With the summer getaway just around the corner, new research reveals that us Brits can order a beer in three different languages – with 10 per cent able to order a cool one in five or more. However, we struggle to have a full-on conversation with locals when abroad and while many of us would love to be able to speak another language fluently, Alex Rawlings (speaker of 16 languages) explains why learning even just five phrases can really endear you to locals.
Alex says, “In Amazon’s new Chatterbox survey, Brits say they know the phrase for “excuse me”, followed by “I don’t understand?” and “where is the toilet?” in an average of three languages, and that’s a good place to start. I would always recommend trying to perfect at least five phrases before visiting somewhere and they would be:
1 – A GREETING
Something simple like ‘Hello’ or ‘Good Evening’ is very easy to learn but goes a long way and puts and locals will love hearing that you’ve made an effort.
2 – AN APPRECIATION
It’s very important to be able to express gratitude when you’re in somebody else’s country especially if they have helped you put or served you a drink a meal so learn either ‘thank you’ or ‘thank you very much’.
3 – AN APOLOGY
People in other countries do not have high expectations of English people being able to speak their language but if you can learn a phrase to apologise for not speaking their language well, it will be very much appreciated and more than likely they will speak back to you in English.
4 – A QUESTION
If you can learn a question phase such as ‘where is?’ or ‘what is?’, not only will people be more likely to help you, they will probably go above and beyond to make sure you get what you need.
5 – A COMPLIMENT
The final phrase I’d say is learn a compliment, learn something nice that you can say to people like ‘You have a lovely smile’, or just something that’s going to make people warm to you - and say it with a smile as this will help you to connect with people, and that’s really important.
But the main thing Alex wants us to know when it comes to languages is that it’s never too late to learn and that there are so many benefits to it.
“The world is moving to one where many people are at least bilingual, which is amazing. We know how important that is, for example there's been all these studies that show that speaking more than one language can delay the onset of dementia. It’s a really beneficial thing to do for your brain health to learn a foreign language. So don’t get left behind – it has so many benefits! You don't have to be raised bilingual to experience the benefits. The moment you start learning a foreign language, it will do something to your brain. In Amazon’s new Chatterbox series where they researched their 75,000 diverse workforce, 85% vowed to scrub up on the language next time before they go on holiday, and that is really encouraging.”
The survey of 75,000 Amazon workers in the UK is part of the Chatterbox series, which acts as a barometer on the views of diverse modern-day citizens, with the company employing people from over 100 different nationalities.