Searching for Patterns in Language

Patterns

A rancorous argument continues to rage in the field of foreign language acquisition.  What, you haven't heard of the Great Grammar Debate? Traditionalists hold fast to their claim that grammar study must proceed acquisition of a new language.  Other language educators maintain that grammar study should be delayed until the learner knows enough of the new language to apply grammar information.  The Great Grammar Debate is a continuum, with methods and materials for foreign language study falling along a scale.

Because I adhere to the less grammar at the beginning contingent, when I began language study on Duolingo about four years ago,  I made a vow to use only sparingly the "Tips and Notes" (grammar information) provided by Duolingo.

 I wanted to challenge myself to work out the grammar of new languages in my own head.

As I began working with Spanish, then Portuguese, then French, I had no problem turning up my nose at grammar explanations.  To be fair, years of classroom study in these three languages had already given me a hefty dose of traditional grammar in each of them.  Then I decided to add Irish, Welsh and Romanian to my daily language study regimen. Instead of zipping through the Duolingo exercises in a few minutes, I found myself really having to concentrate and, heaven forbid, THINK!  

No traditional grammar explanations for me!  I was going to conduct my own mini-research in the new languages to discover grammatical patterns.  After all, as much as new languages may seem random to us, all language is rule based.  My job was to discover the rules. 

IRISH

Exercises with Irish prepositions were driving me crazy.  You see, Irish prepositions contain not only the preposition itself but also the object of the preposition, all within the same word.  For example, "in front of him" is expressed in Irish by the one word "roimhe." I was faced with the double task of translating the prepositions, which seem to take on unexpected meanings in Irish, with the more mundane task of recognizing the person referred to. As I wrote down sentences containing prepositions and their English translations, a pattern began to emerge.

Tá fáilte romhainn. We are welcome.

Tá muinín ag an múnteoir asainn.  The teacher has trust in us.

Conclusion:  the -asainn refers to the first person singular (we or us)

Baineann tú díot do hata.  You take your hat off.

Dlíodóir atá ionat.  You are a lawyer.

Conclusion:  the -t ending mark the second person singular (you).

Tá an ceapaire roimhe. The sandwich is in front of him.

Is as Éirinn di.  She is from Ireland.

Instead of comparison, contrast revealed an -e ending for third person singular masculine (he) and an -i ending for third person singular feminine -i (she), which is supported by the Irish words for he, sé, and she, sí. 

Finally, I am fairly confident that the ending for prepositions referring to third person plural (them) is -bh because Bainimid na madraí díobh   translates as "We take the dogs from them."

Unfortunately, I have yet to discover the pattern for prepositions referring to first person (I).  But isn't that the way natural language works?  We have no guarantee that normal conversation will provide us with every single grammar possibility.  I can be patient.

Are you still awake, reader?  Not everyone is quite as fascinated with the way languages are constructed as I am.  But for those of you who enjoy puzzles and codes, discovering grammatical patterns is a bit of fun and a great help in deciphering new languages.      

Some fascinating grammar facts (yes, really!)

I recently added a sixth language to my daily study regimen on Duolingo.  I know; it's an obsession. But before I admit to being a bit quirky when it comes to language study, I would like to defend my choice to spend valuable time each day learning other languages. You see, I truly get a kick out of analyzing how other languages are put together.

Linguists will tell you that languages are more similar than they are different, and I agree.  The common elements of nouns, verbs, questions, and negatives come to mind.  But each language I study has differences in grammar that are important in the language acquisition process. 

First, let's explore up front why the word "grammar" gives some people the heebie-jeebies. I think it is because grammar in our native language (English for me) is fairly boring because we have already acquired it automatically. But once we start overlaying our English grammar patterns on new languages, ah! That's when grammar becomes intriguing. 

Let's take a look at a grammar point in Spanish labeled "The Personal A." Here is an example: Busco mi hotel (I am looking for my hotel); Busco a mi esposo (I am looking for my husband). Did you notice the extra "a" in the second sentence?  Don't bother trying to translate it. The personal a is a Spanish grammar requirement before direct object nouns that are specific people. Sounds easy enough, right?  But how about Bitsy, my beloved pet cat?  Isn't she as important as any person?  Yes! Busco a Bitsy.  I am looking for Bitsy.  Here is the link to a YouTube video that gives further explanation of the personal a in Spanish:    The Personal A . 

On to Portuguese, which may be my favorite other language.  Portuguese creates combined words that make beginning Portuguese students tear their hair out.  Take a simple phrase like "the girl's book" which translates into Portuguese "the book of the girl" (o livro da menina).  The English phrase has five words; the Portuguese phrase has four.  The Portuguese word da combines the meanings of "of" and "the." And the Portuguese language has many of these forms, which are usually prepositions combined with other parts of speech. Take a look here Chart of Portuguese combined forms to be completely overwhelmed by grammar rules. These forms are best acquired rather than learned!

Another of the languages I have studied for many years, French, still makes my mind work overtime with some unique grammar rules.  To say, "She remembered" in French, you have to know that "to remember" is a reflexive verb, that is, a reflexive pronoun is required.  Then the past tense of reflexive verbs in French is formed with the helping verb, être.  And if that isn't enough, the past participle must agree with the subject.  Elle s'est souvenue is the result. ( I missed this translation recently on Duolingo!) Not easy, but fascinating.

For the next blog post, I am planning to tackle some sticky grammar points in Irish, Welsh, and Romanian, all languages that are fairly new to me, and therefore even more of a challenge.

Recently I read the headline of an article that ran something like "Forget Luminosity; Learn a Language."  Analyzing grammar may just make those neurons in our brains a little more active.