These things will help you to stay focused and will motivate you to keep going, even when there are days where the learning is less enjoyable. It has Dutch at its core but it is also intertwined with other dialects and indigenous languages from Africa. Don't worry, we've got you covered with our top 15 hardest languages to learn for English speakers. However, whilst it is very close to England, that does not mean the languages are similar. The reason it is so simple to pick up is because of the similarities it shares with English. The Hindi language is a relatively challenging one and takes hours to perfect to even an intermediate level. More than 9 million people are native speakers of Tigrinya as of 2012. You might be surprised to find out that Finnish is a very unique language. And while the idiomatic complexity comes with spoken Persian, its melodic tones can be picked up and understood quicker than some other Middle Eastern languages. And although it shares fewer cognates with English (a fancy way of saying 'words that are the same'), there are some other features that make it super-easy.. Spanish is simple to pronounce for English speakers. Finally, its time to take a brief look at the complexities of the Persian language and what makes it work, in terms of grammar, syntax, and pronunciation. You probably have so many Spanish words in your ear. As a Romance language, Spanish derives from Latin, just like many English words. It is full of mutations and consonants that are unfamiliar to an English speaker, but with some memorization and an eagerness to learn, it is certainly possible. You just need to get used to it. However, something that may soothe the pain of all these complex grammar rules is the fact that in Hungarian there are only three verb tenses to learn: the past, the present, and the future. It shares many similarities with English, especially when it comes to vocabulary. That is, Farsi is Persian, particularly the type that is spoken within Iran and parts of Afghanistan, and the term Farsi is not used for dialects in other countries of the Middle East. Both the script and vocabulary system of this dialect is far from the modern version, with small, wedge-like lettering and a fusional language syntax system that mirrored other languages like Latin in using genders and noun cases. It is also known as the Perso-Arabic alphabet and is written in horizontal lines from right to left, with numbers written from left to right. If you prefer warmer countries, youll be happy to hear that Spanish is also on the list of the easiest language to learn. Other languages may have unique and new sounds, compared with the sounds you know from your own language and alphabet. The first peoples of Persia under the rule of Cyrus the Great would have spoken this dialect, which we have written cuneiform evidence of, thanks to the Bistun Inscription, found on Mount Behistun near modern-day Kermanshah in Iran. In fact, it shares many similarities with Indonesian due to the fact that a similar variety of the language is used in Indonesia, Brunei and Singapore., But, although Malay and Indonesian speakers can generally understand each other, there are some differences in terms of spelling, pronunciation, and vocabulary, with Malay based more on loanwords from English, and Indonesian having more loanwords from Dutch., Malay is widely considered to be one of the easiest Asian languages to learn, because its grammatical rules are simple and its easy to pronounce. Though Persian expansion arrived at a standstill after a failed attempt to colonize Greece during the Greco-Persian Wars following the Ionian Revolt of 499 BC, the Persian defeat at Marathon, and Dariuss death, his successor was still determined to continue the legacy of previous kings. . You may come across a challenge or two, like mastering Portuguese pronunciation and nasal sounds. They also write right to left, which is very different from English writing. That's mostly because it's a Germanic language - just like English. For example, you may seek out a language teacher who specializes in your chosen language or may start to visit a store where a staff member speaks the language. For example, it is spoken in Iran and called Farsi. German 2. From this period, we primarily have the remains of religious Pahlavi or Zarathushti texts that described Persias new religion, Zoroastrianism. Indeed, fluency doesnt happen overnight, no matter which language youre learning. With the wide range of smartphone applications available for every purpose under the sun, its no wonder you can find language learning there too! Whereas Dutch demands verb conjugations like those in Englishfor instance, I am, you are, it isAfrikaans doesnt bother you with the details. Spanish also uses the same alphabet as English, and many of the words are pronounced just as they are spelled., Another benefit of Spanish for English speakers is that the sentence structure is not only similar to English, but its also not as strict as it is in English, which means there are often multiple ways a sentence can be put together.. French is a language that has many similarities to English, and they share a large number of cognates. Lastly, brush up on your Colloquial Persian with Abdi Rafiees 3rd edition copy of this classic conversational sourcebook. This problem is observed among many students, so they often turn to services like Thesis Rush, which helps with all kinds of writing theses, dissertations, or papers. One important concept that can affect whether a language is learned easily by a native English speaker is the grammatical framework. First and foremost, it is a Romance language, but you cannot deny its Slavic influences, especially when you consider that Romanian once used the Cyrillic script. Italian Demonstrative Pronouns And Adjectives (With Examples), French Vocabulary And Phrases For Military Personnel, 9 Best Sites To Find (And Schedule) Spanish Tutors, Chinese Isn't That Hard To Learn (Here's How Long It Takes), How To Ask For Help In Mandarin Chinese [Essential Phrases], How To Ask 'How Are You' (And Respond) In Greek. Like Welsh, Gaelic is another language that comes from Britain and so is very close geographically to England. Yes, that is systems, plural. Speak aloud to yourself or record yourself doing it using your smartphone, computer, or a recording device. Many popular world languages have very different grammatical structures to English. Now we come to the language of Iran, and what modern native speakers use to communicate. Learners need to learn a whole new alphabet and character system to understand Russian. That being said, it is one of the widest spoken languages in the world, with over 900 million people speaking it daily. In comparison, a language that is not in your language family may be more difficult to get to grips with. There is also a welcome lack of verb conjugation, which is great news for learners, especially since this means that the sentence structure stays simple and short. Indonesian is one of the most widely spoken languages in the world, with over 40 million native speakers and more than 150 million non-native speakers. 1) Danish. For this reason, many native English speakers may find that these languages are a little easier to learn than a language such as Chinese Mandarin or Arabic. Nowadays, Latin script is used, which is why native English speakers find it a little easier. Like Korean, there are many different ways of addressing someone. Can you guess what English word this resembles? Norwegian 4. That's because it's the closest language to English today, both in words and structure. So, how easy or difficult a language might be for you to learn will depend not only on the language itself, but also on which languages youre already fluent in, or at least familiar with.Remember, how long it will take you to learn a language is influenced by many different factors. Furthermore, Norwegian has an SVO (subject-verb-object) sentence structure, the same as English. But generally, Portuguese is categorized as an easy foreign language for a reason. Another member of the Germanic family of languages that is considered easy to learn is Swedish. Some writing systems require writing from right to left, as opposed to the left to right method that Germanic languages (English, German, etc.) Thats why Norwegian words like morgen, glass, and papir sound so familiar. Many languages are similar to other languages. The only verb ending that needs to be used is -r!). Over 2000 of them are commonly used, so you need to know at least all of those. Continue with Recommended Cookies. The latter fact will be a welcome discovery for those still reeling from the discovery that Arabic goes right to left! These two words look almost identical, but notice the very small differences of the and the . French features a few tricky components for native English-speaking learners, like gendered nouns, inconsistently pronounced letters, and lots of tricky silent letters. How far away the country that the language belongs to (both physically and culturally) can also be an influencing factor in how easy or difficult a language can be to learn. Looking for a language thats not going to require three-hour evening classes Monday through Friday for the next 10 years? Manage Settings Thats mostly because its a Germanic language just like English. There are more than 22 million native Amharic speakers and about 4 million L2 speakers worldwide. The Spanish language is phonetic (meaning the spelling tells you the pronunciation of the word). Just like Norwegian, Swedish, and English, Dutch is a Germanic language. However, this time frame is not because it is more difficult per se, but rather because of the grammar rules that need to be remembered. Fill in the form below and well contact you to discuss your learning options and answer any questions you may have. Georgian is a language that is very unique as it has its own script. The Complete Modern Persian (Farsi) Beginner to Intermediate Course by Narguess Farzad is a go-to resource for learning the language from a book. After all, thanks to exposure and wide reach of Spanish, English speakers wont find it very unfamiliar. The main reason for this is because of the use of the Cyrillic script. For example, FluentU helps you learn languages by adding interactive subtitles to thousands of videos, allowing you to see the language used in context and click on words and grammar structures you dont know. Indonesian grammar has no concept of plurals or tenses and no grammatical genders. Although Frisia no longer exists, Frisian, which actually consists of three main dialects, is still in use in parts of the Netherlands and Germany., English and Frisian share many similarities in terms of sentence structure and vocabulary. For scheduling 1-on-1 conversation sessions with native Persian speakers, you absolutely should have an italki account. And once again exposure. According to the Foreign Service Institute (FSI), Spanish belongs to category I by difficulty. But yes, Swahili is also categorized as a less demanding language to learn. The sounds they use are also very different from English and can leave you feeling tongue-tied. Therefore, it is relatively easy for all speakers to learn, regardless of their native language. With a good teacher or reliable Italian online lessons, youll learn how to order pizza in Italian in no time. Indonesian sentence structure is also similar to English and its grammatical rules are fairly simple. You shouldnt have unrealistic goals though. As well as this, the grammar rules are different from what we may be used to, as they follow the Subject Object Verb writing and speaking order. Even so, French does share many similarities with English, especially when it comes to the vocabulary. The Persian language uses the Arabic script, something that native English speakers are unfamiliar with. That might seem a bit confusing, but it can actually be an advantage since there is often no single correct way to pronounce a certain word. Look at this Norwegian sentence: Jeg spiste egg til frokost(I ate eggs for breakfast). There are dialects of French even here in the States and of course, in Canada. That is what makes it so wonderful. This blog post is available as a convenient and portable PDF that you Thai has five tones while Chinese has four. 15 Spanish Pick Up Lines That Wont Let You Down! German has masculine, feminine, and neutral nouns to learn, along with conjugating verbs and a syntax that must be followed, or else the meaning can be lost. However, it could not be further from English. While many beginner courses or introductory lessons to the language ignore Persian script, its important to supplement your learning with understanding the alphabet of your target language, to encourage reading and writing Farsi in the original written form. A large part of learning a language is learning how to write it. FluentU is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. The Spanish language is phonetic (meaning the spelling tells you the pronunciation of the word). With four distinct pitches, Persian uses the tone of your voice to denote types of speech. Follow our tips in the section above to help you learn your chosen language a little quicker, and always keep in mind that good things take time. French 3. However, the language family it belongs to is the relatively small Kartvelian. However, that also depends on many other factors. The total number of learned Farsi speakers and native Farsi speakers alike equals about 62% of the population of Iran, or over 30 million people. Another popular language school is the International Language Institute, offering multiple levels of classes to learn Persian and Farsi in Washington, DC. Dutch is another language that is generally considered easy to learn for English native speakers. As with the Vikings English got lots of Scandinavian words and are also Germanic languages like English sharing the same core words. However, not only is it rewarding to form a friendship in this way, but it can also be beneficial to your learning journey. Want to know which languages you have the best chance of mastering quickly?, Here are 15 of the easiest languages for English speakers to learn. Download our freeSpanish essentials eBook to help you get started. Check out our article on the best way to learn a new language here. And of course, France exists! So if that is not enough motivation to learn we dont know what is! If you are interesting in learning Korean, it is worth looking at the Rocket Korean language course, part of the Rocket Languages series. Start with PersianPod101 for basic lessons and vocabulary, Lingua Boost Persian for experience in real life conversations, and Persian PodGap for culture, literature, and interviews. While French is slightly more difficult.". Frisian was once the primary language of what during the Middle Ages was known as Frisia. Or, for a more step-based lesson book, try Learn Persian (Farsi) Step by Step: Level One Beginner (Steps 1 to 10) by Fruzan Seifi, available in both kindle formats and physical copies. Afrikaans - the easiest language to learn for both English and Dutch speakers Afrikaans, the same as English, Dutch, Danish, Norwegian and Swedish, is a Germanic language. The syntax of Persian sentences is a little different than what you might be used to in English, as well. However, a welcome difference between Polish and other Slavic languages is the fact that it uses an alphabet that you will be more familiar with: the Latin script. 120 words, extremely simple grammar. Afrikaans is one of the easiest languages for English speakers to learn because--like many of the languages on this list--it's part of the Germanic language family. Language vs Dialect: Whats the Difference? Another Romance language you can start learning right away is Italian. Swedish 5. This is what makes it obviously easier to learn by a native English speaker. This language was invented by a few linguists who were also great global citizens. However, once you have the grammar down the rest is much simpler. Persias expansion lasted from the initial formation of the Empire in 550 BC, when Cyrus the Great founded it within Western Asia as the Achaemenid Empire. On the bright side, because it is so widely spoken with many different varieties there is a wealth of resources out there to help you. use. And with the right resources, you can learn these easy languages even faster. There are three writing systems, kanji, katakana, and hiragana. As one of the intonational languages of the world, Persian vocabulary changes meaning depending on the rise and fall of your voice. For example, everyday German words like Wasser, (water) Apfel, (apple) and Fisch (fish) are very similar to their English equivalents. Of course, you also have the masses of Italian words that the English language has borrowed, such as pizza, pizzeria, stiletto, umbrella, and even words like dilemma and ditto! So you've decided to learn a language. There are some shared cognates such as ja which means yes and veld which means field. We approve.) Italian is yet another beautiful language, much like Portuguese and the other Romance languages. At the end of the day, it all comes down to your motivation and persistence. Persian is most likely known to you under one of the names of its dialects. Read on to start your journey into the beautiful and intriguing world of the Persian language, and good luck! There is some memorization needed of their verb forming rules and their articles. This is one of the reasons why Persian speakers sound so melodic when pronouncing words aloud. There are a few unique and fascinating grammar rules that the language follows, which are worth mentioning here, relating primarily to Persian morphology. For example, a writer targeting the Japanese market might learn Japanese . The very easiest for you to learn, though, is the one you're most excited to learn. 1 Language and diplomacy 2 Easiest (about 600 hours of study) 3 German (750 hours) 4 Malay and Swahili (900 hours) 5 Hungarian (1,100 hours) 6 Greek (1,100 hours) By doing this you can hear whether you are pronouncing things correctly and will be able to compare them to audio of native speakers. The grammar is similar to English, and many vocabulary words will sound familiar, like samme (same), ham (him) and op (up). An example of this is musique. For example, tonal languages can be difficult for someone who has no prior experience of tonal languages (for example, most of us English speakers). It shares quite a bit of vocabulary with English, and unlike some Germanic languages, the pronunciation of most Norwegian words is fairly straightforward., For the most part, the sentence structure is also quite comparable to English, although not identical.