Re: Exotic languages (was Re: PimsleurApproach language courses)

On Wednesday, November 12, 2003, at 04:11  AM, Isidora Zamora wrote:
> I have no idea of how exotic the structure of Ojibwe may or may not
> be.  I
> just meant that, if you are offering courses in foreign languages,
> Ojibwe
> is far more obscure than Swedish.  (And I'm not implying that Swedish
> is
> obscure.  Personally, I am biased in favor of the opinion that more
> people
> ought to learn Scandinavian languages.)  As far as the English speaker
> is
> concerned, I feel certain that Ojibwe must be more exotic than Swedish,
> because it is not related to English, while Swedish is a very close
> relative.  Danish isn't exotic at all to the English speaker; there is
> so
> much cognate vocabulary, and the grammar is quite similar.
> Isidora
Maybe Swedish is considered exotic by English speakers because of the
tones/intonation?  The only exposure many people have to anything at
all related to the Swedish language may be the 'Swedish Chef' muppet.


-Stephen (Steg)
  "i am against big cities; they bring out the worst in men."
      ~ david ben-gurion

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