children and since I was determined to teach them English, I then made a point of seeking out English-speaking friends so that they could be exposed to more language than that of Mummy and Disney.
Working alongside friends who arrived in France only a few years ago, I see them now going through the same sort of process: learning French to the detriment of English, then having to make an effort not to forget English. ▲ Collapse
| | | | David Young (X)
Denmark
Local time: 09:54
Danish to English
| Without a shadow of a doubt. | Jan 27, 2016 |
After going on 14 years in Denmark, I am now fluent in Danglish.
My daily round at home is mainly in Danish and English - whichever word pops into the head first. I think in Danish and dream in Danish. Danes have different ways of thinking about the world and this is of course reflected in the language, so my thinking gets changed too. Despite frequent visits to England and easy access to English newspapers, books and TV channels, I find it increasingly difficult to recognise that what I ... See more After going on 14 years in Denmark, I am now fluent in Danglish.
My daily round at home is mainly in Danish and English - whichever word pops into the head first. I think in Danish and dream in Danish. Danes have different ways of thinking about the world and this is of course reflected in the language, so my thinking gets changed too. Despite frequent visits to England and easy access to English newspapers, books and TV channels, I find it increasingly difficult to recognise that what I have just written is, in fact, English with a Danish mindset. I really have to work at it and examine every sentence carefully. I try to schedule work so I can take a couple of days away from the finished text before giving it a final read-through. And yet I still find myself wondering, "Can you say that in English?" ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Of course it does | Jan 27, 2016 |
David Young wrote:
After going on 14 years in Denmark, I am now fluent in Danglish.
My daily round at home is mainly in Danish and English - whichever word pops into the head first. I think in Danish and dream in Danish. Danes have different ways of thinking about the world and this is of course reflected in the language, so my thinking gets changed too. Despite frequent visits to England and easy access to English newspapers, books and TV channels, I find it increasingly difficult to recognise that what I have just written is, in fact, English with a Danish mindset. I really have to work at it and examine every sentence carefully. I try to schedule work so I can take a couple of days away from the finished text before giving it a final read-through. And yet I still find myself wondering, "Can you say that in English?"
That's refreshingly honest. I live in the UK but feel the same to some extent - constant exposure to Scandiwegian (and Scandis writing in English) is bound to rub off a bit. It's easier to fight here, I suppose, but still requires constant vigilance.
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Marjolein Snippe
Netherlands
Local time: 09:54
Member (2012)
English to Dutch
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More for some than for others, but it does affect most people.
It was only after I had moved back to the Netherlands that I recognised (and some friends pointed out) that the way I constructed sentences was somewhat un-Dutch; not wrong, just unusual, with an Anglican flick.
| | | | | Yes, definitely | Jan 27, 2016 |
It mostly depends on the identification, which language the person identifies with more, the L1 or the language they adopted. Sometimes total attrition of L1 is possible, especially when dealing with young children, or 30-70% attrition in adults.
| | | | | Other (it depends) | Jan 27, 2016 |
Let me give you an example. I lived for 30 years in Belgium (I have moved back to Portugal quite recently), but the fact that I am a translator and I translate exclusively into my mother tongue made me fully aware and attentive to the possibility of cross-language influence and even language mixture. I must say also that I worked for 20 years within a Translation Division which was entirely composed of Portuguese. Even so, my mother once said that I spoke Portuguese with a slight French accent, ... See more Let me give you an example. I lived for 30 years in Belgium (I have moved back to Portugal quite recently), but the fact that I am a translator and I translate exclusively into my mother tongue made me fully aware and attentive to the possibility of cross-language influence and even language mixture. I must say also that I worked for 20 years within a Translation Division which was entirely composed of Portuguese. Even so, my mother once said that I spoke Portuguese with a slight French accent, but I think that was all!
On the other hand, one of my brothers (hotel manager) has been living abroad (UK, Spain, South Africa, Egypt, Mexico, USA…) longer than me (45 years) and has always lived and worked in foreign environments mostly using English as lingua franca. Besides that, he married an English woman and at home they always speak English. Needless to say that his Portuguese is almost unrecognizable… ▲ Collapse
| | | | | Yes, definitely | Jan 27, 2016 |
But the question says 'native fluency' which actually just means that you have to search for words and cannot speak fluently. (I experienced that at one point after 13 years abroad).
However, that is not the only problem.
Like some have pointed out earlier, your host language may start to influence your syntax, prepositions etc. of your own language.
And you can also lose touch with how things are being expressed today in your native country as opposed to, say 10 ... See more But the question says 'native fluency' which actually just means that you have to search for words and cannot speak fluently. (I experienced that at one point after 13 years abroad).
However, that is not the only problem.
Like some have pointed out earlier, your host language may start to influence your syntax, prepositions etc. of your own language.
And you can also lose touch with how things are being expressed today in your native country as opposed to, say 10 years ago. As a translator it can be difficult to recognize/admit this issue, until you actually move back and experience how your own language has evolved unexpectedly.
[Edited at 2016-01-27 10:41 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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| Native fluency, searching for words? | Jan 27, 2016 |
Then I must have native fluency in about 13 languages. No,it is is not correct. Even though I do not like the term "native fluency", what is usually meant by it does not involve searching for words, other than some specialized terms from a different area of expertise.
| | | | Muriel Vasconcellos (X)
United States
Local time: 00:54
Spanish to English
+ ...
I answered "after a while," but it can happen fairly quickly. I lived in Mexico for two years, speaking Portuguese at home and Spanish everywhere else. After about a year I began to hear myself say some awkward things in English.
For certain, I missed out on the latest words and ways of saying things. Languages change very fast!
| | | | | You may be fluent in 13 languages, Lillian, but | Jan 27, 2016 |
that does not mean you master them accurately. (Although this may be what layman usually understands under 'fluency')
However, as a trained language teacher I have to defend the definitions, and there is a distinct difference between 'fluency' and 'accuracy'.
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