How I went about learning Swedish.

[MurdocLC]

Very interesting. I'm Swedish and I love when there are interactions between Sweden and other countries/people of any kind.

[BLOCKEDbyPOM]

May i ask a personal question? Do you have jewish origins. I just ask because you wrote you parents migrated in 1939. Im just curious.

[lingosteve]

@BLOCKEDbyPOM Yes I do, good sleuthing. My parents were lucky to get out.

[Thesniped13]

Hahahaha, jag visste inte att du var Svensk, jag är nämligen också Svensk!

[dedboj]

Yes, "framtid" means "future". "Fram" = "farward" ; "tid" = "time" (fram+tid = farward+time = future).

[supermonk3y07]

I have a question for you lingosteve, it is also something I would like to know about other polyglots. In which language do you think? also in which language do you dream? Sorry weird question, but It's something I want to know. I'm thinking you think in the language(s) you are best at. In your case probably English. But can you also think and have dreams in Japanese, French, Chinese, or Spanish?

[lingosteve]

@supermonk3y07 basically English

[Arijana2010]

You are such an inspiration! I myself way born in Germany and lived there up until the age of four and then moved away and have completely forgotten my german. Considering what you have experienced, would you say that the fact that you once did speak Swedish did it help with picking up the language? Did you uncover any Swedish that you thought you had forgotten but was still there? I am hoping to pick up German again and just wanted to hear about your experience. Thank you in advance!

[fvo911]

wow, u are swedish

[lingosteve]

@fvo911 Well I was born there, but my parents were from Czechoslovakia and moved there in 1939 and then we moved on to Canada in 1951. I do love going to Sweden though and feel a sense of attachment to the country where I was born, a country which accepted my parents at a very difficult time for them.

[fvo911]

@lingosteve oh. really u are an slavic man? me too, i was born in яussia) and im interesting in languages too, japanese,english,german,swedis­h and russian ')

[zizoe1]

Thanks for share with us your experiences learning foreign languages is motivating.

[koolibrii]

Jag älskar alla dina filmer, men den här senaste serien är en hit.

Jag vet inte om din far hade rätt att tala bara engelska vid ankomsten till Kanada.Tycker du inte att det hade varit bättre i det långa loppet skulle du ha bevarat dina föräldrars modersmål tyska och ditt födelseland svenska?

Vad var din inställning när det passerar språket i sin mamma (kantonesiska) till ditt barn? Tror du inte att vi stjäl en del av sin identitet om vi inte pratar med våra barn i vårt modersmål?

[lingosteve]

@koolibrii Just for the sake of all, I will answer in English. I think this is a personal choice. My uncle in Sweden spoke Swedish with his son, and a mixture of Swedish and German with his wife who was from Germany, but over the years, more and more Swedish. When we immigrate we basically abandon our original identity and take on a new one, or at least that is how I see it.

[tias90]

How did you deal with learning 'en' and 'ett'? It's just as hard as 'un' and 'une' in French, isn't it?

[lingosteve]

@tias90 I don't even think about it. I have no idea if I use it correctly and nobody has ever commented on it.

[LearningFrenchNow]

Great video! Did you have a chance after learning Swedish to have the conversation with your cousin in his native language?

[lingosteve]

@LearningFrenchNow Of course, we speak often in both English and Swedish and when I am there with his kids around the table it is all in Swedish.

[qzchris]

The one thing that scares me about Swedish (and, for the matter, Norwegian) are the tone words. Strangely, even more so than Chinese, since I cannot find any reference for them, so I am truly in the dark as to which words have which tone, how many there are, what their meanings are, and how to learn them. I suppose a lot of listening is the cure, but learning how to say "tomten" correctly, for example, to mean "Santa" or "the lot" drives me utterly spare. :(

[lingosteve]

@qzchris Don't scare yourself and do a lot of listening and noticing.

[dudeonthasopha]

@qzchris I KNOW! they don't explain which words have which tones, sometimes i see stuff about how many syllables are in the word but its basically a crap shoot. Im not even sure if there are no rules and that its completely random... if you find something that helps with those please let me know haha.

[qzchris]

@dudeonthasopha I know man, it's infuriating. I did find a list of words on a Swedish Wikipedia site that list words distinguished by tone, but being a Swedish site it doesn't list the meanings, nor does it list the tones by which they're distinguished. I can PM you the link if you like. It's about the only thing there is.

[qzchris]

Thank you for this video! I did a lot of work on Swedish at LingQ, albeit it on and off, for a couple of years, but eventually gave up because I just didn't find the language interesting or exotic enough. However this video might just be enough to rekindle my passion for this language! I wouldn't mind reading Stieg Larsson in the original, either.

[Iceland1944]

I have a child who just turned one year old. I have realized that I have no time for language learning anymore. It is really a sad realization for me. I have never been desperate for time in my life, now I have none. Maybe you can make a video about learning languages when the time is no longer there.

[Esoparagon]

@Iceland1944 Make 20 minutes a day. MAKE it. lol. Surely you can make 20 minutes? 15?

[3510211]

Thanks for doing this video Steve! Very interesting

[Sugaku496]

Hello, Steve.

I have the fortunate chance to travel to Finland later this year. Being a language learner myself, I was wondering if it would be possible for you to do a video on Swedish and Finnish resources such as dictionaries, phrasebooks etc, if time permits of course.

If I have missed a video which outlines this request, could you link me to it?

Thanks,

Steven

[lingosteve]

@Sugaku496 I would begin by visiting LingQ where both languages are offered, and links to other resources can be found.

[Mirachu]

Mycket intressant med en liten djupare diskussion om svenskan så här :)

[koolibrii]

@Mirachu Jag godkänner

[Neuroneos]

I would love to hear your Portuguese experience.

[lingosteve]

@Neuroneos I will add it to the list.

[patt7000]

Wow you did this video really fast, it was very fun to hear about this. I must say that your pronoucation is really good in swedish - but you probably already knew that.

[vinayaka70]

The current series is among the most interesting you did so far. Apart from that I like getting shown those books and audios. Last year I purchased a copy of 'Röde Orm' by Frans G. Bengtsson, in the original Swedish, if just to remind me that I want to learn Swedish some day. When I was a kid, around here we really got flooded by music, books and films originating from Sweden. Surprisingly, even one of our more popular folk songs is actually a Swedish tune (Vi gå över daggstänkta berg).

[Ifan8430]

Like this series of videos

[swissgirlxD]

Very interesting videos, I really look forward to see other videos of this series...

[TheSeductiveArts]

Not incapable and inept to mean I am stupid. but it feels as if there are so many languages I want to learn but don't have much time. Perhaps I have the time, if I live to old age, but there is a drive in me that wants to know everything NOW. Not 5, 10, or 20 years down the road. The inquisitive mind is such a tortuous organ.

[barkatthemoon6]

Very interesting video. I speak Norwegian so I can understand a lot of Swedish. By the way, you are correct. "Framtid" means future. It's almost the same in Norwegian, where the word is "Fremtid". Very nice video series. I have a question for you, Steve. Are there any languages that you would really love to learn that you haven't ever done before?

[lingosteve]

@barkatthemoon6 Yes, that was my first reaction and we should really rely on our instincts, but then I though why would the title be from the Ice Age to the future. Thanks.

[TheSeductiveArts]

I was thinking about learning Swedish after German, because I heard that Sweden and German collaborate a lot in producing movies. And since, I am in the film industry as an actor, I wanted to learn Swedish, but in reality, there are just so many languages I can learn. I love Steve explaining his story on how he has learned these languages, but they are also frustrating to look at. It all makes me feel anxious and impatient in wanting to learn more languages. I feel incapable and inept.

[TheSeductiveArts]

Bork, bork, bork, bork! LOL The Swedish Chef from The Muppets.

[vinayaka70]

@TheSeductiveArts In the German version of the show they made him a Danish chef humming about Smørrebrød or something. I never knew why. :)

[trinitarian100]

Steve, I know you do not like poetry. But the Nobel Prize in 2011 was won by a Swede, Tomas Transtromer, who is one of the greatest poets in the world. Recommended. I want to learn Swedish just to be able to read him in the original.

[roedgroedudenfloede]

Great video - I'm learning Danish, which is similar, yet while I tend to watch films and read books, I hadn't thought of audiobooks! You're absolutely right that it's better to read texts which deal with one's hobby - I tend to read books on soccer or music, rather than (say) fashion or hockey! By the way, "fremtid" is Danish for "future", so I'm guessing it's the same in Swedish.

[lingosteve]

@roedgroedudenfloede Yes, that was my first reaction and we should really rely on our instincts, but then I though why would the title be from the Ice Age to the future. Thanks.

[minofedor6600]

very interesting, steve. I look forward to see the next videos in this series. keep it up.

[Superworldblock]

What languages does your wife speak Steve?

[lingosteve]

@Superworldblock In declining order of proficiency I would say English, Cantonese, Japanese, Mandarin, French, Spanish and Portuguese. The latter three are not really all that fluent but she kind of knows what people are saying and can contribute. In the first four she is strong.

[trinitarian100]

Interesting videos. Keep them coming.