What language do you "think" in?

[Conforumist]

I feel like watching the entire B5 series again now!

I find Klingon sounds very much like German. Lots of hard "r" sounds in there etc.

[Will of Lancre]

What language do you swear in?

Preferably a different one from the language of the person I am swearing at.

Coming back to what language you count in, I agree with MC that it is always quickest in the language you first learnt to count in.

However, I noticed a peculiarity when I lived in Strasbourg, where the native dialect is basically German but the official language is of course French.

At my local bank, the tellers would use Alsatian dialect for numbers up to 20, which they had learnt at their mother's or more likely granny's knee, and French for numbers from 20 up, which they had learnt at school.

[Jan Van Quirm]

If you don't know any Klingon then German has to be best by far to curse in - you can rrrrrreally get zeeeeeeeeeee phlegm and spit moving with it

[janet]

If you don't know any Klingon then German has to be best by far to curse in - you can rrrrrreally get zeeeeeeeeeee phlegm and spit moving with it

What was it Mork used to say? Something like SHAZBLATT!

[raptornx01]

[janet]

THANK YOU!

[Hvitveis]

I end up thinking in whatever language I use at the time. I obv use spanish most of the time: lectures, notes, friends, people on the street..in zaragoza you only hear castellano. I prefer to read in english and most of the blogs I follow are in english, so my norwegian is suffering a bit. But when I get angry I swear in norwegian, and as for counting it goes a lot faster in norwegian.

The problem is when I have to use the three at the same time, I usually end un short circuiting and having no idea what language I am using until my visitors point out they have no clue what I just said.

[Seimimac]

Hi folks

Interesting topic. I tend to think in either Irish or English. It usually depends on who I'm speaking to at the time, for example, when I speak to my father and brothers, who I always speak in Irish to, I think in Irish. But, when I speak to my sister, who I always speak to in English, I think in English. Don't know why that is...

I remember (vaguely), being in a bar a load of years back, and the conversation the whole night had been in English. My brother, who had had a few pints, came over, and we started talking and then arguing. We were told the next day that people were staring, because we started shouting at each other in Irish, and while nobody understood what we'd said, they all wanted to learn how to swear like that, because it sounded so nice!

[Conforumist]

Hi folks

Interesting topic. I tend to think in either Irish or English. It usually depends on who I'm speaking to at the time, for example, when I speak to my father and brothers, who I always speak in Irish to, I think in Irish. But, when I speak to my sister, who I always speak to in English, I think in English. Don't know why that is...

I remember (vaguely), being in a bar a load of years back, and the conversation the whole night had been in English. My brother, who had had a few pints, came over, and we started talking and then arguing. We were told the next day that people were staring, because we started shouting at each other in Irish, and while nobody understood what we'd said, they all wanted to learn how to swear like that, because it sounded so nice!

Hmmm, swearing sounds "nice" in Irish...
I guess that way, nobody gets upset!

[Sister Jennifer]

^ that's true. You could call your Granny an eejit and probably get away with it... probably.

[jtrhoades]

I dunno I think swearing in English is pretty damn good, lets you offend the most people.

[Seimimac]

^ that's true. You could call your Granny an eejit and probably get away with it... probably.

As long as she didn't hear ye

[Penfold]

I dunno I think swearing in English is pretty damn good, lets you offend the most people.

I always thought 'English' with a broad Glaswegian accent sounded best for swearing in (once you can actually understand what is being said, that is).

I also found this clip of Adam Hills talking about languages while clicking through You Tube.

[Sister Jennifer]

^ that's true. You could call your Granny an eejit and probably get away with it... probably.

As long as she didn't hear ye

Man, I know! I would never backchat my Granny, ever. I heard my Gran curse out my Granda once and even though I couldn't understand her I ran outside and didn't come back until dark.

[Del]

This is a really interesting subject.

Because its not just "languages".... but styles of English too.

I have to admit that when I used to be part of a mainly "american" chatroom I found my brain clicking into "American-speak" the minute I logged in because otherwise I would be constantly having to "translate" words every few minutes to MOST (and I say most because of course some of the more widely read knew what I was saying). Same thing for humour. Well MORE so for humour. Those who loved "English" humour (Monty Python etc) "got" it and yeah Aussie humour too. Calling someone a "silly bugger" was sometimes taken in the most abrasive way when in fact it was said as an endearment.

Though there were timeslots when half a dozen or so English people used to come online and of gosh we would have fun! We could say things that would completely go right over the heads of the Americans (woooooooooooosh!) and dont get me wrong; it was neven malicious. But as I said; there was a percentage of Americans who DID understand our humour and got the same delight out of it. So I had a few "hats" to wear when I participated in that chatroom depending on time zones and who was online.... my brain "clicked" into a different "language" so to speak.

To SOME degree I still do it here.... not as much but some. We have had this discussion before about localised English in a whole other thread.

I do notice though that I read Sister Jenns posts and even Q's in a slightly different way to the rest here. (Queenslanders?) Sister Jenn's because I know Rocky well and know the humour up there. When she was talking about being "a Nigel at the book club" the other day I almost felt my brain shift. The number of times I have gone to type "NOT HAPPY JAN! " in a post and not done it because its not an integral part of your language..... though it says BUCKETLOADS here in Australia; and it has nothing at all to do with Jan Van Quirm!

With Q I think its a local thing is some ways.... if he has said he has been out... I know what sort of day he has had kind of because he is virtually "just down the road" so if its hot I was hot, if it was stormy then it was stormy here more than likely. AND I have met Q... when I read his posts I hear his voice.

I have now spoken to Bouncy... and when I read her posts I hear her voice too.... (she has a lovely accent).

I do have to say..... Christian's post the other day when his spell checker wasnt working had me in fits "Dost thou.... Hast thou.... " I shall read CB in a totally different way from now on.

Please dont think I am being offensive here..... but I ADORE reading Natalya's posts! I love that you havent got perfect english Natalya and it tickles me way too much when I read what you write... especially when you are describing your emotions about something. Your English is brilliant but straight from the heart with your Russian accent.

I have noticed to that some other people "slip" into their own little tongues at times when they are answering each others posts .... Dug and fellow Scots for instance. Love it.

I heard once how Stephen Hawkin has had many chances to change his vocaliser to a more "real" voice but chooses not to as he considers the robot voice he is known for as HIS voice and I can understand that.

I have the greatest admiration for anyone who can think in more than one language.

I remember plodding through German at High School until one day our German teacher was taken ill for a month and the headmaster stepped in to teach us. He was a born German who had NO trace of an accent and he stormed into our class and started speaking fluent German non-stop. Made it clear that for that whole time he would use NO English and neither would we. Its was a transformation. First few lessons were hell but one day it just "clicked" and it was easy street for me after that... my brain shifted into German as I walked towards his classroom every day.

I used to wonder for YEARS what went through Haydens head language-wise when she had NO speech; did her brain think in sentences that just couldnt come out of her mouth; I still do wonder even now as although she can speak.... and its not as clear as yours and mine... but it IS sentences... though the grammar is missing mostly so does she think in correct grammar? I think not but this will be a question to be asked of her at a far older age. She still stuggles vocalising her emotions to a fine degree of understanding although her physical displays of affection are tremendous (yes good and bad).

I suppose I love this question because my life for the past 12 years... well 10... has all been about how the brain processes speech and how it regurgitates it. I have had to learn far far too much about how the brain processes language. We have had to build every single neurological pathway in Haydens brain from scratch on her journey and at times it has been a battle Ugh! 12 months getting "CH"... and they kept saying "No! She HAS to learn "CH" or the pathways wont connect" and they were right... once it came in you could almost SEE the lights going on as a whole new set of pathways "lit up" and connected other language lines. Sometimes its been a traffic jam as "roadworks" shuts down the traffic and at other times it has been like they have opened up a six lane highway and she zooms ahead.

Not just languages either.... dont you all "change" your mind set when you speak to different people in your social circles? Your language changes?