Have you been speaking a different language more often than your mother tongue?
Do you find yourself searching for words when talking to your family in your mother tongue?
Do you often switch to a different language in the middle of a sentence because you can’t find the word or sentence you are trying to say in your mother tongue?
It can be difficult to experience these things. Indeed, we tend to be attached to our mother tongue as it is associated with childhood memories and is usually the language we can speak best. However, we may find ourselves in situations where we don’t get to speak our first language as often as we would like, especially if our mother tongue is not English, and feel like we are “losing” our mother tongue.
Here are some tips to help you continue to speak your mother tongue as fluently as when you were growing up.
1. Speak regularly
It may seem obvious but the best way to maintain your language abilities, in your mother tongue or any other language, is to speak it regularly. If you never practice speaking and listening in that language, you are sure to lose it.
Have regular video calls with your family. Get together with friends who speak that language (even if it’s not their mother tongue; they’ll probably enjoy the challenge and be grateful for the opportunity to practice). Find a local community who speaks your language and participate in activities with them.
MFS(E) Europe offers great opportunities to practice your mother tongue if it is English or French through regular coffee mornings and other online or in person activities.
2. Consume media in your mother tongue
Another way to maintain your understanding and vocabulary in your mother tongue is to read books, listen to music, and watch movies or TV shows in your mother tongue.
One of the great advantages of knowing several languages is that you have access to media in a variety of languages. Take advantage of it. Media is always better consumed in its original language, and you’ll get an opportunity to practice. It’s a win-win.
3. Translate
This may seem a bit unusual but translating texts from one language to your mother tongue can be a great exercise to maintain your mother tongue. It can help you look for expressions or words to convey similar ideas in different language and therefore, you’ll spend less time searching for words when you communicate in your mother tongue.
Translations can take time and effort, but they can also be a fun exercise, especially if you chose a text you enjoy.
4. Take a course
If you haven’t spoken your mother tongue in a long time, you may feel out of practice and be afraid to embarrass yourself or not be understood if you speak with other people, including your family.
In that case, taking a refresher course, in person, virtually, or using an app, can help you reacquire your language skills.
It may seem daunting but relearning a language you already know or used to know is much easier than acquiring a new language from scratch. You’ll probably find yourself speaking fluently in no time!
Your mother tongue connects you to your roots and your culture. It’s an important part of yourself. However, you can lose it if you don’t maintain it. Most people regret not devoting enough time to their mother tongue and losing their ability to speak it. There are some simple steps you can take to make sure you don’t lose your mother tongue: speak it regularly, consume media in that language, translate from one language to another, or take a course.