Many of our compatriots are interested in how foreigners learn Russian. Why? Yes, because even Russian people are not fluent in it. Most certainly. How many times has happened: a person is talking to someone and suddenly wonders if he has emphasized or declined a word? However, there are a lot of examples. But still it is better to delve into the originally designated topic.
Main difficulty
How does learning each language begin? Of course, from the alphabet. With his reading and understanding how to pronounce a particular letter. The vast majority of foreigners fall into a stupor at the sight of the Cyrillic alphabet. This is something unknown to them. Even if you look at the map of the distribution of Cyrillic alphabets, you can see on it only Russia and a certain number of adjacent small states located in Europe.
Letters
What is only the sound "s". Many teachers ask foreigners to imagine that they were kicked with force in the stomach. And here is what sound they will make, and there are "s". The next problem is hissing: "w", "u" and "h". How do foreigners learn Russian? Asking a bunch of questions in parallel. What are these sounds for? The same question is caused by soft and hard signs. And when they understand the meaning and make attempts to pronounce them, it is hard for the teacher. The “box” turns into a “box”, the “porridge” into a “kashcha”, and the “thicket” into a “tsascha”.
Russian is still terrible for foreigners by hardness. In most other languages, the "p" is very soft. Or burr, as is the case with German. It takes a lot of time to learn how to pronounce the correct Russian "p". The most offensive to foreigners is that we can burr or soften it. And they are not even able to immediately give it hardness.
Task simplification
It is worth giving an answer to the question of how foreigners learn Russian in order to avoid difficulties. No way. It's impossible. When a person takes up the development of a new skill, he cannot avoid difficulties. But you can simplify the task. Many foreigners set a rule for themselves - you need to learn 30 words a day, of which at least 10 should be verbs. According to the majority, they and their forms are the most difficult in Russian.
Another way is to learn the language in the first person. Thus, a person immediately in the subconscious simulates a situation in which he would be an acting character. And then, when a similar case does occur, he remembers what he has learned, and puts it into practice. If you do this all the time, you can develop a habit.
How to navigate?
Talking about how foreigners learn Russian, it is worth returning to the topic of pronunciation. It is very difficult for beginners to understand when a certain consonant should be soft, and when - hard. Moreover, problems arise not only with those words in which there are “b” and “b”. On the contrary, they are easier to understand. Because every foreigner builds an associative series for himself. At the sight of “b” and “b”, a comparison is triggered for him, helping him to determine how to pronounce a particular word.
It is much more difficult in ordinary cases. Take, for example, the letter "p". The word "dad" is pronounced firmly. But the "spots" - softly. But the foreigner gets confused - just spit. And remembering the pronunciation of the word "dad", he will want to say "patna", but he will immediately get confused. After all, the letter “I” is next, and not “a”. We, Russian-speaking, pronounce the words without hesitation. But it’s hard for them. Why is Russian difficult to learn for foreigners? At least because we do not have rules for open and closed syllables. And to remove the focus, it takes decades.
And another important point is intonation. The Russian language is good in that the word order in a sentence can be changed as you like. We determine the meaning by intonation, and subconsciously. Foreigners are initially trained in the "classic" options. Therefore, if they hear a sentence that is familiar to them, but in a different variation, then they will not understand anything.
About the meaning
In fact, everyone understands why it is difficult for foreigners to learn Russian. Especially in the modern world. The meaning of many expressions is difficult to explain to citizens of other countries. Take, for example, the following text: “Oh, autumn, spleen ... Time is running out, but I still haven't taken up my legs to move the work from place - so I sit with my nose hanging.” From such a foreigner will simply have a real shock. “Go” is a verb. And where does the time, the form of the course of certain processes? The same goes for working with its “shifts.” How can you take your feet in your hands? And what does it mean to hang your nose?
All this is too complicated for beginners. Therefore, teachers avoid such difficulties in teaching foreigners. The same is recommended for people with whom they communicate. They will have time to get acquainted with metaphors, hyperbole, epithets, literary and allegory later. Although, when foreigners already have a sufficient level of knowledge of Russian and begin to study the above, it becomes fun. To many, comparisons of every kind seem amusing and original.
Cases
This topic is as unloved for foreigners as verbs. Having learned one case, they forget about the existence of five more. How do they manage to cope with the task? Firstly, for foreigners, an empty phrase is attempts to explain that the genitive answers the questions of “whom?” and what?". After all, it is impossible to substitute a single ending for all inclined words. And there is only one way out - remembering the principle through illustrative examples and situations. It is pretty simple.
The foreigner simply takes a brief paragraph on the subject of his life. And by his example he memorizes the cases: “My name is Bastian Muller. I am a student (who? - nominative case). Now I live in Moscow (where? - prepositional, or second local) and study at the faculty of international languages. Every day I go to university (where? - accusative). There I study and study. Then I go home from the university (where? - genitive). At home I read the news (what? - accusative) and correspond with friends (with whom? - instructive). Then I quickly give food to the dog (to whom? - dative), and then I walk in the center of Moscow. ”
And this is just one example. But there are countless more of them, even if you do not take into account the derogatory, directive, longitudinal and other cases. That is why it is difficult for foreigners to learn Russian.
Transcription
Why do I need to learn Russian for foreigners? There is no definite answer, each has its own reasons. But if a person has taken up this matter, he comes up with all kinds of methods in order to get used to it faster. And one of them is the compilation of transcription. But even this does not allow you to quickly understand Russian.
Dsche - this is what the Russian "w" looks like in German. "C" is tze. "H" - tsche. And "w" - schtch. The word "bullshit" will look in German in transcription like this: tschuschtch. Looking at this cluster of letters, you can immediately understand why some foreigners memorize one short word for several days.
The numbers
This topic also raises a lot of questions from foreigners. But they learned to avoid difficulties with a simple trick. Take, for example, age. Does it end by one? Then they say "year." At the end is 2, 3, 4? In this case, pronounce the "year". If the age or term ends at 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, and 0, then they say "years." And foreigners skillfully apply this simple recommendation in relation to everything.
It is also worth noting the use of such a particle as a “Lee”. Of course, a foreigner can easily do without her. But in Russian speech she is always present. And, having heard “is it necessary?”, “Hardly!” etc., he will be at a loss. You need to know the essence of such phrases, since this particle is part of some stable combinations.
In fact, “whether” is English whether, thanks to which it is possible to introduce an indirect question into the sentence. For example, this sentence: "He asked the librarian whether he could take another book." From English it is translated as follows: "He asked the librarian if it is possible to take another book." It is enough for a foreigner to draw an analogy, and he will no longer be surprised at the “li” particle.
Perception
How to start learning Russian for a foreigner? From an attempt to realize that a lot of strange things will await him. And one of those moments is the imperative. “I would like one cup of coffee, please,” - this is too difficult to pronounce. “Bring coffee,” is too rude for a foreigner, although this is the norm in Russia.
Another feature is the arrangement of letters. Foreigners say that they just remember the words in which vowels alternate with consonants. But the “agency”, “counter-reception”, “adult”, “postscript”, “cohabitation” and the like words cause fear in them. Even the most ordinary “bread” they learn to pronounce for a long time.
It is also worth noting the following: some Russian words are translated differently into other languages. "Account" in French means "toilet", and in extremely rude form. Vinaigrette is an oily mustard sauce, not a salad. However, this is the minimum complexity. In any case, associations do not even have to come up.
Prepositions
Word formation is very difficult for a foreign person. In Russian, there are a lot of rules and exceptions. And gender and numbers are added to this. The first in some languages is completely absent. And of course, prepositions are another difficulty. How to explain to a person when it is possible to use “on” and when “in” is suitable? Everything is pretty simple here.
A foreigner must understand: “in” is used when he wants to talk about something inside. Within something. In the house, in the country, in the world ... The scale is not important. The main thing is that there are limits and something happens in them. But “on” is used in the case when it comes to a place on any surface. On the table, on the person, on the house (this is a different meaning, although the example is the same).
Why do they need it?
Many people are interested in the question: why do foreigners learn Russian, since it is so difficult? Well, everyone has their own reasons. For example, an Irish woman named Julia Walsh, a business development manager for Enterprise Ireland, says she started learning Russian because of Russia's importance in European history. It was difficult. But after years of learning, language no longer seemed impossible. But it remained difficult. But citizens of Slavic countries (for example, the Czech Republic) say that Russian is not very difficult. So the journalist Jiri Yust considers. Czech and Russian represent the same language group. So the words are similar, and the grammar. And in Czech, even one case more.
There is still a question to be: why should foreigners learn Russian? Because otherwise it will be difficult in Russia. Many locals learn English, but it cannot be said that everyone has developed it at a decent level. And besides, it is necessary for an accurate perception of everything that is happening around. Why should foreigners learn Russian if they are not going to Russia? The reason here is the same as for each of us, taking on something new. And it lies in interest and self-development.