Member-only story
Being Multilingual is Funny
And much more
Me: Kal subah jaldi Termin khatam karni hai with the Rathaus, because we have to be at the Airport by noon, nhi to wapis se Verspätet ho jayega and pichli baar ki tarah we will miss the flight!
That’s the actual sentence I said a few months back before heading into a journey.
You probably noticed that it’s a living blob of multiple languages — English, Hindi, and German.
(I’ll save you the hassle of Google translating it — We have to finish the appointment with the City Advisory quickly, as we have to be at the airport by noon. Else we will reach late and miss the flight like the last time)
Many people think that multilingualism is a superpower.
But there is a lot more that we forget in the superficialities.
I’ll begin by introducing myself.
I was born and brought up in India, where knowing at least 3 languages is just an everyday thing.
I learned 6 in total. Five before I was 15 and one in my late 20s.
And even that would be normal.
My mother tongue is called Konkani. It is the official language of the State in India called Goa.
