Linguist abroad

All translators and interpreters speak a minimum of two languages proficiently, and some of us work professionally with three or four languages. Personally, I am professionally proficient with just two: English and Polish. I can however also speak Russian to a good standard and some basic German and Spanish. With all those languages I am generally able to communicate when travelling in quite a number of countries, but not so readily in France.

I have recently returned from a short trip to the tourist Loire Valley. The French are famously proud of their language and therefore can be reluctant to speak English. With such inhibitions, I had the opportunity to see the world through the eyes of my service users.

I found the experience frustrating at times, but I was determined to make the best of it. I bravely spoke French and such was my determination not to try to impose the use of English, that I would mistakenly impart Spanish words instead. Notably, I accidentally managed to order 13 hot chocolates instead of three, as French “treize” and Spanish “tres” sound similar. On the whole, most of my encounters were rather fun, however there were a small few where the other party seemed unimpressed and unamused by my meagre efforts.

From my professional perspective, had the circumstances been a little less trivial, I can understand how difficult, isolating and frustrating it must be to be unable to communicate in an emergency. It certainly is not amusing when you fall ill or become a victim of crime while holidaying abroad, made only less humorous by being unable to communicate easily and effectively without interpreter’s help.

Some languages are more prominent than others. Different second languages are considered more useful in different areas of the world, which is dictated by many different factors, such as geography, economy, politics, etc. The trends also change over the years with younger generations learning different foreign languages from their parents and grandparents. Everybody is proud and protective of his or her own native language, regardless of the language’s world-wide universality. From my personal and professional experience, both French and English native speakers assume superiority of their own language and often have little patience for visitors who do not speak their language well enough. It is an error to assume that every foreigner visiting your country is an immigrant and therefore should have made an effort to speak the language. It is also an error to assume that just because a person does not speak your language, they speak no foreign languages at all.

Whatever your native language, next time you meet a foreigner who makes an effort, do not judge, nor assume, do not scowl, nor dismiss, and worst of all do not embark on the satirical raising of THE VOLUME as a means to becoming miraculously understood. A smile, a tone of empathy and encouragement and an overall friendly approach always aids communication – failing all that…draw a picture!