| Pages in topic: [1 2 3] > | Off topic: Switching languages also switches personality? Thread poster: Lingua 5B
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Lingua 5B 
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Local time: 19:56
Member (2009)
English to Croatian
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| Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:56
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Very true. I'm different in Italian. I change completely.
But I don't change unconsciously. I am very aware of changing.
This is because when you change to a different language you also change to a different culture, including your body language and attitude, and how you interact with other people.
[Edited at 2022-07-02 09:43 GMT]
| | | | | Not really... | Jul 2, 2022 |
I'm always the same everywhere.
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I change personality depending on which language I'm speaking, but like Tom, I'm aware of the change. Also, my "Greek" personality sometimes spills over into my "English" one, and vice versa. Nevertheless, there is a clear demarcation between the two.
I recently watched a TED talk on how language influences our perceptions at a very fundamental level, and I think it's relevant to this... See more I change personality depending on which language I'm speaking, but like Tom, I'm aware of the change. Also, my "Greek" personality sometimes spills over into my "English" one, and vice versa. Nevertheless, there is a clear demarcation between the two.
I recently watched a TED talk on how language influences our perceptions at a very fundamental level, and I think it's relevant to this topic.
How language shapes the way we think ▲ Collapse
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P.L.F. Persio
Netherlands
Local time: 19:56
Member (2010)
English to Italian
+ ...
| Sometimes they come back | Jul 3, 2022 |
Isn't that the old Sapir-Whorf hypothesis which is impossible to prove or to disprove and, moreover, could lead to some kind of racial discrimination but, like Nosferatu, keeps somehow being non-dead?
Like Giovanni is the same everywhere, I'm always the same broad whatever language I speak or – more exactly - try to speak.
In the course of my life, I've studied 11 languages (one of them is my native Italian, which I had to study as extensively as the others, if not more), bu... See more Isn't that the old Sapir-Whorf hypothesis which is impossible to prove or to disprove and, moreover, could lead to some kind of racial discrimination but, like Nosferatu, keeps somehow being non-dead?
Like Giovanni is the same everywhere, I'm always the same broad whatever language I speak or – more exactly - try to speak.
In the course of my life, I've studied 11 languages (one of them is my native Italian, which I had to study as extensively as the others, if not more), but I've never noted any major or minor personality change, and not for a lack of self-observation. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Agneta Pallinder
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:56
Member (2014)
Swedish to English
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| Not my personality but how it expresses itself | Jul 3, 2022 |
There is so much that I do differently depending on whether I speak English or Swedish - speed of speaking, facial movements, body movements, pitch (my Swedish voice is deeper than my English one). I am sure I appear quite different - but, of course, deeper down I remain the same.
| | | | Lingua 5B
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Local time: 19:56
Member (2009)
English to Croatian
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
When I was a very young interpreter, I can recall a more experienced colleague telling me how she "feels" differently when she's using English for a prolonged periods of time, eg. not having access to her mother tongue for weeks. Like she can notice a shift in her personality, perception, etc. I could not relate at the time.
Psychometry is precisely psychometry because it's impossible for us to measure it on our own, it's always done externally, by a third party.
But su... See more When I was a very young interpreter, I can recall a more experienced colleague telling me how she "feels" differently when she's using English for a prolonged periods of time, eg. not having access to her mother tongue for weeks. Like she can notice a shift in her personality, perception, etc. I could not relate at the time.
Psychometry is precisely psychometry because it's impossible for us to measure it on our own, it's always done externally, by a third party.
But subjectively, and purely from a linguistic point of view, each of my languages has a different structure, pace, syntax, tempo etc, which can then affect the structure, pace and tempo of thoughts. And overall perception of course. It's like saying that two different songs evoke exactly the same feelings in you, I don't think so. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Lingua 5B
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Local time: 19:56
Member (2009)
English to Croatian
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Agneta Pallinder wrote:
There is so much that I do differently depending on whether I speak English or Swedish - speed of speaking, facial movements, body movements, pitch (my Swedish voice is deeper than my English one). I am sure I appear quite different - but, of course, deeper down I remain the same.
The core, deep down is subconscious and automated parts, that don't have to do much with the language. It's primal.
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Michael Newton
United States
Local time: 13:56
Japanese to English
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| switch personality | Jul 3, 2022 |
I become a completely different person when I switch from English to Japanese, to Russian or French. Not forgetting that people in different languages talk about completely things. The Japanese are absorbed with emotions, shades of meaning while the French are interested in exactitude and "clarte". Also in Japanese many things are understood without having to express them verbally.
| | | | Michael Newton
United States
Local time: 13:56
Japanese to English
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| Switch personality? | Jul 3, 2022 |
I remember visiting la Rinascente department store in Milan a number of years ago. All the young women on the first floor restaurant were Chinese (Milan has a tremendous Chinese presence). When they spoke to their Italian customers in Italian, they were emotive, gesticulated and were for all the world Italian: italianissime! But when they reverted to Chinese (probably Wenzhou dialect), they changed, were more circumspect, less emotional and more or less had poker faces. Proof positive of the man... See more I remember visiting la Rinascente department store in Milan a number of years ago. All the young women on the first floor restaurant were Chinese (Milan has a tremendous Chinese presence). When they spoke to their Italian customers in Italian, they were emotive, gesticulated and were for all the world Italian: italianissime! But when they reverted to Chinese (probably Wenzhou dialect), they changed, were more circumspect, less emotional and more or less had poker faces. Proof positive of the many faces a human being is capable of assuming. Also, when I speak Japanese, I am mindful of the social status of the person I speak to, include many terms of politeness, become apologetic (ah, sumimasen. sono setsu wa doomo!) assume a humble attitude and considerably dial down my aggressive American attitude. It's almost like Jekyll and Hyde. Also, the arts of persuasion in Japanese are considerably different than in English. It's not A, therefore B. You repeat the premise multiple times, adduce various examples and gradually coax the listener to your point of view. It's almost like the art of seduction. I've had to make the same presentation before a Japanese audience and an English-speaking audience and I have had to completely rewrite the Japanese-language presentation to get my point across. ▲ Collapse
| | | | Lingua 5B
Bosnia and Herzegovina
Local time: 19:56
Member (2009)
English to Croatian
+ ...
TOPIC STARTER
Michael Newton wrote:
Also in Japanese many things are understood without having to express them verbally.
How, can you provide more details, or an example? Is it the ceremonial nature of their culture, rules, gestures, etc.?
| | | | expressisverbis
Portugal
Local time: 18:56
Member (2015)
English to Portuguese
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| An interesting question | Jul 3, 2022 |
probably more meaningful for translators who live in a non-native country, and can be (perfectly) bilingual.
I would say that is not a change of personality, but more an adaptation of our mind.
Going to a different country for taking holiday, working purposes or visiting family or friends, or even living there requires a certain mindset and "mood".
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P.L.F. Persio
Netherlands
Local time: 19:56
Member (2010)
English to Italian
+ ...
expressisverbis wrote:
I would say that is not a change of personality, but more an adaptation of our mind.
That's what I think, you adapt to the culture, the mood, the vibe, whatever, but you don't change your personality.
Do all native speakers of English share the same personality traits? And I mean English in a broad sense, so: English, Welsh, Scots, Irish, Americans, Australians, Canadians, etc.?
Many of the Irish or Scottish I've met, have always been very vocal about not being like the English. Maybe, peppering your speech with dialectal words in a slightly different accent grant you a bit of diversity, within the same language?
I've noticed that, in the UK, posh people speak with the same accent, regardless if they hail from Edinburgh, Newcastle, London, whereas you can tell if a working class person comes from Birmingham, or London, or Glasgow. Their accents differ completely.
In Russia, most aristocrats used to speak French between them, and Russian with their servants, but sometimes not even with them. Were they more open to the ideals of Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité for this? Or, maybe, their brand of French was more likely nurtured by the Restauration?
And, finally, I'd like to ask to our Michael Newton and the other yamatologists/Japanese colleagues on here, why in Japan cities, one of the cleanest countries in the world – if not the cleanest –, a country and a culture where beauty, harmony, sophistication are highly regarded even in the tiniest, most obscure detail, why do you see tangled telephone wires and power cables all cluttered together on top of pylons? It's like an element of anarchy in an otherwise perfectly curated picture. Is there something similar in their language? I'm not far enough in my Japanese learning to be able to find it yet.
Sorry for going O.T., dear Biljana, but an interesting thread always ends up opening new roads.
| | | | Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:56
Member (2008)
Italian to English
P.L.F. Persio wrote:
.....
I've noticed that, in the UK, posh people speak with the same accent
It's called RP (Received Pronunciation). A child may grow up speaking the local accent, but then be sent to an expensive private school, where the main purpose is to teach them to talk posh. Talking posh gives you an advantage in life (though perhaps not as much as it used to).
| | | | Tom in London
United Kingdom
Local time: 18:56
Member (2008)
Italian to English
Tadao Ando, a very important Japanese architect, said
"Physical existence can't be separated from other aspects of existence and I don't think it's pointless to use your whole body to experience a space. We Japanese have a particular sense of our bodies which isn't the same as that of Europeans or even other Asiatic peoples. Traditional Japanese poses and gestures have a delicacy which relates us to our particular civilisation and even though Japanese habits have been changing rece... See more Tadao Ando, a very important Japanese architect, said
"Physical existence can't be separated from other aspects of existence and I don't think it's pointless to use your whole body to experience a space. We Japanese have a particular sense of our bodies which isn't the same as that of Europeans or even other Asiatic peoples. Traditional Japanese poses and gestures have a delicacy which relates us to our particular civilisation and even though Japanese habits have been changing recently you can still put an American in a crowd of Japanese and he will soon notice how different our behaviour is from his."
[Edited at 2022-07-03 14:44 GMT] ▲ Collapse
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