Has this happened to any of you guys? Recently I was seriously having some trouble keeping my speech smooth in English. There were times where I was out with my friends and I was seriously going to start talking Japanese but I'm like wait, gotta talk in English here.(Internal monologue is still in english but nowadays my head can stay in japanese now in terms of reading/understanding/listening.)

Any ways of coping with this? Maybe this is due to the fact I listen to japanese almost everyday, there isn't a single day were I'm not immersed in japanese.

How long have you been studying Japanese?

I've been in Japan a year now, and it's happened to me already. When my mom was here last month, I actually started speaking Japanese to her about a dozen times. She actually understood what I said, but we've always been English only.

My listening, reading, and writing haven't suffered at all though. It's probably a "use it or lose it" kind of thing. I currently go months without speaking a word of English, but I usually read/write in English at least daily.

It didn't happen to me with Japanese but my mother tongue is German and the last two years I was mainly immersed in English. And so I sometimes have difficulties with my German sentences because I want to use English expressions that don't make any sense in German.

first off i remember back a few years ago All I did was was bleach/naruto anime, but I wans't really japanese then it was all english subtitled. Last year I did take a level one course but dreaded it cuz it felt like I wasn't getting anywhere. after that I've been learning japanese up until now. So that's 8.5 months+3months of kanji-Which I don't count. But if I count that, it's 11.5 months. I've taken into consideration to speak on skype, with some of my j-friends,etc. But when I'm with my other friends, just yesterday I stumbling forming sentences in english, felt weird because I'm a native-speaker of english. I can write english just fine, since I have to use it for school,etc. But speaking seems to be slowing going down as my japanese increases.

PrivateLaughter Wrote:It didn't happen to me with Japanese but my mother tongue is German and the last two years I was mainly immersed in English. An so I sometimes have difficulties with my German sentences because I want to use English expressions that don't make any sense in German.

That happens to me with japanese, really odd at times. I just hope this doesn't happen on an exam or something, where I need to answer questions and I know i'll have more of that in the future since I have practical exams of chemistry/biology and of course the real-main exam for them.

Grinkers Wrote:How long have you been studying Japanese?

I've been in Japan a year now, and it's happened to me already. When my mom was here last month, I actually started speaking Japanese to her about a dozen times. She actually understood what I said, but we've always been English only.

My listening, reading, and writing haven't suffered at all though. It's probably a "use it or lose it" kind of thing. I currently go months without speaking a word of English, but I usually read/write in English at least daily.

Nice. Although I do have to use english for school, I try to fill my day with japanese as much as possible, so instead of english songs it's japanese songs,etc,etc.

This is...complete nonsense? You're just confusing yourself, maybe.

I've had a year long relationship with a Japanese girl who didn't speak English, but when my English speaking friends were around I switched back and forth no problem. I think I remember one time when I was switching back and forth really quickly between different language speakers that I f'd up. I said something to a friend from the states in Japanese, then he looked at me like I was crazy and everyone laughed. But it wasn't common at all.

The only time it's ever seemed to be a problem for me or anyone I've ever known is when there are concepts you're familiar with in Japanese that aren't so easily translated into English. Or some weird obscure word in Japanese that's not so common in English (I struggled to remember tonight that 鯛 meant "Sea Bream"... not that I'm familiar with that term in English, but it's a super common fish in Japan).

So anyway, I think you're overthinking it. Especially messing up your own native language seems strange. Maybe you need to take a break from Japanese.

zanzou Wrote:This is...complete nonsense? You're just confusing yourself, maybe.

I've had a year long relationship with a Japanese girl who didn't speak English, but when my English speaking friends were around I switched back and forth no problem. I think I remember one time when I was switching back and forth really quickly between different language speakers that I f'd up. I said something to a friend from the states in Japanese, then he looked at me like I was crazy and everyone laughed. But it wasn't common at all.

The only time it's ever seemed to be a problem for me or anyone I've ever known is when there are concepts you're familiar with in Japanese that aren't so easily translated into English. Or some weird obscure word in Japanese that's not so common in English (I struggled to remember tonight that 鯛 meant "Sea Bream"... not that I'm familiar with that term in English, but it's a super common fish in Japan).

So anyway, I think you're overthinking it. Especially messing up your own native language seems strange. Maybe you need to take a break from Japanese.

I am making some mistakes in my native-language and all but it isn't overly problematic. Just sometimes struggling/forgetting sometimes what I just said in English, some tendency's to talk in Japanese instead of English. But I think my mind has just got more accustomed to japanese, since I keep listening/watching/reading it for the majority of the day if possible. Obviously some days I can't do this, but I try my best. Even my dreams nowadays had some japanese in it. There was one dream where it was all japanese, didn't seem like random nonsense japanese, made prefect sense.

Should I go all grammar nazi-orthographry freak on this thread?

I think another problem I have is having completely different knowledge in English and Japanese. My Japanese is almost all "arts", and my English is almost all "sciences". I'm almost at the point where I can read more words in a fiction novel in Japanese than English. I think a lot of this comes from just ignoring a new word in English, but looking every new word/kanji I see in Japanese.

Actually now that I think about it, I've probably spent more time watching/reading fictional works in Japanese than in English. That's 22 years vs 1 year.

Grinkers Wrote:I think another problem I have is having completely different knowledge in English and Japanese. My Japanese is almost all "arts", and my English is almost all "sciences". I'm almost at the point where I can read more words in a fiction novel in Japanese than English. I think a lot of this comes from just ignoring a new word in English, but looking every new word/kanji I see in Japanese.

Actually now that I think about it, I've probably spent more time watching/reading fictional works in Japanese than in English. That's 22 years vs 1 year.

I get yea. For me English is more sciences but Japanese it's something else. lol yea I rarely search up new words in english, but in japanese I'm all about learning new words/contexts.

I'm supposedly immersed in English but I know so many foreign people that I now speak simplified English. Why use words they don't know?

I have noticed people (like me at one time) using non-first-language mistakes picked up from their partners and so on, which probably happens partly for affectionate reasons.

In the end I think you have to choose what you are and are not able to do. I have made mistakes in English but I think part of me enjoys that - I think it's partly voluntary.

I'm kinda with zanzou. I've been in Japan ("immersed," you might say), and spend a considerable amount of time with my girlfriend, who refuses to speak to me in English.

Granted, I take some classes in English, and I spend some English time on the computer (more so on some days than others), and I have a bunch of English speaking friends...

But still, I have the TV on almost all the time, I speak Japanese when I go about my daily life. I can understand getting tripped up on some words here and there, but nothing worth getting concerned about

Quote:I have noticed people (like me at one time) using non-first-language mistakes picked up from their partners and so on, which probably happens partly for affectionate reasons.

"Teehee, I thought it was cute when you said it like that, so I never corrected you"
If I could count the times I've heard this one...

Asriel Wrote:I thought it was cute when you said it like that,

It was cute~~

Nobody likes a pedant though. And I wouldn't like to be the pedant that nobody likes. Maybe that's how comes I can't talk right no more.

I recently did an impromptu speech in my spanish class. I began in spanish. As I continued, I notice people beginning to look at me with question marks on their faces.

Apparently, I had switched between spanish, french, and japanese several times without noticing.

I agree with not being a pedant, but there's a difference between speaking formally/correctly, and speaking like a toddler :/

I've had no problems with Japanese interfering with speaking my native language (English). However, sometimes when I use my sadly neglected French, Japanese words pop into my head first instead.

Of course I have trouble speaking in English, I'm not a native speaker! XD
But yes, ever since I came to Japan (have been here for only over 2 years now), it happened to me, too, but not that my English got worse or that I mix English and Japanese, I mix English and German - especially when I try to speak German (which doesn't happen often).
Right now I have the feeling that I'm not fluent in any language anymore :/

Sometimes it even happens that I can remember the English and Japanese word for something, but can't remember the German one (o__o'') Should I be worried? XD

I only ever have trouble with English words I never knew in the first place, like nonplussed. And Japanese words. Have trouble with those all the time.

I actually new a guy who spoke like 4 languages but wasn't really fluent in any of them. He grew up speaking Russian, but even at 40 he spoke like a peasant and forgot words.

Actually, I question my pronunciation and spelling all the time now.
"How do you spell February again?" =__='

Also, there are a lot fo words that I can think of easily in Japanese but I cannot remember in English without a dictionary. 人類学とか産婦人科とか熱心　：P

zanzou Wrote:This is...complete nonsense? You're just confusing yourself, maybe.
...
So anyway, I think you're overthinking it. Especially messing up your own native language seems strange. Maybe you need to take a break from Japanese.

Hmmm, no, not complete nonsense, actually (though ta12121's writing can be a bit on the incomprehensible side at times...). It's called language erosion, and it happens to a lot of people, even in their native language. Some lucky people (like you, I guess) have brains wired to switch back and forth easily. I'm not one of them Sudden language switches make me grind to a halt.

I lived in Korea a couple of years ago, teaching English to kindergarten kids. I didn't lose my English per se, but because I spent all day speaking at a 5 year old level and my nights speaking a weird Korean/English hybrid with Korean friends, I lost a lot of my advanced vocab. My family used to comment on it when I called home, and spend half the call umm-ing and ahh-ing over words that used to be second nature. It's a use-it-or-lose-it thing, I guess.

auxetoiles Wrote:It's a use-it-or-lose-it thing, I guess.

This is what makes me kind of question whether or not ta12121 is having some sort of placebo effect, or if he's just incredibly antisocial, or what it is.
He's still in Canada, and going to classes taught in English with people who are English, and just exposes himself to media as often as he can.

Asriel Wrote:

auxetoiles Wrote:It's a use-it-or-lose-it thing, I guess.

This is what makes me kind of question whether or not ta12121 is having some sort of placebo effect, or if he's just incredibly antisocial, or what it is.
He's still in Canada, and going to classes taught in English with people who are English, and just exposes himself to media as often as he can.

Yes the media I listen to is 90% japanese, english is always here I cannot deny that, but
I do listen almost all the time/watch dramas/read books nowadays. As for antisocial, no where close to that. But a lot of my friends are busy with university and such, so they can't meet up as much.

I usual only meet up here and there for some friends. My Japanese friends a lot of the time ask me to hang out with them. (I know some from my high school that's Japanese, I remember telling them back then I was going to learn Japanese, but I didn't get serious until this last year, So I can hang out with them/talk to them whenever they time).

I used to waste a lot of time doing nothing a few years a go, I definitely had a large amount of time, nowadays I use every second of it. Time is precious, time goes fast(well this is for anyone), you might as well use every second of it well if possible of course.

Sorry about my writing I'll try to keep my points straightforward and stop the rambling ...

I do follow AJATT stuff if you guys must know. Obviously I've added what I think is effective into the mix and taken what parts of AJATT to my liking. Immersion is one of them and lots of it. I don't want to get into a debate but immersion does help a lot especially once you've reached a considerably level in japanese in terms of reading/listening

ta12121 Wrote:I used to waste a lot of time doing nothing a few years a go, I definitely had a large amount of time, nowadays I use every second of it. Time is precious, time goes fast(well this is for anyone), you might as well use every second of it well if possible of course.

I spend way too much time wasting time. I should really do more, and not just about Japanese -- I'm just incredibly lazy this year.