There is no way she had to learn much more English by the time she moved to the States. I'm Dutch, I'm 24, I didn't do any formal training in English besides highschool and I just moved to Australia where people actually think English is my first language (they just can't place the accent). The Dutch have to learn other languages, that's just how it goes, and I love that about where I'm from, we're taught to look *beyond*.
Follow this link: watch?v=dKAkncCE_mM you'll hear that Famke speaks Dutch without an American accent. Yes it is possible to speak several languages on high level without a strong accent.
Almost everyone in holland can speak english, but not alle as well as she does. Usually it's kind of funny if someone who is dutch speaks english. (I know that because I live there.) That I say this, doesn't mean my english is good.
When it comes to English as a second language, the Dutch outrank the rest of mainland Europe. English is my native language, but my dad's Dutch and I attended Dutch schools my whole life and moved to the Netherlands 8 years ago and it is generally easy to have a conversation in either English or Dutch. Other than a sometime strong accent, the Dutch speak perfectly good English, in my opinion.
@nakedmambo You clearly need to read before you reply, I was referring to the fact that you said that it was impossible for children in general to learn multiple languages via television, I not once defended the language skills of all Dutch people. I clearly said that the Netherlands is NOT where I'm from and that where I'm from, kids generally know 4 languages by the age of 10.. the fact that more people do not agree with you and no one defended your views should open your eyes just a little.
Ok...I am Dutch and for me it's quite easy, because I learned from the age of none to speak German ( my grannie was German), my parents always encouraged us (my siblings and me) to watch German/English/French tv without subtitles (as a child you don't need subtitles...you know what they are talking about).And in school those languages were mandatory...so sorry world...We Dutch people speak other languages by heart!
@nakedmambo Thank you for correcting me and letting me see the error of my ways! I should have known better than to lie about my childhood, because you were there noticing me NOT picking up other languages. Remember every vacation abroad?? When we used to NOT play with kids from other nationalities, because we didn't understand them? And Grannie wasn't really German, now was she? You are right...I didn't pick up other languages without subtitles, because I could read them when I was 4 .......
@gyqz You just saw people speaking in a foreign language on a screen, nothing more. Let's not pretend children have special powers. Obviously as a small nation the NL gets language crossover, but the contention that the country generally is multilingual is lies. People now speak mostly English to varied levels and the borders speak more German, or like you if they have German or other foreign relatives. Widespread German has dwindled. Try and see national reality rather than the myths.
@nakedmambo So...you learned your own language with subtitles, too?? But I guess you know it all and bi/tri-lingual children do not exist, because children do not have the power to pick up languages without subtitles. Do not take out on other nationalities that Belgium is still deeply involved in a lingual war within it's own borders......bitterness doesn't suit anybody!
@gyqz What are you wittering on about now? No, I didn't learn my own language with subtitles. If you think I implied that you did, it's really a confirmation that you're not even competent at English comprehension, isn't it? Bang goes the multilingual theory once again.
@nakedmambo Please do stop going to coffeeshops in The Netherlands...you are so high...you are making no sense whatsoever! You think you are master of the English language by putting in some fancy words? Think again! If you are not even competent enough to make a sensible cohesion of your own story/words, then do not try at all. So : step into your time machine and see for yourself how I picked up these languages....'wijsneus' .
@gyqz I AM English you clown, I only have a Belgian mother and live here now. Your grasp of the language is substandard if you think I used "fancy" words or that it lacks coherence. This: "If you are not even competent enough to make a sensible cohesion of your own story/words," is simply bad English.
What you have done is learned English to some level at school (like everyone) and German from your grandmother. The issue is NATIONAL multilingual competence, not your personal biography.
@nakedmambo Please stop talking about stuff you know NOTHING about, you sound really dumb! You think bi/tri-lingual children do not exist?? Yes they do exist and I'm one of many examples of such. I officially started taking Spanish lessons when I was 10, but before that because I watched so much Spanish tv, I picked it up automatically when I was about 5 years old and spoke it fluently and understood every word although I couldn't write it correctly, just like almost all the other kids..
@nakedmambo We automatically know English too, although not fluently in the beginning, but we could understand it slowly but surely at a very young age because TV, movies etc. were in Spanish or English. We also know Dutch because schools were in Dutch at that time, and Guess what? my Native language is NONE of the above, so technically before the age of 10 I could speak, understand and write FOUR languages just like all the other kids! Just because YOU can't doesn't mean it's impossible!
@NatiGhan Utter nonsense. Postulating a nation of child polyglots is the height of fantasy. For your information I was raised bilingually: that is two parents constantly speaking two languages to me, and even that was difficult. Most Dutch people speak horrible broken English, some hardly any. Stop lying.
@nakedmambo I'm not Dutch you idiot and I didn't grow up in the Netherlands either! Maybe for some reason YOU didn't pick up both languages, but I know for a fact that many kids DO. I actually thought it was very normal to be fluent in those 4 languages. Are you saying that i'm lying about speaking 4 languages by the age of 10? You come across as dumb and ignorant by stating that kids can't pick up multiple languages just by listening to it on TV, while in fact, I know for sure that we did!
@NatiGhan I did pick them up - English and Dutch (vlaams), the nationalities of my two parents. Being brought up bilingual is not like watching television and school language learning. I don't care how much you protest, the majority of Dutch people speak steenkolenengels.
You picked up rough knowledge from different sources, that's common. NL is not an unusual nation of polyglots, face reality.
@nakedmambo As a non-Dutch person living in the Netherlands, I have to say you're wrong. It's true that the older generations of Dutch people don't speak good english, but the younger ones learned it in school. Also I look after two kids who are four and five and they are learning to speak English through watching English movies, although it is phonetically, so it's not all that good.
@nakedmambo i was actually amazed by a guy in my class room the other day who could seriously hardly say yes and/or no which i found quite weird, Alot of Dutch people (younger generations) do speak atleast 2 languages fluently usually Dutch and English or Dutch and German and alot of people who's parents moved here from some place else speak their parents native language aswell, not all but alot do.
When you listen carefully, you can still hear general Dutch Pronunciation.. No big deal she can speak 4 languages...I guess she only learned French.. German and English for a Dutch is normal...
@legbreaker yes exactly i'm dutch to and could speak english and german from the age of 8 okay i live at the dutch german border so that made it easier but i can only pronounce a bit fo french but as you said english and german is normal for most of the dutch people only some peole you can clearly hear they dont pronounce it well
well, why is this so impressive? Holland is her native country.. i think she left for the states in her late teens or so? (modelling?) hell, i saw her strollin along in amsterdam last spring, walking her dog... pretty tall lady btw...
@AtheistFundamentalis This is a bit of a myth. A good deal of people speak decent English, but many more speak awful steenkolenengels. The number of German speakers has dwindled massively, a recent education report noted that English is now routinely chosen as a language option focus in school. Fact of the matter is that there are far fewer German speakers overall than you are implying, and even fewer French. The far-reaches of the border provinces probably have the most of both.
@nakedmambo Of course not everybody is fluent but you have to put it in perspective too: how many languages do (non-Latino or other immigrant) Americans speak by comparison? Basic Spanish and basic French? I reckon not good enough to have more than basic conversation, in general. By the standard of being able to have an understandable conversation about most topics without having to use gestures, the Dutch speak a lot of languages.
@AtheistFundamentalis I'm disputing that. It's not the level of fluency I'm talking about, there just are not that many people who speak French or German any more. There are a lot of claims made, but only about 1 in 20 (if that) has a working knowledge of German, far less for French. You always see desperate job vacancies complaining of a shortage of speakers of both languages. The Dutch have become obsessed with English, the claims of widespread multi-lingual competence is a cultural myth.
@nakedmambo Well, but what should we do? When tourist come to the Netherlands, they want US to speak there language, English, French or German. When we go over there, they still want us to speak there language. We've to learn the language, just to communicate to all those people who can't carry a English, French, German - Netherlands dictionary with them.
@MYN4M3IS4M3 Tourism is one thing, that happens anywhere. No-one is expected to learn the language for a holiday. However this is not the issue, the issue is that the claims of widespread multilingual fluency in NL are simply false. There may be a few more than in France or Germany because those languages have greater intl. currency, but it's nothing spectacular. It's easy to WOW English mono-linguists by speaking English, what chance do they have of speaking Dutch in return?
@AtheistFundamentalis You may be right about that, but every dutch person in the Netherlands, yes EVERY dutch person. (who is originally dutch) has this stupid accent, which they can't get rid of. For example: ''views'' is pronounced as ''fiews''. Or the ''th'' words are pronounced like shit. It sounds so awful, and they don't do anything to get rid of their stupid accents
@judithjuchtmans Yes I do, and I speak it without an accent:). You dutch people can't seem to get rid of that stupid accent when you speak english. Famke is an exception though.
There is no way she had to learn much more English by the time she moved to the States. I'm Dutch, I'm 24, I didn't do any formal training in English besides highschool and I just moved to Australia where people actually think English is my first language (they just can't place the accent). The Dutch have to learn other languages, that's just how it goes, and I love that about where I'm from, we're taught to look *beyond*.
TheDaisyBubbles 2 days ago
Her laugh is very dutch, and she is an amazing actress
svenini17 2 weeks ago
i'm Dutch!
lovelysweetheartxxx 3 weeks ago
@Leviwosc i'm just saying that her 'goedemorgen' sounded pretty strange, but maybe that's just in this interview...
MoxD1D 1 month ago
Follow this link: watch?v=dKAkncCE_mM you'll hear that Famke speaks Dutch without an American accent. Yes it is possible to speak several languages on high level without a strong accent.
Leviwosc 1 month ago
@Leviwosc Of course she speaks Dutch without a accent ! She IS Dutch !
HolandaChiquita 3 weeks ago
@HolandaChiquita - Dat weet ik, beter lezen. Iemand anders had commentaar op haar uitspraak.
Leviwosc 2 weeks ago
"HOE HA HET?"
LOL I friggin' love Ellen :)
EnigmaDrath 1 month ago 2
hoyl shit she's skinny.
mrmag1cc 1 month ago
Almost everyone in holland can speak english, but not alle as well as she does. Usually it's kind of funny if someone who is dutch speaks english. (I know that because I live there.) That I say this, doesn't mean my english is good.
DeZusVanMijnZus 2 months ago
@DeZusVanMijnZus
When it comes to English as a second language, the Dutch outrank the rest of mainland Europe. English is my native language, but my dad's Dutch and I attended Dutch schools my whole life and moved to the Netherlands 8 years ago and it is generally easy to have a conversation in either English or Dutch. Other than a sometime strong accent, the Dutch speak perfectly good English, in my opinion.
EnigmaDrath 1 month ago 2
@EnigmaDrath You're right about that, but i'm talking about the accent.
DeZusVanMijnZus 1 month ago
i think she spoke so many english that her dutch sounds kind of english, with a english accent.
MoxD1D 2 months ago
@MoxD1D - Can you judge her Dutch based upon these four Dutch words she spoke? I'd like to see a video where she speaks Dutch.
Leviwosc 1 month ago
@nakedmambo You clearly need to read before you reply, I was referring to the fact that you said that it was impossible for children in general to learn multiple languages via television, I not once defended the language skills of all Dutch people. I clearly said that the Netherlands is NOT where I'm from and that where I'm from, kids generally know 4 languages by the age of 10.. the fact that more people do not agree with you and no one defended your views should open your eyes just a little.
NatiGhan 2 months ago
Afrikaanse taal is echt bijna nederlands.. Top dat Ellen in het nederlands probeerd te spreken (Y)
gewoongea 4 months ago 2
@gewoongea Haha maar we hebben gewoon een Nederlandse vrouw in X-Men spelen..
222demon222 3 months ago
@gewoongea Ja, leuk he. Best grappig dat die g niet goed lukt, maar echt superleuk dat ze dat probeert.
DeZusVanMijnZus 1 month ago
she is the only woman i know from television i would call: Perfect!
TheNoCoincidence 4 months ago
That's an AMAZING dog outfit!
Marivs15 4 months ago
Nederlanders spreken allerlei talen!
The Dutch speak all sorts of languages!
On a prendre touts des langues... ok, so I suck at French... so sue me!
PhoenixPlaneswalker 4 months ago
@PhoenixPlaneswalker du bist Deutsch vergessen.
GrindWolfNL 4 months ago
@GrindWolfNL If I could, I would have, but I can't, so I won't :p
PhoenixPlaneswalker 4 months ago
I love her! I'm so sure I saw here in a museum with two friends last year.
MrJason300 4 months ago
Ok...I am Dutch and for me it's quite easy, because I learned from the age of none to speak German ( my grannie was German), my parents always encouraged us (my siblings and me) to watch German/English/French tv without subtitles (as a child you don't need subtitles...you know what they are talking about).And in school those languages were mandatory...so sorry world...We Dutch people speak other languages by heart!
gyqz 4 months ago
@gyqz No, I'm afraid you don't. And as a child you didn't just know what people were talking about without subtitles, that's simply ridiculous.
nakedmambo 2 months ago
@nakedmambo Thank you for correcting me and letting me see the error of my ways! I should have known better than to lie about my childhood, because you were there noticing me NOT picking up other languages. Remember every vacation abroad?? When we used to NOT play with kids from other nationalities, because we didn't understand them? And Grannie wasn't really German, now was she? You are right...I didn't pick up other languages without subtitles, because I could read them when I was 4 .......
gyqz 2 months ago
@gyqz You just saw people speaking in a foreign language on a screen, nothing more. Let's not pretend children have special powers. Obviously as a small nation the NL gets language crossover, but the contention that the country generally is multilingual is lies. People now speak mostly English to varied levels and the borders speak more German, or like you if they have German or other foreign relatives. Widespread German has dwindled. Try and see national reality rather than the myths.
nakedmambo 2 months ago
@nakedmambo So...you learned your own language with subtitles, too?? But I guess you know it all and bi/tri-lingual children do not exist, because children do not have the power to pick up languages without subtitles. Do not take out on other nationalities that Belgium is still deeply involved in a lingual war within it's own borders......bitterness doesn't suit anybody!
gyqz 2 months ago
@gyqz What are you wittering on about now? No, I didn't learn my own language with subtitles. If you think I implied that you did, it's really a confirmation that you're not even competent at English comprehension, isn't it? Bang goes the multilingual theory once again.
nakedmambo 2 months ago
@nakedmambo Please do stop going to coffeeshops in The Netherlands...you are so high...you are making no sense whatsoever! You think you are master of the English language by putting in some fancy words? Think again! If you are not even competent enough to make a sensible cohesion of your own story/words, then do not try at all. So : step into your time machine and see for yourself how I picked up these languages....'wijsneus' .
gyqz 2 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@gyqz I AM English you clown, I only have a Belgian mother and live here now. Your grasp of the language is substandard if you think I used "fancy" words or that it lacks coherence. This: "If you are not even competent enough to make a sensible cohesion of your own story/words," is simply bad English.
What you have done is learned English to some level at school (like everyone) and German from your grandmother. The issue is NATIONAL multilingual competence, not your personal biography.
nakedmambo 2 months ago
Comment removed
NatiGhan 2 months ago
Comment removed
NatiGhan 2 months ago
This has been flagged as spam show
@nakedmambo Please stop talking about stuff you know NOTHING about, you sound really dumb! You think bi/tri-lingual children do not exist?? Yes they do exist and I'm one of many examples of such. I officially started taking Spanish lessons when I was 10, but before that because I watched so much Spanish tv, I picked it up automatically when I was about 5 years old and spoke it fluently and understood every word although I couldn't write it correctly, just like almost all the other kids..
NatiGhan 2 months ago
@nakedmambo We automatically know English too, although not fluently in the beginning, but we could understand it slowly but surely at a very young age because TV, movies etc. were in Spanish or English. We also know Dutch because schools were in Dutch at that time, and Guess what? my Native language is NONE of the above, so technically before the age of 10 I could speak, understand and write FOUR languages just like all the other kids! Just because YOU can't doesn't mean it's impossible!
NatiGhan 2 months ago
@NatiGhan Utter nonsense. Postulating a nation of child polyglots is the height of fantasy. For your information I was raised bilingually: that is two parents constantly speaking two languages to me, and even that was difficult. Most Dutch people speak horrible broken English, some hardly any. Stop lying.
nakedmambo 2 months ago
@nakedmambo I'm not Dutch you idiot and I didn't grow up in the Netherlands either! Maybe for some reason YOU didn't pick up both languages, but I know for a fact that many kids DO. I actually thought it was very normal to be fluent in those 4 languages. Are you saying that i'm lying about speaking 4 languages by the age of 10? You come across as dumb and ignorant by stating that kids can't pick up multiple languages just by listening to it on TV, while in fact, I know for sure that we did!
NatiGhan 2 months ago
@NatiGhan I did pick them up - English and Dutch (vlaams), the nationalities of my two parents. Being brought up bilingual is not like watching television and school language learning. I don't care how much you protest, the majority of Dutch people speak steenkolenengels.
You picked up rough knowledge from different sources, that's common. NL is not an unusual nation of polyglots, face reality.
nakedmambo 2 months ago
@nakedmambo As a non-Dutch person living in the Netherlands, I have to say you're wrong. It's true that the older generations of Dutch people don't speak good english, but the younger ones learned it in school. Also I look after two kids who are four and five and they are learning to speak English through watching English movies, although it is phonetically, so it's not all that good.
charliethasnail 2 months ago
@charliethasnail I'm not wrong. I live in the Netherlands too. I see it with my own eyes and hear it with my own ears.
nakedmambo 2 months ago
@nakedmambo i was actually amazed by a guy in my class room the other day who could seriously hardly say yes and/or no which i found quite weird, Alot of Dutch people (younger generations) do speak atleast 2 languages fluently usually Dutch and English or Dutch and German and alot of people who's parents moved here from some place else speak their parents native language aswell, not all but alot do.
TheObelix876 2 months ago
When you listen carefully, you can still hear general Dutch Pronunciation.. No big deal she can speak 4 languages...I guess she only learned French.. German and English for a Dutch is normal...
legbreaker 6 months ago
@legbreaker yes exactly i'm dutch to and could speak english and german from the age of 8 okay i live at the dutch german border so that made it easier but i can only pronounce a bit fo french but as you said english and german is normal for most of the dutch people only some peole you can clearly hear they dont pronounce it well
pabexian 4 months ago
well, why is this so impressive? Holland is her native country.. i think she left for the states in her late teens or so? (modelling?) hell, i saw her strollin along in amsterdam last spring, walking her dog... pretty tall lady btw...
tapilaha 6 months ago
Is ze Nederlands, ja??? IK WIST HET! Haar naam was gewoon zo Nederlands, dat moest gewoon :D Stoer..
LeonieBruce 8 months ago
Believe me, she spoke English when she was 19. She only had to work on her pronunciation.
In the Netherlands, most people speak English and German and everyone with some sort of higher education speaks at least basic French.
It's not that impressive, it's like Famke says: it's a small country and we have to learn other languages in order to communicate.
AtheistFundamentalis 1 year ago 62
@AtheistFundamentalis This is a bit of a myth. A good deal of people speak decent English, but many more speak awful steenkolenengels. The number of German speakers has dwindled massively, a recent education report noted that English is now routinely chosen as a language option focus in school. Fact of the matter is that there are far fewer German speakers overall than you are implying, and even fewer French. The far-reaches of the border provinces probably have the most of both.
nakedmambo 5 months ago
@nakedmambo Of course not everybody is fluent but you have to put it in perspective too: how many languages do (non-Latino or other immigrant) Americans speak by comparison? Basic Spanish and basic French? I reckon not good enough to have more than basic conversation, in general. By the standard of being able to have an understandable conversation about most topics without having to use gestures, the Dutch speak a lot of languages.
AtheistFundamentalis 5 months ago
@AtheistFundamentalis I'm disputing that. It's not the level of fluency I'm talking about, there just are not that many people who speak French or German any more. There are a lot of claims made, but only about 1 in 20 (if that) has a working knowledge of German, far less for French. You always see desperate job vacancies complaining of a shortage of speakers of both languages. The Dutch have become obsessed with English, the claims of widespread multi-lingual competence is a cultural myth.
nakedmambo 5 months ago
@nakedmambo Well, but what should we do? When tourist come to the Netherlands, they want US to speak there language, English, French or German. When we go over there, they still want us to speak there language. We've to learn the language, just to communicate to all those people who can't carry a English, French, German - Netherlands dictionary with them.
MYN4M3IS4M3 4 months ago
@MYN4M3IS4M3 Tourism is one thing, that happens anywhere. No-one is expected to learn the language for a holiday. However this is not the issue, the issue is that the claims of widespread multilingual fluency in NL are simply false. There may be a few more than in France or Germany because those languages have greater intl. currency, but it's nothing spectacular. It's easy to WOW English mono-linguists by speaking English, what chance do they have of speaking Dutch in return?
nakedmambo 4 months ago
@nakedmambo i think its ridiculous there are people who can only speak 1 language :)
TheObelix876 2 months ago
@AtheistFundamentalis You may be right about that, but every dutch person in the Netherlands, yes EVERY dutch person. (who is originally dutch) has this stupid accent, which they can't get rid of. For example: ''views'' is pronounced as ''fiews''. Or the ''th'' words are pronounced like shit. It sounds so awful, and they don't do anything to get rid of their stupid accents
gangsterturk25 1 week ago
@gangsterturk25 Do you speak Dutch? I bet you'd have a 'stupid' accent too. At least Dutch and Belgian people CAN speak other languages.
judithjuchtmans 1 week ago
@judithjuchtmans Yes I do, and I speak it without an accent:). You dutch people can't seem to get rid of that stupid accent when you speak english. Famke is an exception though.
gangsterturk25 1 week ago
We are so proud of herXD
Bethhart46 1 year ago
the best james bond lady ever, ever
looneyirish 1 year ago
It's Famke, which means "girl" in Frisian.
Nortiix 1 year ago
it's Femke !! not famka
FeltDownHard 2 years ago
its amazing you wouldnt even think she didnt speak english as her 1st language
DaleoAndAmbii 2 years ago 21