Anthropologist: The Language Learner

Well it’s that time of year again. All around the world students, professors, and a whole host of other people who identify as anthropologists have run off to “fieldsites” for the season. A wealth of knowledge will be produced in this time, and this will ideally help clarify the place of humanity in the world.

One of the essential tools in the anthropological trade – for a number of us – is learning a second language. This is true for people who study language specifically, those who use language to find out new information, and even those who simply do work in a foreign context. Oddly enough, we spend little time actually dedicated to discussing strategies and resources for learning these languages.

Here are five guidelines that might help you along the way. Whether you are just getting your feet wet, or are a seasoned verteran eager to explore new things, you may find the following mindset useful in your travels:

There is no one way to learn language

If there were a single *golden* rule to learning a second language, I would be writing a published paper about that instead, and would soon collect my nobel prize. Second language learning is actually very much like excercise: there are general strategies to learning that are probably good for everyone, but what ultimately ends up being effective depends on your regimen and personal preference. For example, running is great for getting in shape, but some are just not into it – luckily there are numerous other ways to stay fit. Be open to new learning techniques, and don’t get frustrated if one is not instantly effective. This is especially important if you approach the learning experience the same way you likely learned it in school. Forget those long vocabulary lists about “the kitchen” or “the zoo,” and begin with something more close to home.

The five essentials

Start simple and do it meaningfully. As a general rule, always use those words and phrases that will give you the most mileage. At the outset, five essentials are:

Hello

How are you?

Good!

Thank you.

Goodbye.

This is an invaluable conversation: You can use it most all the time, and can have the experience with almost anyone you meet. Some people are surprised when I tell them I don’t know a vocabulary word for a fruit, or something like a part of the body. But think about it. How many times do you talk about tangerines in a day? Saying hello, asking about someone, and then saying thanks and goodbye is among the most common engagements we make as humans. Minimalist? Sure. But meaningful? You betcha. The best part is that you technically begin by learning a full conversation. Take a walk down the street with the right kind of smile, and you might make some new friends.

Language is people

We use language to talk to eachother, and if it weren’t for interpersonal engagement, it would not have been invented. With that in mind, get out there and go meet some people! The five simple phrases above are enough to keep you going for the rest of the day, I promise. If you sit inside and try to study language in isolation, it creates a type of disconnect between the communicative system and people. To learn a language is to let new people into your life (this might also inform which language you choose to study – pick a meaningful one). Context permitting, one of the best activites in language learning is taking learning materials and visiting public spaces. The park can be great, but places like a coffee shop or restaurant can be even better. Here you have a nearly garunteed linguistic engagement. You could even get away with just pointing to menu items and using vocabulary from the five essentials above. It goes a long way, and even if it goes horribly wrong, you will learn something about the language and culture.

In learning a second language, we also learn a second culture.

People generally assume language learning involves those long lists of vocabulary and memorizing complex rules of grammar. Again, language is people. As we learn new words, and use them to make new friends in a second language, it gives us a greater ability to learn new things about the culture. This new knowledge about the culture accordingly exposes us to new words, and the process continues. Acquisition can be considered a type of dialogic experience between language and culture, where knowledge about one increases the propensity to understand more about the other. To gain a second language is to also a process of gaining a second culture. With this in mind, try to see your commuicative experience from a fully relative standpoint.

Languages stand on their own

A language other than English is not English. When people are learning a second language, they often consider that language in relaiton to their mother tongue. I.e., in Spanish, “Cielo means sky (in English).” This type of contrastive analysis can lead to interesting little quirks about the differences between two tongues, and provide a helpful guiding light in the process of acquisition. But it can be limiting. Try thinking in relative terms, like looking at the sky and just thinking cielo means cielo. Always has. Always will. This strategy can be really helpful, even for a limited vocabulary, and it will make the later, more complex aspects of language a bit easier to digest. All languages provide a full description of life for its speakers, so instead of thinking what the second language does or does not do in relation to English, enjoy the things that it can do on its own.

These approaches to second language learning can be really helpful for students entering the field for the first time, or even older professors with more space to branch outside of the norm. You are never too old for language, just as you are never too old to improve your health. And the idea that “you are not good at learning language” is as useful as saying you are not good at excercise. How can you know what works best without giving it a chance? Franz Boas said knowing a language was essential for understanding another culture, so take these approaches and add them to your repitiore this summer season.

-Dave