Tag Archives: #multilingual

French…. English… Spanish…

My time in France has presented me with several opportunities but the most important one as a French major is the ability to speak French ll of the time! I have been very impressed with my progression in French. While I am no where near native fluency, I can tell my confidence, my vocabulary, and my overall abilities in French have greatly improved this semester. While I am very content with this, I have also become sad as opportunities have also arisen to speak Spanish.

I am a triple major, two of which are languages, and a double minor, one of which is a language (Arabic). At Penn State, I have no problems keeping up with my various languages because I have at least one class in each language. This is the first time in around eight years that I have not had a Spanish course. That being said, when the opportunities to speak Spanish have arose in France, I was not too pleased with the result. I spoke slower, with less confidence, and with French words tossed in. Up until this point, Spanish has always been my strongest language since I studied it for three years longer than I have been studying French. Now, I would have to say the opposite!

Two weeks after my program in Paris, I fly to Ronda, Spain for a study abroad program with Penn State faculty. I am hoping that my Spanish picks back up quickly because I really feel embarrassed about its current state. At the same time I really hope I do not ruin my French that has progressed a lot in France. It is a tough balancing point that all double language majors and or anyone going through a bilingual setting would understand. I am hoping that some day I will achieve equal confidence in both, however, I feel that the only way to do so would be to find a job that permits me to speak all my languages an equal amount, allowing me equal practice in all languages and equal development in all languages (well that is the goal anyway!). But for not, I go back to Paris and continue my French progress for nine more days before the end of my program. I do not want to leave Paris or France but I am excited to see what Spain has to hold!

P.S. You know you are speaking in another language 24/7 when your native language becomes infected by your second or third languages idioms, expressions, and/or mannerisms/ sounds.


Location: Paris, France