Hayley: Too many languages are close to dying out, and it must be our responsibility to ensure their survival.
“IN German, ‘glove’ is handschuhe or ‘hand shoes’!”
You read that right. The German language is filled with compound words like this – clunky but understandable. Such is the charm of linguistics.
After completing my A-Level exams in November last year, I became very interested in learning languages. With such skills, I hope to become a diplomat or interpreter someday.
I already speak Mandarin and English fluently. I studied the former for nearly five years, so I still retain the basics of writing the characters, and I converse in it with my family every day. I also read avidly in English, spanning both fiction and nonfiction.
My proficiency in these languages was developed through constant exposure throughout primary school in all four aspects of language learning, such as through writing essays, giving presentations and participating in competitions.
I may have studied Malay but I’m not fluent as I don’t use it in my daily life. To improve my BM proficiency, I have been watching news reports in Malay and sometimes listening to podcasts and the radio.
Learning these languages has given me a more global perspective and cross-cultural understanding. I have also been expanding my linguistic arsenal by learning German and Cantonese.
For German, I joined a series of online lessons taught by native speakers. I did writing and listening exercises in a book, and most importantly, practised speaking.
To aid my learning, I watched videos and referred to a dictionary. Thankfully, Hochdeutsch (standard German), which is taught to foreigners, is quite structured with few inconsistencies, so I picked it up to A1 level fairly quickly.
However, it requires some memorisation, as it has three genders and the words can be rather long. For example, I stumbled upon Arbeiterunfallversicherungsgesetz while studying: . It means “Workers’ Compensation Act”.
I chose German because Germany is a highly developed and technologically advanced country with a strong economy. Having a good command of German increases both study and employment opportunities.
Learning German has given me valuable insights into its culture, as well as the pleasure of enjoying films and music in another language – think period dramas and schlager ballads.
In learning Cantonese, I focused mainly on the spoken form. I was determined to pick up daily phrases from my father, who is quite fluent.
Watching videos and listening to podcasts also helped greatly, as Cantonese has six tones, which can be confusing to non-native speakers.
Learning Cantonese has helped me connect with another side of my roots. It has also enabled me to understand Cantonese culture more deeply through songs and films, particularly from Hong Kong, and to appreciate its global impact. To my ears, Cantonese has a very elegant sound, especially when sung.
Initially, I assumed knowing Mandarin would help speed up my Cantonese learning, but that turned out not to be true. Cantonese cannot be used as a word-for-word substitute for Mandarin, and it has a different grammatical structure.
Language is closely tied to cultural norms, festivities, expressions, art, architecture, and many other aspects.
In Malaysia, there is a wealth of languages: English, Mandarin, Malay, Tamil, various dialects, as well as indigenous tongues in Sabah and Sarawak.
It may seem trivial, but languages form the bedrock of one’s culture and heritage, and therefore must be protected.
In today’s globalised era, it is more important than ever to preserve our way of life. Once it becomes extinct, it will be almost impossible to revive.
Too many languages are close to dying out, and it must be our responsibility to ensure their survival.
We can do this by teaching them to the next generation – even casual daily conversation makes a difference.
Together, we can and must give equal status and importance to all languages while improving our proficiency in a shared tongue for practical and economic purposes.
Hayley, 18, a student in Penang, is a participant of the BRATs Young Journalist Programme run by The Star’s Newspaper-in-Education (Star-NiE) team. For updates on the BRATs programme, go to facebook.com/niebrats.
