Walsingham Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 Firstly, yiddish is fantastic. :D i only know a few terms, but they have terms for things you just NEED, like tojus, chutzpah, and oy vey! I also say that German is quite nice. It can be a little too precise on occasion but there we are. Steve, English spoken in South African also sounds threatening. It is the cadence. For example: Try saying the phrases "I've got to say I love your hair" & "i'm afraid I have to kill you." In an English RP, an English Australian, and an English South African accent. The aussie sounds like he's joking on both occasions, and the SAfrican sounds like he wants to kill you on both occasions. "It wasn't lies. It was just... bull****"." -Elwood Blues tarna's dead; processing... complete. Disappointed by Universe. RIP Hades/Sand/etc. Here's hoping your next alt has a harp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metadigital Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 I've always thought English spoken with a South African accent was quite unpleasant, but that's most likely the political associations rather than any quality of the sound itself. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Nope, that is definitely the accent. It always sounds like the speaker is pissed off, picking a fight or just sulky. (Lots of Yarpies here in Britain, especially nurses.) OBSCVRVM PER OBSCVRIVS ET IGNOTVM PER IGNOTIVS OPVS ARTIFICEM PROBAT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zer"0" Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 I suppose South African English can sound threatening, but I do know that the nicest and friendliest people I have met are South African. The bushmen (or Khoi-San as they call themselves) language is kinda impossible to a western ear. Though the language I find most disagreeable is Arabic. It sounds bloody hysterical. French on the other hand is beautiful. "Je t'aime mon amour, et je t'aimerai toujours. J'ai besoin de toi, tu es l'air que je respire, le r Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveThaiBinh Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 In British English, rising intonation at the end of a sentence indicates a question, falling intonation indicates a statement. I've heard that one of the reasons German speakers often come across as arrogant or rude to Brits is because they use falling intonation, as in German, when asking questions. Similarly, Australian and Hawaiian rising intonation takes the sting out of everything, whereas South African falling intonation seems aggressive. However, this is all relative - we misinterpret their meaning because we assume they're following the same system of rules we are, when they're not. It's the foundation of all cross-cultural misunderstanding, and if more Brits bothered to learn a foreign language, any language, we would be better able to handle it. "An electric puddle is not what I need right now." (Nina Kalenkov) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metadigital Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 Italian makes French sound like a couple of cats fighting. No coincidence that the Italians have a leg-up for Opera over everyone else. OBSCVRVM PER OBSCVRIVS ET IGNOTVM PER IGNOTIVS OPVS ARTIFICEM PROBAT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mkreku Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 My vote goes to finnish. Try saying "I love you!" in finnish in a romantic way: Min Swedes, go to: Spel2, for the latest game reviews in swedish! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoM_Solaufein Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 The Semitic languages (hebrew, arab etc.) for their horrible guttural sounds Southeast asian languages(vietnamese, indonesian) It's high pitched and it sounds like they are talking fast. Japanese sounds alright as well as Chinese. Accents I can't stand is whay you hear near the New York New Jersey area. It sounds like they are talking with their nose plugged up. "Hi I'm from Neew Jewsiee" War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is StrengthBaldur's Gate moddingTeamBGBaldur's Gate modder/community leaderBaldur's Gate - Enhanced Edition beta testerBaldur's Gate 2 - Enhanced Edition beta tester Icewind Dale - Enhanced Edition beta tester Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zer"0" Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 Yes, Italian is beautiful. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kirottu Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 Min This post is not to be enjoyed, discussed, or referenced on company time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moose Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 I don't know if there's a worst sounding language in my opinion, but for accents I hate Birmingham and Mancunian. In fact all those North West English accents are pretty vile. There are none that are right, only strong of opinion. There are none that are wrong, only ignorant of facts Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Walsingham Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 Spanish is the most beautiful in my opinion, and curiously Spanish is related (so I understand) to Arabic. Go figure . I like the 'Joisey' accent, in measured doses. Thanks for the lesson there, Steve. Now I know WHY. "It wasn't lies. It was just... bull****"." -Elwood Blues tarna's dead; processing... complete. Disappointed by Universe. RIP Hades/Sand/etc. Here's hoping your next alt has a harp. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoM_Solaufein Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 I like the 'Joisey' accent, in measured doses. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> It grates my nerves. The best sound American accent is Southern, in the states of Tennessee, Georgia, the Carolinas. Rural Southern is hard to understand, they either speak it too fast or they slur their words together. War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is StrengthBaldur's Gate moddingTeamBGBaldur's Gate modder/community leaderBaldur's Gate - Enhanced Edition beta testerBaldur's Gate 2 - Enhanced Edition beta tester Icewind Dale - Enhanced Edition beta tester Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CoM_Solaufein Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 Some languages I like are Gaelic (Irish, Scotish), German, Spanish, Romanian, Latin and French. War is Peace, Freedom is Slavery, Ignorance is StrengthBaldur's Gate moddingTeamBGBaldur's Gate modder/community leaderBaldur's Gate - Enhanced Edition beta testerBaldur's Gate 2 - Enhanced Edition beta tester Icewind Dale - Enhanced Edition beta tester Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jorian Drake Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 Swiss is the ugliest my ears had ever to endure. Japanese and Hungarian on the other side are funny. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jorian Drake Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 German has always struck me as an abraisive language. Very blunt. It's not Gunther, it's G-OOO-nther <{POST_SNAPBACK}> No, it's G Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jorian Drake Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 This probably the wrong place to say this, but I think Finnish is completely mad. Vowels everywhere! <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Mit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jorian Drake Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 English is actually not a very nice language, me thinks, I appriciate German more. (I'm also in the Germanic language tribe, so that might have something to do with it) <{POST_SNAPBACK}> No, you're right, English is funny. I know 4 languages, and a bit of 5 others, and English is the funniest Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jorian Drake Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 German has always struck me as an abraisive language. Very blunt. It's not Gunther, it's G-OOO-nther <{POST_SNAPBACK}> No, it's G Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diamond Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 Spanish is the most beautiful in my opinion, and curiously Spanish is related (so I understand) to Arabic. Go figure . <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I personally do not understand universal fascination with Spanish language. Asian languages recently became more "natural" sounding to my ears. Polish is damn annoying. It sounds exactly like Russian and when I hear it, some familiar patterns are instantly triggerred in my brain, but I can't comprehend a word of what is said. Australian accent was horrifying for the first 3 months of my exposure to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jorian Drake Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 Firstly, yiddish is fantastic. :D i only know a few terms, but they have terms for things you just NEED, like tojus, chutzpah, and oy vey! I also say that German is quite nice. It can be a little too precise on occasion but there we are. Steve, English spoken in South African also sounds threatening. It is the cadence. For example: Try saying the phrases "I've got to say I love your hair" & "i'm afraid I have to kill you." In an English RP, an English Australian, and an English South African accent. The aussie sounds like he's joking on both occasions, and the SAfrican sounds like he wants to kill you on both occasions. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> LOL (w00t) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jorian Drake Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 I suppose South African English can sound threatening, but I do know that the nicest and friendliest people I have met are South African. The bushmen (or Khoi-San as they call themselves) language is kinda impossible to a western ear. Though the language I find most disagreeable is Arabic. It sounds bloody hysterical. French on the other hand is beautiful. "Je t'aime mon amour, et je t'aimerai toujours. J'ai besoin de toi, tu es l'air que je respire, le r Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jorian Drake Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 Italian makes French sound like a couple of cats fighting. No coincidence that the Italians have a leg-up for Opera over everyone else. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Not Italian: Latin Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jorian Drake Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 I don't know if there's a worst sounding language in my opinion, but for accents I hate Birmingham and Mancunian. In fact all those North West English accents are pretty vile. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> All English are :D Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jorian Drake Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 I like the 'Joisey' accent, in measured doses. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> It grates my nerves. The best sound American accent is Southern, in the states of Tennessee, Georgia, the Carolinas. Rural Southern is hard to understand, they either speak it too fast or they slur their words together. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> I like Texan and Hawaii-an Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jorian Drake Posted February 16, 2006 Share Posted February 16, 2006 Some languages I like are Gaelic (Irish, Scotish), German, Spanish, Romanian, Latin and French. <{POST_SNAPBACK}> Norman, Gaelic, Ancient Hungarian, Latin, Japanese Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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