I was told that, Germanic people (Germans, Dutches, Swedes, Dane, Norwegians) generally tend to talk in English with those foreigners who can actually speak Germanic languages. I mean that, if sombody can speak German fairly well, a native German still like to talk with him in English. So do the other Germanic people such as Dutches, Swedes, Norwegians and Dane. Is that really true or false? Thank you very much! Please don't post spam!
Germanic people incline to speak English towards foreigners?
It is true.
That is a good reason to study a Romance language (French, Spanish, etc) and not German or Dutch.
For instance, people that speak English in:
Germany: 54%
France: 36%
Italy: 29%
Spain: 27%
At the same time, people that speak English in Germany probably speak it better than in the other countries. I am sure that half of the people that speak it in Italy, France or Spain has a low level.
That is a good reason to study a Romance language (French, Spanish, etc) and not German or Dutch.
For instance, people that speak English in:
Germany: 54%
France: 36%
Italy: 29%
Spain: 27%
At the same time, people that speak English in Germany probably speak it better than in the other countries. I am sure that half of the people that speak it in Italy, France or Spain has a low level.
I assume many of us Germans do that just to be polite or because they like to speak English. But I don't think it would be less useful to learn German because it will be easier to meet Germans when you speak our language.
<<I assume many of us Germans do that just to be polite or because they like to speak English. But I don't think it would be less useful to learn German because it will be easier to meet Germans when you speak our language. >>
correct. just because they speak to you in English does not mean that you have to reciprocate--talk back in German. That way, both sides can get practice : )
correct. just because they speak to you in English does not mean that you have to reciprocate--talk back in German. That way, both sides can get practice : )
But, when you attain a certain level of fluency, people speak to you in their native tongue. Don't be tricked: I still am more comfortable in speaking Dutch, but only if I know the person I talk to will understand me so I don't have to carefully choose my words and keep it simple.
By the way, as the person above me told us: it's indeed not necessary to speak the same language to converse with one another. Sometimes an entire sentence just pops out in another language. I often utter English, French or German once in a while between my Dutch. ^^
By the way, as the person above me told us: it's indeed not necessary to speak the same language to converse with one another. Sometimes an entire sentence just pops out in another language. I often utter English, French or German once in a while between my Dutch. ^^
<< I was told that, Germanic people (Germans, Dutches, Swedes, Dane, Norwegians) generally tend to talk in English with those foreigners who can actually speak Germanic languages. >>
-- You cannot generalize.
There is no reason Germans or Swedes whould use English with foreigners who have a reasonable command of their languages.
In the Netherlands it may be a little bit different. My Dutch is not top notch, but I've noticed that the switch-to-English treshold is in Holland much lower than in Flanders.
Oh, and In Italy also I have met someone who said he was an American in his heart and insisted to speak English though I have a pretty decent level of proficiency in Italian.
There are self-hating assholes everywhere.
-- You cannot generalize.
There is no reason Germans or Swedes whould use English with foreigners who have a reasonable command of their languages.
In the Netherlands it may be a little bit different. My Dutch is not top notch, but I've noticed that the switch-to-English treshold is in Holland much lower than in Flanders.
Oh, and In Italy also I have met someone who said he was an American in his heart and insisted to speak English though I have a pretty decent level of proficiency in Italian.
There are self-hating assholes everywhere.
To be fair, I am learning Persian so I'll jump at the rare chance to speak Persian with a native speaker. I guess it's the same with English learners. Even if they speak English a lot at work or school, it will probably be with other non-native speakers, so meeting a native is not all that common.
"I was told that, Germanic people (Germans, Dutches, Swedes, Dane, Norwegians) generally tend to talk in English with those foreigners who can actually speak Germanic languages"
Well, then you must come to Japan, where all foreigners are considered to be Americans and most Japanese will try to talk to you in English. Also, when I went to China (I speak basic Chinese) people insisted on talking to me in English even though I can understand at least how to get on a bus and get to my destination without problems. The same happened to me in Korea (My Korean is pretty basic)...
I guess that such people exist everywhere...Don't waste time believing in generalizations.
Cheers!!
Well, then you must come to Japan, where all foreigners are considered to be Americans and most Japanese will try to talk to you in English. Also, when I went to China (I speak basic Chinese) people insisted on talking to me in English even though I can understand at least how to get on a bus and get to my destination without problems. The same happened to me in Korea (My Korean is pretty basic)...
I guess that such people exist everywhere...Don't waste time believing in generalizations.
Cheers!!
By the way, I speak German fluently and never had a German, Swiss, Austrian or a Luxemburger(This dude I spoke to even used Luxemburg dialect but that wasn't a problem either) talking to me in English. Maybe someone might start speaking in English because he/she might be worried if the communication is compromised...
再見！
再見！
It's true.
Germanics are more civilized than most Italians who don't even try to speak English with foreigners.
Germanics are more civilized than most Italians who don't even try to speak English with foreigners.
Giovanni : « Germanics are more civilized than most Italians who don't even try to speak English with foreigners. »
C'est sûr qu'aborder un Chinois monolingue intégral avec des bribes d'anglais de cuisine est un signe de très grand raffinement...
C'est sûr qu'aborder un Chinois monolingue intégral avec des bribes d'anglais de cuisine est un signe de très grand raffinement...
<<C'est sûr qu'aborder un Chinois monolingue intégral avec des bribes d'anglais de cuisine est un signe de très grand raffinement... >>
Oh Dieu le défend quelqu'un devrait dire quelque chose de positif de Germanics en présence d'imbécile!
Oh Dieu le défend quelqu'un devrait dire quelque chose de positif de Germanics en présence d'imbécile!
When I meet people who speak German fluently and they want to speak German, I speak German. However, some people does,'t have a good command of German so I speak in English. But I know that in China it is similar. one person who speak Chinese but if the chinese knows English, even being the "laowai"'s chinese is good, they try to speak in English.
Intelligent people incline to speak English towards foreigners. That is the global reality. There is a very strong correlation between a nation's prosperity and it's English proficiency. In Europe for example, Northern Europeans have the highest GDP per capita in the world and the highest English proficiency as well. As you go further south and east in Europe where English proficiency is much lower, the GDP per capita is also lower.