Vitalik Buterin pfp
Vitalik Buterin
@vitalik.eth
I notice among people I talk to more enthusiasm toward learning French than Spanish. This confuses me; my feeling is that Spanish unlocks far more countries and speakers than French does and so is a more natural first choice. What do people think motivates this choice?
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dcposch.eth pfp
dcposch.eth
@dcposch.eth
French has this aura of aspirational lifestyle. I think much of it comes from the 19th century .. but prestige, like other forms of legitimacy, is sticky. Bodega and boutique are the same word (“small shop”)
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Connor McCormick 🥝/🫦 pfp
Connor McCormick 🥝/🫦
@nor
French is a designer watch that also informs people you're smart
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Nico.cast pfp
Nico.cast
@n
As a speaker of both language: I get better reactions from strangers when I mention le français, although Spanish has been ten times more practical
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Jimmu pfp
Jimmu
@jimmu.eth
My guess would be French has that more exotic/sexy/sophisticated kind of feel to it so people perhaps would like to learn it more (assuming they just want to learn a new language for fun, not with a work opportunities kind of goal in mind)
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Mac Budkowski (🥝,🥄) pfp
Mac Budkowski (🥝,🥄)
@macbudkowski
Interesting since majority of my friends are more into Spanish. I noticed though that among my friends French is much more popular among women than men.
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Venkatesh Rao ☀️ pfp
Venkatesh Rao ☀️
@vgr
By this logic nobody would learn dead languages. It's haute culture perceptions. Languages are as much about exclusion as connection. About accessing haute literature as much as living people. This will only increase as AI translation handles utilitarian needs. "Classy" and "dead" languages will be more attractive.
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David Furlong pfp
David Furlong
@df
French has a more luxurious, romantic and desirable brand than Spanish. (but lower global utility; I’m learning Spanish)
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Les pfp
Les
@lesgreys.eth
There is a stronger sense of physical attraction to Paris, France than there is to any spanish speaking country I’ve lived/visited. It’s a more globally appealing destination. My guess.
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justinahn.eth (🥝,👄) pfp
justinahn.eth (🥝,👄)
@ahn.eth
when i was in grade school in the US (back in the 90s), the foreign language classes were French and Spanish. i recall a pretty clear socio-economic divide between those in French (tended to be white, upper-middle class) and those in Spanish (middle class, more ethnically diverse, didn't care to learn the language).
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Carlos Salinas pfp
Carlos Salinas
@snowmaker
Claro que sí Vitalik!!..Español es un idioma brutal!!
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polynya pfp
polynya
@polynya
French was my third language in secondary/high school. It was the only non-English European language available in my school. The possibility of reading Jules Verne was appealing then, but later too, French cinema, poetry and literature is significantly more appealing to me personally than Spanish or Hispanic American.
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antimo pfp
antimo
@antimofm.eth
This is location-dependent If you're North American, Spanish is either a necessity or at least a part of daily life so, while French is exotic If you're European, French is much more relevant: it's spoken in 5 EU countries plus most of North Africa (big tourist destination)
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Ben Basche pfp
Ben Basche
@basche42.eth
Spanish and Portuguese both have that global appeal, I think French probably also will with the rise of Africa
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ross pfp
ross
@z0r0z
I think for much the same reason people love learning Japanese. We can probably ask, why do people learn a second language? I suspect it's not so utilitarian (i.e., being able to talk to the most humans) and more about impressing others exposed to that culture (so a soft power thing).
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dawufi pfp
dawufi
@dawufi
Virtue/class signalling
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Chuy Garcia pfp
Chuy Garcia
@chuy
Learn Catalán and you'll get a little bit of both xD
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Duffy pfp
Duffy
@duffy
Higher status ascribed to French speakers than Spanish speakers
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Today In DeFi pfp
Today In DeFi
@todayindefi
Prestige
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Brais.eth (🥝) pfp
Brais.eth (🥝)
@chi
Is confusing. Spanish rocks. The only reason I can find is to read French authors, without translation bias. Same as German. English+Portuguese+Spanish = unlocks America
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