best language to learn if moving to belgium?
i know there are 3 Official languages but which one is the most useful if living in Belgium.
Belgium - 8 Answers
Random Answers, Critics, Comments, Opinions :
1 :
French:)
2 :
Most of the people speak English. If you want to learn a language, learn the one spoken in the region in which you will live. People who speak different language in Belgium don't speak to each other, so make sure you don't use the wrong language in the wrong region.
3 :
It depends on where you live in Belgium. A good bet is to know French. In some parts they speak Flemish ( a mix between Dutch and French ) and in some parts they speak Dutch. I think French would be the most useful because most people speak French there. Then Dutch or Flemish would be good to learn a bit of. Good Luck!
4 :
it depends where you will live. If you will go to the south, you should learn french if you will go to the north, you should learn dutch If you will go to eastern cantons, you should learn german and in Brussels are dutch, french and arabic usefull. If you don't know yet what part it is maybe use full to know that 60% of the population speak dutch, 40% french and the other languages are less significant. It is int resting to know the local language because in most city halls, police stations, etc. the employees are not allowed to speak another language then the language of region.
5 :
French is the most spoken language in Brussels (90% of the people)
6 :
For soccerpl. : Flemish a mixture of Dutch and French? That's a new one. With advice like that you probably call Ronaldinho a mix between Pele and Zinadine Zidane. Flemish which is spoken in the Northern part of Belgium is a Germanic language. It is similar to German. In the written form it is exactly the same as Dutch. In the spoken form they have the same difference as English from Boston and English from the deep south. French is spoken in Brussels by 80% of the people and in the Southern part of Belgium. Learn the language of the part where you will be living. In the meantime in the North almost everybody speaks English
7 :
Flemish in the written form is the exact same as Dutch? Don't make me laugh... I mean for starters Flemish is NOT a written language. Wiki in West Flemish: http://vls.wikipedia.org/wiki/West-Vlams The same page in Dutch: http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/West-Vlaams Here's some classic West Flemish : http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jnapUj54uOU&feature=channel Here's some Antwerp dialect: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HJier5OM8pQ&feature=related As for the most useful ... it depends where you end up living. Noeok is pretty spot on.
8 :
Depends on where you're going.. If you're going to the northern part (called Flanders), you should learn Dutch (which is sometimes called Flemish if it concerns "Belgian Dutch"). However, lots of people speak dialects there, which can differ from standard Dutch a lot (like in West Flanders). In Flanders, you can find cities like Antwerpen, Gent, Brugge, Leuven, Hasselt, Oostende, Kortrijk and Ieper. Almost everyone there speaks English at a decent degree. If you're going to the southern part (called Wallonia), you should learn French. In a few municipalities bordering Germany (Eupen & St. Vith), German is also spoken. Little chance you're going there! In Wallonia, you can find cities like Namur, Liège, Charleroi, Arlon et Mons. Officially, the capital of Belgium (Brussels) is bilingually Dutch and French. However, most French speakers (80% of the population of Brussels) can't/don't want to speak Dutch. So you could better learn French then and pick up some Dutch later as well. Hope this helps!
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