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Japanese or Mandarin course? Which to choose?

masayoshi

#1 procrastinator
8 Dec 2004
27
5
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Hello all. Not too sure if that's the correct place to ask this but I'd like the opinion of people who've learned Mandarin and Japanese or either one

I need some advice about whether to choose Mandarin or Japanese to learn in a course. I've learned some Mandarin in the past at school but I need some serious brush-up to perfect it. I'm quite at ease with structure, grammar. Only need to reinforce vocabulary and lots of practice. It's not my native tongue although I speak another Chinese dialect (yeah I'm overseas Chinese)

However, Japanese is something totally new to me (relatively). It's not common at all in my country (neither is Mandarin but Japanese is non-existant). Thing is, I'm currently studying in the UK and Japanese can be learnt here. Since Mandarin is taught (though limited) back home, I was thinking it'd be better to learn a rarer language. More unique at home = Better opportunity ... or so I'm thinking


But then, China is a rising power while Japan is quite on the wane. Everyone's jumping on the bandwagon of learning Mandarin. So rising power v/s existing/waning (??) power? Uniqueness or going along with the masses? Catch the opportunity to learn something new v/s reinforce something acquired to attain full proficiency? ... My thoughts are a bit jumbled :?
 
You certainly do sound a bit jumbled about which course to take :)

I think the problem is that you seem to have identified two divergent motivations for studying a new language: (1) the instrumental and economical practicality of the language (i.e., I think it will help for a job); and (2) the personal utility gained from learning the language (i.e., I think it would be an interesting challenge). You will need to do a cost-benefit analysis between the two and prioritize from there.

Do you think it is more likely that you will have to use Mandarin in future employment or Japanese? Given your Chinese background I would assume the answer is Mandarin, but since I don't know your personal situation that may not be the case. Whether the Japanese or Chinese economy is on the wane is kind of irrelevant, I think, because it is all specific to what you are likely to do in the future. Regardless, you can be sure that both nations will still be conducting international business 10 years from now so it really depends on what exactly **you** will be doing 10 years hence.

As for the personal aspects of learning the language, I guess I can't give you much advice on that because you know yourself best. My approach has always been to say that life is too short, so we should take advantage of the time we do have and pursue our strongest dreams. If you really have a burning desire to learn Japanese then go for it and worry about the other things later.
 
In general terms I'd say go for both since neither are worthy of neglect.

It sounds like you already have the Mandarin basics. What is most difficult in my opinion is getting the basics, and also to have an environment where one is motivated both by personal desire to acquire a new language and the fierce competition that an academic setting can offer.

Therefore my advice to you now is to take Japanese; if you fully immerse yourself in it for 2-3 yrs, you should be able to reach a level from which you can teach yourself more regardless of environment. You already have that for Mandarin, but not for Japanese. Take the opportunity.

Language teachers advise to take at least one day off from a week's regimen of tough verbal drills so your brain has a chance to reorganise. The little bits of knowledge that you accumulate every day would become more useful if they become both subconscious (conditioned reflexes) and conscious (non-reflexive). Either way, happy studies ! 🙂
 
Yeah if you want to learn Japanese then go for it, you can always see how it goes. Lol I'm looking for a college at the mo to continue my Japanese, but it seems that you already have exsperience with mandarin.
I guess its up to you if you want to continue what you have already started, or go with something new. From what I have heard of Chinese languages they are very diffrent from the Japanese Language, its alot more similar to Korean.
But at least you wont have the same trouble as me with the Kanji :), I take it you already know all of them.
 
I am also an overseas Chinese with a mother tongue of a Chinese dialect that is different from mandarin. I have studied both languages before (and still am), and what I can say is that if you already understand how Chinese works linguistically already, you will have a much easier time perfecting Mandarin. It might take at least 2-3 years to become fluent in Japanese if you start studying now, but it take much less than that to become a good Mandarin speaker. It is advisable to become really good at one language first, rather than going at a slower pace and not becoming fluent in either language by studying both at the same time.
 
You have a point there, too, NHK9. If the goal is to achieve near-native level in at least one language, then immersing in the one for which you already have some solid basis will give a more satisfying result than laying the foundation anew for a new language which happens to be Japanese. But if the goal is to achieve communication ability in both languages at a comparable level before the time of employment or self-employment, then it could also be argued that starting on the weaker language asap is quite meaningful. Besides, employing the comparative method of language learning would highlight the distinctive features of both Japanese & Mandarin Chinese. Of course a small amount of interference between them is unavoidable, but if the first language is already English, there is already interference to begin with. There is no such thing as a perfectly pristine language learning environment unless one is born into it... what value can be found in language purism :? Basically it would all depend on what goal is to be achieved by the language learner. :p
 
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Thanks a lot to all who replied. It really helps me. Colin's point about my motivation dilemna is spot on. I wasn't even aware of it before :joyful:

Ideally I would like to become fluent in both Mandarin and Japanese for better prospects and personal satisfaction. Since learning Japanese is an opportunity that I may not get in the near future, I've decided to go for it. Besides, I don't know yet which language of the two would be most useful to me. So better have a foot set in both of them before.

The kanji will help me with traditional and to a certain degree modern Chinese. Maybe I can learn some Chinese by myself using the school's material for Mandarin :LOL:
 
Good luck with your studies!! I think that if you work hard, study diligently, and, most importantly, believe in yourself, then you will achieve your goals.

😎
 
Japanese is supposed to be an easy language to learn to speak, because it only has five vowels. Also, there are very few irregular verbs and only two exceptions (Kuru - Comes, Suru - Does).
 
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