Hello,
Learning a new language is a part of the expat process. Let's find out how crucial it is to know the language in India.
What is the official language in India, and what are the other popular spoken languages?
Is it possible to live in India and get by without speaking the language?
How do you manage to communicate with the locals if you don't speak the native/official language fluently?
What are some popular and useful phrases that expats absolutely need to know?
Can you share some tips about how to survive in India on a daily basis without speaking the language?
Thank you for sharing your experience.
Priscilla
Language barriers in India
Priscilla
04 October 2018 08:29:00
42358
Subramanyam Namuduri V
06 October 2018 17:37:18
2
English still is the popular language. Don't worry much
Nessasmom980
08 October 2018 06:59:12
1
Language barriers aren't much of an issue in the bigger cities. Most businesses and taxi drivers know basic english. When I am in the villages then it's a little more of a problem. But I have a unique issue as I am married to an Indian so if I need any assistance I have my own personal translator😉.
As far as must need works and phrases... I use
Kitna= how much (if buying something)
Learn Hindi numbers 1-50.. then in increments of 100 up to 1000. So u can buy anything easily.
Also another useful phase is
Mujhe Nahi pata (hindi)= I dont know (hindi).. you can subsitute any other word for the Hindi to make others understand u don't speak the language or understand what they are asking of u. Then add English dhanyavaad? (English thankyou) ...if they say No (ney) then simply ask to another until they say yes (ha).. and your all set.😊
My Hindi over a couple of years has gotten much better but really just knowing these few phrases will get u very far in india. There are so so many languages in india. Hindi is the widely used but even then most of your smaller cities and villages will use their own language so it's not uncommon for even other Indians to not understand the language another is speaking. So hand gestures, and a bit of time, and u can get your point across as to what u need and want.
Or, you can settle in Goa (Indian state) and the official language here is English. They also speak Hindi. But the local language is Portuguese. Which is about 70% Spanish. Which I am fluent in. It was the perfect location for Vinod (my husband) and I. He is fluent in Hindi and English. I am fluent in Spanish and English. (My Hindi is now about 30-40% after 2 years). So between the both of us we can do and say about anything, anywhere. It's great. Not to mention living in the western ghats (rain forest) and near the most beautiful beaches youhave ever seen isn't bad either 😊.
So, if u want to visit or relocate to the country of India I would invite anyone to do so. You will be just fine. Don't worry.
Best of luck to everyone
Laura
matshidisolp
09 October 2018 06:20:41
4
It is not such a big issue really. I live in Shimla and most people know how to speak English, living in a student populated area also helps I suppose. I have never really experienced true language barrier. Some people are less confident than others and if you are with an Indian friend they would most likely address the Indian friend in Hindi as a way to communicate with you the foreigner. But otherwise no need to worry. However, if you planning to live here, you should atleast learn some basic phrases.
deafdrummer
10 October 2018 04:31:35
59
Subramanyam Namuduri V wrote:English still is the popular language. Don't worry much
It depends on how ingrained into the Indian culture you are in. Only a small number of people I know can speak English well enough for me to understand. I am almost totally deaf, and nearly all of my friends are hard to understand.
At the moment, I live in Vaḍodarā, Gujarāt. I have many friends in quite a few different cities, and they read/write English quite well. I have not seen another white person in normal living areas (unlike on the way to Tāj Mahal the other day, when we saw bus loads of them, and they looked at me like I had "gone native," which I did). I have not seen others who would look like they don't live there. I've been here for two months.
Most of the people I speak to on the streets don't know English beyond basic addresses and numbers, and what is interesting is that, when I say that I don't know enough Hindī or any Gujarātī, they continue speaking in these languages, as if I'm supposed to superconsciously access it to understand them. It is just not a skill that I have, in this age and in this life.
So, yes. If you are an ex-pat who stays within western ex-pat circles and makes the occasional forays into Indian culture, it's probably not essential, but otherwise, it is essential to at least be able to read the signs in the languages of your area so that you are not misled on purpose by drivers (Uber helps with this).
Another thing is, if you know SOMETHING about the languages, it shows respect and a desire to connect to the people at a more personal level.
deafdrummer
10 October 2018 04:54:15
59
Priscilla wrote:What is the official language in India, and what are the other popular spoken languages?
Is it possible to live in India and get by without speaking the language?
How do you manage to communicate with the locals if you don't speak the native/official language fluently?
Can you share some tips about how to survive in India on a daily basis without speaking the language?
Priscilla
On a practical basis, it doesn't necessarily matter what the "official languages" are (Hindī and English) for locals, because they may or may not have the education attained, and it depends on whether they attended school in a mother-tongue-medium school, Hindī-medium school, or English-medium school. To successfully communicate at the local level, you have to adapt locally.
You can get by without learning the languages, but expect to function like a completely deaf person in many situations. You'll have to use miming to get concrete points across, such as bananas, apples, money, something to drink, driving somewhere, machines, medical help.
Even though I am historically almost completely deaf, I made the effort years before I came to India for the first time to learn Devanāgarī (writing system for Hindī), and I have started to learn it for Gujarātī. I only have a very small vocabulary and no ability to put sentences together after 10 years of learning. Because of my deafness and late-age acquisition of my primary language, it is difficult to learn ANY second language, even Spanish, which is very common in my south-Texas roots. I started to learn, knowing that I might never learn an Indian language fluently before passing on, but I will die trying!
The difficulty in learning languages outside of your mother-group of languages is learning the writing system, how it is organized (as opposed to the hap-hazard organization of ABCs), and how to pronounce the sounds that are not in your pronunciation "palette." Get that down as much as possible to minimize confusion, because a, ā, i, ī d, ḍ, t, ṭ, etc. are pronounced differently and cause words spelled nearly the same to have different meanings.
I learned what each letter meant, how to pronounce it to the best of my ability, and how to write it out. About 2.5 years ago, after my first time to India, I started to recite the Bhagavad Gītā in Sanskrit and Hindī (along with an English translation to understand what I was reading). This text is a very prominent text of Hindūs that teach the reader why it is important to uphold dharma, or right thinking, right action. I have since then recited a substantially larger text in Avadhī and English. I am in the process of reciting the Mahābhārata text, a very important text about human civilization and the lessons to be learned about it. I am doing the same with the Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa. I am doing it in Sanskrit, Hindī, and English. The primary reason I do these recitations in spite of my lack of knowledge of these languages is to help me with my speech, and the other reason is to hear/see various phrases being used and repeated. Hopefully, it will stick.
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