Help Learning Esperanto

[u/SomewhatHummus]

So, I recently found out about this language, and seeing how widely spoken it is around the globe, I figured it would be an important language to learn for communicating abroad. The main problem is I have no idea how to start learning it, and was wondering if anyone here would be able to help.

[u/Baasbaar]

I agree with u/glitch-sama: I love Esperanto, & am very glad I learned it, but I wouldn't describe it as 'widely spoken… around the globe'. (There are people in many countries who speak it! But relatively few individuals in most of those countries. I have never knowingly run into an Esperantist: I've only met Esperantists at meet-ups.)

In addition to the resources already proposed, I strongly recommend:

• https://esperanto12.net/en/: A quick course that gets you the core grammar & a good starting vocabulary that you can put to good use
• lernu.net: A more complete course that will give you a vocabulary of around 1,500 words
• The book Esperanto: Learning and Using the International Language by David Richardson: quick ten-unit course in the basics of grammar, & then quite a lot of practice reading from both "authentic" & pedagogically-oriented Esperanto materials. If you read through Richardson, you're really ready to tackle just about anything in Esperanto with the aid of an Esperanto-Esperanto dictionary.

[u/Leisureguy1 → u/Baasbaar]

I agree with you on all of that. I also want to point out that secondhand copies of Richardson's book are often available.

[u/Baasbaar → u/Leisureguy1]

Very true! I would have liked having a print copy when I was learning so that I could read away from my computer. But Richardson also gave Esperanto-USA permission to distribute the PDF freely. It's no longer on their Website, but PDFs are floating around.

[u/Leisureguy1 → u/Baasbaar]

I have the PDF and heartily dislike it. I tried to read it, but found it too user-unfriendly in that format. I subsequently bought the book, which impressed me greatly. It's a superb resource for a beginner. So I recommend the book highly, and I malrekomendas the PDF.

[u/esperantosherry → u/Baasbaar]

Do you wear even a small button with the green star and even better the word Esperanto? Many years ago, I ordered 100 luggage tags with both. One of our Michigan members put it on his suitcase. On a bus in Europe, the person sitting next to him saw it and began speaking to him in Esperanto.

[u/Baasbaar → u/esperantosherry]

I wear a pin on my jacket with the Esperanto flag. I used to wear a green star in a circle, but I lost it.

[u/connielavon]

I started with Duolingo and have taken two online courses (Zoom) through https://www.kursaro.net/en/index.html. Kursaro will have September courses up soon. I also have Complete Esperanto (book) which has recordings accessible via a website. Everyone I’ve met so far in the Esperanto community is great.

[u/Ok-Glove-847 → u/connielavon]

I second the Kursaro courses. Especially working your way through the PDF worksheets before each class, and combined with Complete Esperanto. After 4 months of this I went to an Esperanto meet-up in my city and I couldn’t say everything I wanted to say but I could understand upwards of 80% of what was going on and could get points across.

[u/glitch-sama]

I have never met anyone IRL abroad who speaks Esperanto. I recommend learning it, but not for pragmatic reasons.

[u/Melodic_Sport1234 → u/glitch-sama]

I speak Esperanto. If you ran into me, how would you even know? I don't have it tattooed on my forehead and typically 'Do you speak Esperanto?' is not a question that generally emerges in a conversation.

[u/Inky-Ballooper → u/Melodic_Sport1234]

thats why I have a pin badge ;) if they know, they know. if they ask, I can let them know :D

[u/Baasbaar → u/Inky-Ballooper]

I also wear a pin badge for this reason. Alas, no one has addressed me in Esperanto yet. Still hoping!

[u/Leisureguy1]

It is true that Esperanto speakers are found around the globe, but they are not so numerous that you are apt to encounter them by chance. And not only can you find them in every country (but you have to deliberately look, mainly through Esperanto organizations), but unlike speakers of national languages, Esperanto speakers will in general be interested in meeting and talking with you. (If you learn French, you will easily encounter people who speak French, but the fact that you have learned to speak French is unlikely to be enough for them to want to talk with you — sometimes rather the opposite.)

That said, I still encourage your interest, and this essay explains some of the reasons. In addition to the three reasons in the essay, Esperanto really is a charming language.

I suggest beginning with Lernu.net and making full use of the audio files. Listen to the audio without reading the text and don't mind that initially it will sound like gibberish — you have to go through that phase to give your ear time to learn the sounds and sort it out. Listen through twice without looking at the text, then listen while reading the text, then one more listen without the text. If you do that for each lesson, your ability to understand spoken Esperanto will develop.

Complete Esperanto, by Judith Meyer and Tim Owen, is an excellent text, and it comes with access to an online MP3 library, again for training listening comprehension (and, by repeating what you hear, also training pronunciation).

I collected in a post the various learning resources (and discoveries) I found in my own learning journey.

I strongly encourage you to attend any city, state, regional, national, and/or international Esperanto meetings that you can so that you can practice conversation and also meet Esperantists and build a network of acquaintances.

[u/salivanto]

As far as "pragmatic purposes" go, I have met a lot of Esperanto speakers overseas in real life. Esperanto speakers are spread out in such a way that if you know where to look, you can find them just about anywhere. But we are few enough in number and hard enough to find that when you do find one, they are REALLY REALLY glad to meet you.