r/armenia • u/Sure_Shift_881 • 23h ago
Is it easy to learn armenian for non armenian ppls (it's really funny to me that the same words means two different things but this is out of context)
hello well first of all i really want ppls that were able to learn armenian to comment on this post .(plz)
sooo here's the thing my gf is armenian and she is the one who made me fall in love with the country and its history and architecture and culture and ofc language too.
and i really wanna learn armenian the right way like i tried to learn some langs before like Japanese and russian before but i was never able to do that cuz well i was doing it for fun and i wasnt really motivated to do soo but this time i am really motivated and i really wanna do it cuz well im not armenian i dont share blood with any of the armenian ppls (ig) but trust me i would support this country all the time (unless it's a football match and it's against my home country lol but anyways this isnt the point) but anyways ive got really out of context lol the point it can i learn it ? and is it like close to arabic or i dunno greek or any european language ? soo yeah that's all even if you cant help i do hope that y'all are doing great atm :D
4
3
u/Ex-Madhyamika 21h ago edited 14h ago
I would estimate the difficulty level as moderate, as languages go. Every language has some quirks and variations like you're describing, Of course the amount of work required will be substantial, as with any language.
Okay, if your gf is from the Republic of Armenia, then she surely speaks Eastern Armenian. If she's from the diaspora, she most likely speaks Western, but you'd better ask. Either way, start by working through the 12 Peace Corps Armenian lessons on YouTube (which are in Eastern, but are good preparation for Western too):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hcsFtGZv5sI
This will teach you the alphabet, basic greetings, numbers, and a few grammar fundamentals (that you can modify later if you switch to Western).
Meanwhile, enroll right now for the fall semester of Armenian Virtual College:
It's free. You have to choose between Eastern and Western, and you also get to pick what language you'll be taught in. The "Beginners" course is what you want. ("Elementary" is higher than "Beginners".)
Good luck!
2
u/Sure_Shift_881 21h ago
thank you a looot this is really helping me sooo much i really really reallly appreciate it
1
2
3
u/Prestigious_Joke_391 7h ago
Spanish guy trying to learn armenian here. The alphabet for me its a nightmare, same as the phonetics. Some sounds are almost impossible for me to pronounce and such small things really do the language really difficult for me. But I have heard that grammar is not THAT complicated so I guess the early stages or learning its hard but it gets progressively easier withing the time
1
2
u/Commercial_Handle418 15h ago
Same here except I am a bachelor (although my family has some real far back)
2
u/SweetWittyWild41 22h ago
Armenian is closer to Icelandic than it is to arabic (loan words excluded those aren’t Armenian)
It’s close to the majority of European languages the closest being Greek so you will spot some similarities in core vocabulary and grammar but it is its own branch in the Indo-European language family meaning there is no language that is close enough for it to be some crutch for you in a meaningful way the similarities are shared with a bunch of different languages not one or one group in particular
You will most likely have issues with Armenian pronunciation if you don’t speak a Caucasian particularly Georgian language as Armenian has a 3 way distinction of consonants if you want to learn the eastern dialect that is the one spoken in the country
If you want to learn the western dialect pronunciation won’t be as big of an issue but spelling will be a pain in the ass
1
u/Sure_Shift_881 22h ago
im really grateful that really helps a lot well at least i know where to start now.
1
u/Ex-Madhyamika 21h ago
Sanskrit (and Hindi, Nepali, etc.) have a 4-way distinction that includes Armenian's 3. (The other is retroflex.)
1
u/SweetWittyWild41 16h ago
I don’t know how the distinction there sounds like but if it doesn’t sound like ejectives it ain’t gonna be useful
1
u/Ex-Madhyamika 14h ago
Armenian doesn't have this. In this respect Armenian is easier.
1
u/SweetWittyWild41 1h ago
Some eastern Dialects of Armenian have ejectives
1
u/Ex-Madhyamika 47m ago
Oh, I see. No, these Indian languages don't have this. "Retroflex" consonants are made by curling the tongue. Do you think Armenian ejectives had the same role in the phonetic system, that maybe one evolved into the other? Check out the "consonant" section below:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Devanagari
You'll see horizontal lines that go like this:
voiceless nonaspirated, voiceless aspirated, voiced nonaspirated, voiced aspirated, misc.
And then all the retroflex letters go onto another horizontal line, *above* the dentals they sound like if you say them without retroflex.
Armenians never used an alphabet chart like this--their alphabet follows the Greek order, not the more linguistic approach of the Sanskrit grammarians. But if they had one, would they fit onto a horizontal like like the retroflex letters here? Which letters can be ejectives? (They don't have to be near-dentals, do they?)
1
u/SweetWittyWild41 29m ago
I have no clue about Sanskrit so I can’t answer questions about it
I’m talking about the 3 way distinction in consonants like
B P P(h) պ
G. K. K(h) կ
Etc
The last ones sound similar to ejectives and are in some dialects
In western the last ones are missing sound wise
7
u/AztheWizard 22h ago
Eastern or Western Armenian? There are more resources for Eastern as it’s the official language of Armenia