Bonjour! Did you catch that? That was the only French word that rolls easily off my tongue after several years of college French classes. Yes, that is pathetic. Yes, I am ashamed. This shame was only compounded when I saw todayâ??s infographic. Apparently, the language I tried to learn is considered â??easy.â?
Using the Foreign Service Institute, among other sources, this infographic divides some commonly learned languages into three categories- easy, medium, and hard- based on various factors. The estimated time to achieve proficiency in each category is also included at the top of the sections. This time-frame is tempered with a reminder that each learner is different. (Learners like me and the small man in the top left of the graphic seem to have it a little harderâ?¦)
It is common sense that many Romance languages are gauged as â??easy,â? based on their similarity to English, but I was surprised that Russian is only â??medium.â? Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, and Korean comprise the list of â??hardâ? languages to learn for native English speakers. [Via]