The secrets of learning a new language | Lýdia Machová | TED

Translator: Nelson Simfukwe Reviewer: Joachim Mangilima

I love learning foreign languages.

Napenda kujifunza lugha za kigeni.

In fact, I love it so much that I like to learn a new language every two years,

napenda sana kiasi kwamba hujifunza lugha mpya kila baada ya miaka miwili,

currently working on my eighth one.

sasa hivi najifunza lugha ya nane.

When people find that out about me, they always ask me,

Pale watu wanapogundua kuhusu mimi, mara huniuliza,

"How do you do that? What's your secret?"

"Unafanyaje hivyo? Siri yako ni ipi?"

And to be honest, for many years, my answer would be,

Na niwe muwazi, kwa miaka mingi, jibu langu litakuwa,

"I don't know. I simply love learning languages."

"Sifahamu. Napenda tu kujifunza lugha."

But people were never happy with that answer.

Lakini watu hawakufurahishwa na jibu hilo.

They wanted to know why they are spending years trying to learn even one language,

Walitaka kufahamu kwanini wanatumia miaka kujaribu kuijfunza hata lugha moja,

never achieving fluency,

kamwe hawafanikiwa unenaji,

and here I come, learning one language after another.

na mimi natokea, nikijifunza lugha moja baada ya nyingine.

They wanted to know the secret of polyglots,

Walitaka kujua siri ya wanaisimu,

people who speak a lot of languages.

watu wanaoongea lugha nyingi.

And that made me wonder, too,

Na hii ilinifanya kushangaa, pia,

how do actually other polyglots do it?

wanaisimu wengine wanafanyaje?

What do we have in common?

Kitu gani tulichonacho?

And what is it that enables us

Na kipi ambacho kinatuwezesha sisi

to learn languages so much faster than other people?

kujifunza lugha kwa haraka kuliko watu wengine?

I decided to meet other people like me and find that out.

Niliamua kukutana na watu wengine kama mimi ili kutambua.

The best place to meet a lot of polyglots

Sehemu nzuri ya kuonana na wanaisimu wengi

is an event where hundreds of language lovers

ni katika hafla ambapo mamia ya wapenzi wa lugha

meet in one place to practice their languages.

hukutana pamoja.

There are several such polyglot events organized all around the world,

Kuna baadhi ya hafla za wanaisimu ambazo huandaliwa duniani kote,

and so I decided to go there

na kwa hiyo niliamua kwenda huko

and ask polyglots about the methods that they use.

na kuwauliza wanaisimu kuhusu njia wanazotumia.

And so I met Benny from Ireland,

Nilikutana na Benny kutoka Ireland,

who told me that his method is to start speaking from day one.

ambaye aliniambia kwamba njia yake ni kuanza kuongea kuanzia siku ya kwanza.

He learns a few phrases from a travel phrasebook

Hujifunza misemo michache kutoka katika kitabu cha misemo cha wasafiri

and goes to meet native speakers

na huenda kukutana na wenyeji wa lugha husika

and starts having conversations with them right away.

na kuanza maongezi nao moja kwa moja.

He doesn't mind making even 200 mistakes a day,

Hajali kukosea kuongea hata mara 200 kwa siku,

because that's how he learns, based on the feedback.

kwa sababu hivyo ndivyo anajifunza, ukilinganisha na mrejesho.

And the best thing is, he doesn't even need to travel a lot today,

Na kilicho bora ni kwamba, haitaji kusafiri sana leo,

because you can easily have conversations with native speakers

Sababu kwa urahisi unaweza fanya maongezi na wenyeji wa lugha

from the comfort of your living room, using websites.

ukiwa umepumzika katika chumba chako, ukitumia tovuti.

I also met Lucas from Brazil

Nilikutana pia na Lucas kutoka Brazil

who had a really interesting method to learn Russian.

ambaye alikuwa na njia ya kuvutia ya kujifunza Kirussia.

He simply added a hundred random Russian speakers on Skype as friends,

Kiurahisi aliwaalika waongeaji wa lugha ya Kirussia wapatao 100 kama marafiki katika mtandao wake wa Skype,

and then he opened a chat window with one of them

na kisha alianza kupiga soga na mmoja wao

and wrote "Hi" in Russian.

na akaandika "Habari" kwa Kirussia.

And the person replied, "Hi, how are you?"

Yule mtu alijibu," Nzuri, hujambo?"

Lucas copied this and put it into a text window with another person,

Lucas alinakili haya maongezi na kuweka katika chumba cha maandishi alipoanza soga na mtu mwingine,

and the person replied, "I'm fine, thank you, and how are you?"

na mtu alijibu. "Nipo salama, asante, na wewe hujambo?"

Lucas copied this back to the first person,

Lucas alinakili tena na kuweka katika soga na mtu wa kwanza,

and in this way, he had two strangers have a conversation with each other

na katika njia hii, aliwafanya watu wawili wasiojuana kuwa katika maongezi

without knowing about it.

bila kufahamu hilo.

(Laughter)

(Kicheko)

And soon he would start typing himself,

Si punde alianza kuchapa maneno mwenyewe,

because he had so many of these conversations

kwa sababu alikuwa na maongezi kama haya mengi

that he figured out how the Russian conversation usually starts.

kwamba aligundua jinsi gani maongezi ya Kirussia ambavyo kwa kawaida huanza.

What an ingenious method, right?

Njia yenye werevu sana, si ndiyo?

And then I met polyglots who always start by imitating sounds of the language,

Na kisha nilikutana na mwanaisimu ambaye muda wote huanza kwa kuigiza sauti za lugha,

and others who always learn the 500 most frequent words of the language,

na wengine ambao amara zote hujifunza maneno 500 ya mara kwa mara katika lugha,

and yet others who always start by reading about the grammar.

na wengine ambao huanza kwa kusoma kitabu cha sarufi.

If I asked a hundred different polyglots,

Kama ningeuliza wanaisimu mbalimbali mia moja,

I heard a hundred different approaches to learning languages.

Nilisikia namna mia moja mbalimbali za kujifunza lugha.

Everybody seems to have a unique way they learn a language,

Kila mtu alikuwa na njia tofauti ya kujifunza lugha,

and yet we all come to the same result of speaking several languages fluently.

na wote mwishoni huja na matokeo sawa ya kuongea lugha baadhi kwa ufasaha.

And as I was listening to these polyglots telling me about their methods,

Na nilikuwa nawasikiliza wanaisimu hawa wakinieleza kuhusu njia zao,

it suddenly dawned on me:

ghafla ikaniamsha:

the one thing we all have in common

kitu kimoja ambacho wote tunacho

is that we simply found ways to enjoy the language-learning process.

ni kwamba tumeweza kutafuta namna ya kufurahia mchakato ya kujifunza lugha.

All of these polyglots were talking about language learning

Na hawa wanaisimu wote walikuwa wanaongelea kuhusu kujifunza lugha

as if it was great fun.

na ilikuwa inafurahisha sana.

You should have seen their faces

Ungewaona nyuso zao

when they were showing me their colorful grammar charts

walipokuwa wakinionyesha chati za rangi zikielezea sarufi

and their carefully handmade flash cards,

na kadi za maneno zilizotengenezwa kwa uangalifu,

and their statistics about learning vocabulary using apps,

na takwimu zao kuhusu kujifunza maneno ya lugha kwa kutumia programu ya simu janja,

or even how they love to cook based on recipes in a foreign language.

au wanavyopenda kupika kutokana na maelezo ya upishi yaliyoandikwa katika lugha ya kigeni.

All of them use different methods,

Wote wanatumia njia mbalimbali,

but they always make sure it's something that they personally enjoy.

Lakini wanahakikisha ni kitu ambacho binafsi wanapendelea kufanya.

I realized that this is actually how I learn languages myself.

Nimegundua kwamba hivi ndivyo mimi hujifunza lugha.

When I was learning Spanish, I was bored with the text in the textbook.

Nilipokuwa najifunza Kispanyola, nilichoshwa na maandishi katika kitabu.

I mean, who wants to read about Jose

Namaanisha, nani ambaye anataka kusoma kuhusu Jose

asking about the directions to the train station. Right?

akiuliza kuhusu uelekeo wa kwenda kituo gari moshi. Sawa?

I wanted to read "Harry Potter" instead,

Nilitaka kusoma "Harry Porter" badala yake,

because that was my favorite book as a child,

kwa sababu ndicho kilikuwa kitabu nikipendacho sana nikiwa mdogo,

and I have read it many times.

na nimekisoma mara nyingi.

So I got the Spanish translation of "Harry Potter" and started reading,

Kwa hiyo nilipata tafsiri "Harry Porter" katika lugha ya Kispanyola na nikaanza kusoma,

and sure enough, I didn't understand almost anything at the beginning,

na kwa uhakika, sikuelewa chochote kile mwanzoni,

but I kept on reading because I loved the book,

lakini niliendelea kusoma kwa sababu nilikipenda kitabu,

and by the end of the book, I was able to follow it almost without any problems.

na mwishoni mwa kitabu, niliweza kukifatilia bila matatizo yoyote.

And the same thing happened when I was learning German.

Na jambo sawa lilitokea wakati nikijifunza Kijerumani.

I decided to watch "Friends," my favorite sitcom, in German,

Niliamua kuangalia "Marafiki," ucheshi ninaopendelea, kwa Kijerumani,

and again, at the beginning it was all just gibberish.

na tena, mwanzoni ilikuwa upuuzi tu.

I didn't know where one word finished and another one started,

Sikuelewa ni wapi neno moja limeishia na lingine lilipoanzia,

but I kept on watching every day because it's "Friends."

lakini niliendelea kuangalia kila siku kwa sababu ilikuwa ni "Marafiki."

I can watch it in any language. I love it so much.

Naweza kuangalia katika lugha yoyote. Napenda sana.

And after the second or third season,

Na baada sehemu ya pili au ya tatu,

seriously, the dialogue started to make sense.

kiukweli, maongezi yalianza kuleta maana.

I only realized this after meeting other polyglots.

Nilitambua hili baada ya kukutana na wanaisimu wengine.

We are no geniuses

Sisi si wenye talanta

and we have no shortcut to learning languages.

na hatuna njia za kukatiza katika kujifunza lugha.

We simply found ways how to enjoy the process,

Tumeweza kutafuta njia ya kufurahia mchakato,

how to turn language learning from a boring school subject

namna ya kubadili usomaji wa lugha kutoka kama somo la shule lisilofurahisha

into a pleasant activity which you don't mind doing every day.

hadi katika shughuli ya kuvutia ambayo hutaona shida kuifanya kila siku.

If you don't like writing words down on paper,

Kama hupendelei kuandika maneno kwenye karatasi,

you can always type them in an app.

unaweza mara zote kuyachapa kwenye programu ya simu.

If you don't like listening to boring textbook material,

Kama hupendelei kusikiliza vitabu vinavyochosha,

find interesting content on YouTube or in podcasts for any language.

tafuta video zinazovutia katika Youtube au katika vipindi vya lugha.

If you're a more introverted person

Kama wewe ni mtu unayependelea upekee

and you can't imagine speaking to native speakers right away,

na hauwezi kuwaza ni namna gani utaweza ongea na wenyeji wa lugha moja kwa moja,

you can apply the method of self-talk.

unaweza kujifunza kujiongelesha mwenyewe.

You can talk to yourself in the comfort of your room,

Unaweza kuongea na nafsi yako ukiwa katika chumba chako,

describing your plans for the weekend, how your day has been,

ukieleza mipango yako ya mwisho wa wiki, siku yako ilikwendaje,

or even take a random picture from your phone

au hata kupiga picha zisizo na mpangilio katika simu yako

and describe the picture to your imaginary friend.

na kuelezea kuhusu picha hiyo kwa rafiki yako wa kufikirika.

This is how polyglots learn languages,

Hivi ndivyo wanaisimu hujifunza lugha,

and the best news is, it's available to anyone

na habari njema ni kwamba, inapatikana kwa mtu yoyote

who is willing to take the learning into their own hands.

nani ambaye yuko tayari kujifunza katika mikono yake.

So meeting other polyglots helped me realize

Hivyo kukutana na wanaisimu wengine kulinisaidia kutambua

that it is really crucial to find enjoyment

kwamba ni muhimu sana kupata burudani

in the process of learning languages,

katika mchakato wa kujifunza lugha,

but also that joy in itself is not enough.

lakini pia furaha yenyewe pekee haitoshi.

If you want to achieve fluency in a foreign language,

Kama unataka kuweza kufikia ufasaha katika lugha ya kigeni,

you'll also need to apply three more principles.

utahitajika kutumia kanuni tatu zaidi.

First of all, you'll need effective methods.

Kwanza, unahitaji njia zilizo bora.

If you try to memorize a list of words for a test tomorrow,

Ukijaribu kukumbuka listi ya maneno kwa ajili ya mtihani wa kesho,

the words will be stored in your short-term memory

maneno yatahifadhiwa katika kumbukumbu yako ya muda mfupi

and you'll forget them after a few days.

na utayasahau baada ya siku chache.

If you, however, want to keep words long term,

Kama, hata hivyo, unataka kukaa na maneno kwa muda mrefu,

you need to revise them in the course of a few days repeatedly

unahitaji kuyarudia katika kipindi cha siku chache

using the so-called space repetition.

ukifanya kitu kinachofahamika kama kurudia kwa nafasi.

You can use apps which are based on this system such as Anki or Memrise,

Unaweza kutumia programu za simu ambazo zinatumia mfumo huu kama vile Anki au Memrise,

or you can write lists of word in a notebook using the Goldlist method,

au unaweza kuandika orodha ya neno katika kijitabu ukitumia njia ya Goldlist,

which is also very popular with many polyglots.

ambayo ni maarufu kwa wanaisimu wengi.

If you're not sure which methods are effective and what is available out there,

Kama huna uhakika ni njia ipi inayofaa na kipi kinachopatikana,

just check out polyglots' YouTube channels and websites

angalia chaneli za Youtube na tovuti za wanaisimu

and get inspiration from them.

kupata hamasa kutoka kwao.

If it works for them, it will most probably work for you too.

Kama inawafaa wao, lazima itakufaa na wewe pia.

The third principle to follow

Kanuni ya tatu ya kufuata

is to create a system in your learning.

ni kutengeneza mfumo katika kujifunza kwako.

We're all very busy and no one really has time to learn a language today.

Wote tupo bize na hakuna aliye na muda wa kujifunza lugha mpya leo.

But we can create that time if we just plan a bit ahead.

Lakini tunaweza pata muda kama tukipanga mbele kidogo.

Can you wake up 15 minutes earlier than you normally do?

Unaweza kuamka dakika kumi na tano mapema kabla ya muda wa kawaida wa kuamka?

That would be the perfect time to revise some vocabulary.

Huo utakuwa muda mzuri wa kuweza kupitia baadhi ya maneno.

Can you listen to a podcast on your way to work while driving?

Unaweza sikiliza kipindi ukiwa unarudi nyumbani wakati unaendesha?

Well, that would be great to get some listening experience.

Sasa, hiyo itakuwa nzuri kupata uzoefu wa kusikiliza.

There are so many things we can do without even planning that extra time,

Kuna vitu vingi tunaweza fanya bila hata ya kupanga muda wa ziada,

such as listening to podcasts on our way to work

kama vile kusikiliza kipindi ukiwa unaelekea kazini,

or doing our household chores.

au wakati unafanya kazi za nyumbani.

The important thing is to create a plan in the learning.

Kitu muhimu ni kutengeneza mpango katika kujifunza.

"I will practice speaking every Tuesday and Thursday

"Nitajifunza kuongea kila Jumanne na Alhamisi

with a friend for 20 minutes.

na rafiki kwa dakika 20.

I will listen to a YouTube video while having breakfast."

Nitasikiliza video katika Youtube wakati nikipata kifungua kinywa."

If you create a system in your learning,

Kama utatengeneza mfumo katika kujifunza,

you don't need to find that extra time,

huna haja ya kutafuta muda wa ziada,

because it will become a part of your everyday life.

kwa sababu itakuwa namna ya maisha yako ya kila siku.

And finally, if you want to learn a language fluently,

Na mwisho, kama unataka kujifunza lugha kwa ufasaha,

you need also a bit of patience.

unahitaji kuwa na subira kidogo.

It's not possible to learn a language within two months,

Haiwezekani kujifunza lugha ndani ya miezi miwili,

but it's definitely possible to make a visible improvement in two months,

lakini inawezekana kabisa kufanya mabadiliko yanayoonekana katika miezi miwili,

if you learn in small chunks every day in a way that you enjoy.

kama utajifunza katika kiasi kidogo kidogo kila siku katika namna ambayo unafurahia.

And there is nothing that motivates us more

Na hakuna kitu ambacho kinatuhamasisha zaidi

than our own success.

ya mafanikio yetu.

I vividly remember the moment

Nakumbuka vizuri wakati

when I understood the first joke in German when watching "Friends."

nilipoelewa utani wa kwanza kwa Kijerumani nilipokuwa naangalia "Marafiki."

I was so happy and motivated

Nilifurahia sana na kuhamasika

that I just kept on watching that day two more episodes,

kwamba niliendelea kuangalia sehemu mbili zaidi siku hiyo,

and as I kept watching,

na nilivyoendelea kuangalia,

I had more and more of those moments of understanding, these little victories,

Niliendelea kuelewa zaidi, ushindi huu mdogo,

and step by step, I got to a level where I could use the language

na hatua kwa hatua, nilifika katika hatua ambapo ningetumia lugha

freely and fluently to express anything.

kwa uhuru na ufasaha kuweza kuelezea chochote.

This is a wonderful feeling.

Hii ni hisia ya kusisimua.

I can't get enough of that feeling,

Siwezi tosheka na hisia hiyo,

and that's why I learn a language every two years.

na ndiyo maana najifunza lugha mpya kila miaka miwili.

So this is the whole polyglot secret.

Kwa hiyo ndiyo siri nzima ya mwanaisimu.

Find effective methods which you can use systematically

Tafuta njia madhubuti ambayo unaweza kuitumia kwa mfumo

over the period of some time in a way which you enjoy,

katika kipindi cha muda fulani katika njia ambayo unafurahia,

and this is how polyglots learn languages within months, not years.

na hivi ndivyo wanaisimu hujifunza lugha ndani ya miezi, na siyo miaka.

Now, some of you may be thinking,

Sasa, baadhi yenu mnaweza kuwaza,

"That's all very nice to enjoy language learning,

"Ni vizuri sana kufurahia kujifunza lugha,

but isn't the real secret that you polyglots

lakini si kwamba nyinyi wanaisimu

are just super talented and most of us aren't?"

mna talanta sana na wengi wetu hatuna hiyo talanta?"

Well, there's one thing I haven't told you about Benny and Lucas.

Hivyo, kuna kitu kimoja sijawaambia kuhusu Benny na Lucas.

Benny had 11 years of Irish Gaelic and five years of German at school.

Benny alikuwa na miaka 11 ya kiselti cha Kiyalandi na miaka mitano ya lugha ya Kijerumani shuleni.

He couldn't speak them at all when graduating.

Hakuweza kuongea baada ya kuhitimu masomo.

Up to the age of 21, he thought he didn't have the language gene

Mpaka miaka 21, aliwaza kwamba hakuwa na jeni ya lugha

and he could not speak another language.

na hakuweza kuongea lugha nyingine.

Then he started to look for his way of learning languages,

Kisha akaanza kutafuta njia yake ya kujifunza lugha,

which was speaking to native speakers and getting feedback from them,

ambapo ilikuwa ni kuongea na wenyeji wa lugha na kupata mrejesho kutoka kwao,

and today Benny can easily have a conversation in 10 languages.

na leo Benny anaweza kwa urahisi kufanya maongezi katika lugha 10.

Lucas tried to learn English at school for 10 years.

Lucas amejaribu kujifunza Kiingereza shuleni kwa miaka 10.

He was one of the worst students in class.

Alikuwa ni moja ya wanafunzi wanaofanya vibaya darasani.

His friends even made fun of him

Rafiki zake walikuwa wakimtania

and gave him a Russian textbook as a joke

na kumpa kitabu cha Kirussia kama utani

because they thought he would never learn that language, or any language.

kwa sababu waliamini hawezi kamwe kujifunza lugha hiyo, au lugha yoyote.

And then Lucas started to experiment with methods,

Na kisha Lucas akaanza kufanya majaribio na njia yake,

looking for his own way to learn,

akitafuta njia yake ya kujifunza,

for example, by having Skype chat conversations with strangers.

kwa mfano, kwa kupiga soga na watu asiowajua katika Skype.

And after just 10 years,

Na katika miaka 10,

Lucas is able to speak 11 languages fluently.

Lucas anaweza kuongea lugha 11 kwa ufasaha.

Does that sound like a miracle?

Je hiyo inaonekana kama miujiza?

Well, I see such miracles every single day.

Sasa, ninaona miujiza kama hii kila siku.

As a language mentor,

Na kama mshauri wa lugha,

I help people learn languages by themselves,

Nasaidia watu kujifunza lugha wenyewe,

and I see this every day.

na naona hili kila siku.

People struggle with language learning for five, 10, even 20 years,

Watu hupata shida kujifunza lugha kwa miaka mitano, kumi, hata ishirini,

and then they suddenly take their learning into their own hands,

na ghafla huchukua hatua ya kujifunza mikononi mwao,

start using materials which they enjoy, more effective methods,

kuanza kutumia makala wanazofurahia, njia madhubuti zaidi,

or they start tracking their learning

au wanaanza kufatilia kujifunza kwao

so that they can appreciate their own progress,

kwamba wanaweza kuridhika na maendeleo yao,

and that's when suddenly

na hapo ndipo ghafla

they magically find the language talent that they were missing all their lives.

kwa maajabu wanatambua kipaji cha lugha ambacho walikuwa wanakosa maisha yao yote.

So if you've also tried to learn a language

Kwa hiyo kama umejaribu pia kujifunza lugha

and you gave up, thinking it's too difficult

na ukakata tamaa,

or you don't have the language talent,

na kama huna kipaji cha lugha,

give it another try.

jaribu tena.

Maybe you're also just one enjoyable method away

Labda upo karibu kidogo na njia moja ya kuburudika

from learning that language fluently.

ili kujifunza lugha hiyo kwa ufasaha.

Maybe you're just one method away from becoming a polyglot.

Labda upo karibu kuja kuwa mwanaisimu.

Thank you.

Asante.

(Applause)

(Makofi)