Things people say when they hear WHY you want to learn a language?

[CurlySue]

In another thread, people were discussing bad/weird reactions that others have when they hear that you're learning a particular language (or a bunch of languages). But what about when people hear WHY you're learning that/those language(s)?

When I tell people that I've studied Japanese because I like the culture, I usually get "oh, so you like anime?"

The answer to that is kind of, but since when is anime = all Japanese culture? There's way more to it than that...

Somewhat unsurprisingly, I get also get raised eyebrows when I say that I'm learning Hebrew because I'm thinking of moving to Israel. The most common question I get is, "but isn't it dangerous?" Followed by, "are you really religious, then?" I'm not and while there are risks to living in Israel, I don't think it's "dangerous" in the way that people asking the question imagine it to be.

What about you guys? What are some reactions people have to your reasons for learning (a) language(s)?

[nooj]

To be honest no one really asks me why i keep learning spanish or french. I think they assume its self evident, even though the reasons behind wanting to progress with them are pretty much the same as wanting to learn smaller or less known languages, and then people are more willing to question. For example, why lao? Why tahitian? Why uighur?

Speakers of languages in an unequal power relationship are fascinating. Me i come from a korean background and until a decade or two ago korean wasmt a very popular language to learn so we reacted quite surprised to foreigners. Our reaction would be...why? Puzzlement more than hostility. With other languages, such as moroccan arabic or tachel7it i have gotten nothing but constant unending support. Maybe it would be différent in europe, with moroccan immigrant communities, but here moroccans just want to help you: i have never once in my entire year been asked why im learning their language. Thats superb.

Of course it all depends on who is asking you and why they are asking you. No one is going to be shocked if in an indian studies wing of a university you declare that youre going to be studying classical sanskrit and because you have an interest in bhakti poetry from the south, you are stuudying telugu, tamil, kannada. I got some interest from indians and pakistanis who wondered why i would be interested in classical south east asian literature, but youd get the same reaction i imagine if i told an anglophone i was doing a phd in english literature based around shakespeare lol. Great dude, now what job are you going to get out of it?

When i say i want to speak the languages of the people i meet and my friends especially, because i want to feel closer to them, feel where they come from, people dont have objections. Thats one of the major reasons why i learn some languages and ive never gotten any fuss about it, as i imagine most people would not blink an eye if you told them you were learning your spouses language in order to be closer to them.

[Cavesa]

In another thread, people were discussing bad/weird reactions that others have when they hear that you're learning a particular language (or a bunch of languages). But what about when people hear WHY you're learning that/those language(s)?
...
What about you guys? What are some reactions people have to your reasons for learning (a) language(s)?

Of course there are bad reactions! People are able to have bad reactions to absolutely anything!

Years ago, I stopped giving a damn about this particular area of my life being judged. My hobbies, my languages. So, I tell them my real reasons, I even choose the more "stupid" ones of the lot. I am not gonna hide behind the usual money driven stuff "Oh, I consider moving to Germany". And that can actually get you horrible answers too, these days (some people are thinking like "how dare you consider leaving after studying for the state's money, you are obviously a spoilt brat, if you don't want to be poor like us and spend your life complaining", so even such an innocent and seemingly rational reason can be a problem for them). So why should I care? (It is already hard enough to think of answers concerning my medicine studies! )

My favourite answers tend to include fantasy literature, tv series, a name of a good sci-fi author, musical bands, and other totally not practical stuff. It amuses me to watch the people. Some faces are pretty funny, trying to figure out the extent of my obvious crazyness

[SophiaMerlin_II]

When I tell people that I've studied Japanese because I like the culture, I usually get "oh, so you like anime?"

The answer to that is kind of, but since when is anime = all Japanese culture? There's way more to it than that...

I will freely admit that I want to learn Japanese primarily so that I can consume "weeby" media such as LNs, manga, and anime. The reaction I get varies mainly basied on age. People over 35: "Oh, wow, that's really cool, you must be very passionate." People under 35: "Wow, you're a peice of weeby human trash. That's a horrible reason to learn a language. Just stop. Japanese people will never accept a forigner like you. [insert unfounded diatribe about Japanese culture] what you're doing is disgusting, just stop. You don't appreciate Japan for what it really is."

I should probably just stop telling people the above and see what kind of response I will get on a wide scale from telling the (also true) fact: I find Shinto very interesting, and would like to learn about the belief system and visit various shrines and learn about their history and kami. What I've gotten so far from that is, "But you're a Christian [I'm really not though...] so that's really weird."


I want to learn Esperanto because I hate how people constantly tout English as the international language and squish other languages out of existance. "... But that's what English is for!"

[garyb]

The only strange or negative reactions I get are from native speakers of a language I'm learning (I made a thread a while ago, "Why are you learning our language?"). Everyone else sees it very positively. I'll admit my choices are very mainstream though, and I'd expect less positive reactions for more "niche" languages: French is "the" second language to learn, Spanish is undeniably useful, and Italian and Italy are widely considered beautiful.