Ever Considered Learning German?
Posted on July 9, 2009
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Learning to speak German is a great investment in both your social and business life. Popular reasons for people to start learning German are to make the most of holidays in Germany, be able to chat with German relatives and prepare for study exchange programs in Germany. There are however many other great reasons to learn German that many people never even consider. Here are some that come to mind:
Germany is the most populous European nation and German is the most widely spoken language in Europe. German is the third most popular foreign language internationally and by learning German you are able to connect with 120 million native German speakers. So German will not only allow you to build relationships with people in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Luxembourg and Liechtenstein but also German speakers all over the world.
Germany has the 3rd strongest economy and is the number 1 export nation in the world. Germany’s international trade earnings are proof of the high demand for German goods. Germany’s economic strength means business opportunities not only in Germany itself, but also throughout the European Union as well as in the United States. Germany exports more high-tech products than any other country apart from the U.S. so Germany is a country of innovation.
But all work and no play makes Jake a dull boy and the German’s also know how to enjoy themselves and are the biggest spenders of tourist dollars in the world. Year after year the German’s spend more on foreign travel than any other nation. Tourism companies, airlines, hotels and car rental businesses that can communicate in German will profit from the German tourism industry.
Don’t be fooled into thinking that the German language is dying. In number of books published, Munich is second in the world only to New York. As very few German books are translated into English, the only way to appreciate these books is by learning to speak German.
German speaking countries have a very rich cultural heritage. The Germans are well known for their poets, classical musicians and great philosophers. The world of classical music is inseparable from the names of Mozart, Bach, Beethoven, Strauss and Wagner to name a handful of the famous German speaking composers. The psychologists Freud and Jung forever changed the way we think about human behavior. Anyone interested in any of these fields automatically expands their knowledge and skill by knowing German. Whether you’re interested in cultural and intellectual heritage of these countries or not, the fact remains that Switzerland, Austria and Germany all offer a very high standard of living, which make these countries very attractive to many people.
You’re probably thinking that’s all well and good, but German is too hard to learn. If that’s the case, you’d be wrong! I think you’d be surprised to discover just how similar English is to German. Modern German and modern English both evolved from the common ancestor language Germanic. Also convenient is that German words are spelled phonetically. Besides, there are loads of great resources online that will help you learn to speak German and have a lot of fun in the process.
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