The Benefits of Learning Another Language

By Natalie Amodei

Photography by Wikimedia Commons

Modern technology has enabled rapid communication with other countries and cultures. It allows someone from California to travel overnight to Shanghai or Berlin for a business meeting the next day. Or, that person could have a video call with business associates from these countries at the touch of a button. This heightened interconnectivity between countries shows that learning a foreign language is more important than ever in our global community.

Language is the primary means by which we interact with the world and each other. Through it, we can transmit complicated thoughts to other people and are able to express our desires, emotions, and needs with those around us. Language is fundamental to communication. 

Cities all over the world are constantly becoming more diverse. Being able to communicate with our neighbors isn’t only important when we’re asking if we can borrow a cup of sugar; it is also integral to fundamentally understanding them as human beings. 

This is because language is tied up in culture. Trying to understand one without the other would be like looking at a half-finished puzzle: you don’t have the full picture. Anyone who has ever taken a foreign language class has likely realized that grammar and spelling aren’t the only things taught; culture has an impact as well. 

Phrases like “I’m burned out” or “she’s pulling my leg” can be pretty confusing to someone trying to learn English. These expressions are reflections of how our culture shapes language. There are hidden meanings that you may not know until you’ve made an embarrassing mistake.

In my own Spanish studies, I have learned that many Spanish phrases have specific cultural connotations that can be offensive. The direct translation may mean one thing, but saying it in a casual conversation is very different.

Lera Boroditsky, cognitive science professor at the University of California, San Diego, says that language can shape how people view time, agency, and gender. In a 2017 TED Talk, Boroditsky remarks on the following influences that language has on the way we think.

Kuuk Thaayorre people are an aborignal group in Australia. They integrate cardinal directions in many aspects of their speech and lack words for “left” or “right.” In their greetings, they tell people in which cardinal direction they are headed. Their language shapes their ability to be well oriented.

The Russian language has distinct words for light and dark blue. Studies have shown that Russians are better able to distinguish between two different colors of a similar shade.

“Bridge” is feminine in German but masculine in Spanish. Germans are more likely to describe a bridge using words such as “elegant” or “beautiful,” stereotypically feminine words, while Spanish-speakers may describe a bridge as “strong,” a masculine stereotype. 

Language also shapes how we perceive and remember events. In English, we say, “he broke the vase” if a man accidentally knocks one from the counter. “The vase broke” could be a Spanish-speaker’s description of an event. The English-speaker is more likely to remember who broke the vase while the Spanish-speaker is more likely to remember that it was an accident. This leads to different perceptions of blame and punishment.

Learning another language provides a new perspective of the world and ultimately expands your ability to comprehend others and your surroundings.

Aside from better understanding a culture, learning another language has many cognitive benefits. The Eton Institute says that it can improve critical thinking skills, memory, decision-making, observational skills, and multitasking while even postponing dementia. Additionally, someone’s first language often improves, and career opportunities increase.

So, if you think that your days of learning a foreign language should stay in high school, I urge you to reconsider. Whether you are lost in another country, have a job interview, or are trying to walk in someone else’s shoes, your future self will thank you.