Tuesday, April 17, 2007
Emphatic Consonants
Arabic has four emphatic consonants: s, t, th, and I just forgot the fourth. Instead of saying them with your tongue against your teeth you pronounce them with your tongue against the roof of your mouth. Try the name Fatima as faTima.
Arabic is both harder and easier than I expected. The script is not as daunting as you would think, but some of the sounds are very difficult for an English speaker. There are no glottals in Japanese. French has a few but nothing as 'harsh' as Arabic. Still, I love learning another language. I'll be able to read a little by the time I get to Nouakchott in June! Formidable! Plus, struggling with Arabic makes French seem like a piece of cake. It's like blocking the pain in your leg by smashing your hand with a mortar (a la Dr. House).
For the best of both worlds, I recommend the music of French-Algerien pop star, Faudel. Mundial Corrida, Samra, or Baida are good albums. He's adopted some Latin stylings as well, so it's truly 'world music.'
Arabic is both harder and easier than I expected. The script is not as daunting as you would think, but some of the sounds are very difficult for an English speaker. There are no glottals in Japanese. French has a few but nothing as 'harsh' as Arabic. Still, I love learning another language. I'll be able to read a little by the time I get to Nouakchott in June! Formidable! Plus, struggling with Arabic makes French seem like a piece of cake. It's like blocking the pain in your leg by smashing your hand with a mortar (a la Dr. House).
For the best of both worlds, I recommend the music of French-Algerien pop star, Faudel. Mundial Corrida, Samra, or Baida are good albums. He's adopted some Latin stylings as well, so it's truly 'world music.'
