Speaking in Tongues

A different language is a different vision of life. ~Federico Fellini

Here’s a little scenario for you. After the collapse, you are walking along the road toward safety. Ahead of you, there are two wrecked cars on the road, one to each side. As you walk towards them, a man stands up. He has a weapon, but it’s not pointed at you, not yet. He holds his hand out in a gesture to stop, which you do. Then he asks you a question. The problem is that you don’t understand a word of what he says. Now what will you do?

Is it an unlikely situation? Perhaps it is, if you stay glued to your home turf. In that case you might be the guy behind the car asking the question. How that incident might play out I leave to your imagination.

Obviously, this post is about the need to speak a foreign language. While many of the survival gurus are advising you to learn to blacksmithing or carpentry or brain surgery, I’d like you to consider learning a second language. There are several good reasons to do this and some surprising benefits as well.

The first reason to learn is presented by the little scenario I presented at the start of the article. While it may be your plan to be at home in the event of a crisis, there might be a reason you’re not, such as visiting family, business travel or vacationing. You just can’t say with absolute certainty where you will be if a crisis arises.

The second reason is also presented by the scenario. In the event of a large enough calamity, large numbers of people will be on the move, and some may not speak your mother tongue. It might well save lives if you can communicate with some of those on the road.

There are a number of other reasons. Studies show that learning a language is a great way to keep your mind sharp, and may enhance your career, or just give you some enjoyment in learning about another culture.

What language you should learn depends on a number of factors. The first is where you live. For North Americans, there are perhaps three logical choices of language. In Eastern Ontario, the American Northeast and the Maritimes, the rational choice is French.

If you can speak French, you’re ok in the large area of Quebec, the Acadian part of the Maritimes, and parts of Louisiana. Of course, the language will be useful in Europe, not only in France, but in several other countries where it has status as a second language. Given that French was a colonial power for centuries, you’ll also find it spoken in parts of the Caribbean, Africa, Asia and the Pacific. It is the second most studied language (after English) and it is estimated that it will have roughly 500 million speakers worldwide by 2025.

For the American Southwest and Florida, the first choice would be Spanish. With Spanish as a second language, you are set up for almost all of Central and South America, parts of Europe, and places like the Philippines. Spanish is the mother tongue of 400 million people, and there may be as many as another 100 million that speak it as a second language.

The third language I might consider is German. On this side of the Atlantic, there are isolated pockets of German speakers in Canada, the United States, Dominican Republic, Brazil, Argentina, Paraguay, Uruguay, Chile, Peru, and Venezuela.

Overseas, German is the most spoken language in the European Union, and there are approximately 100 million native German speakers. Due to the longstanding economic strength of Germany, it is widely spoken in Europe, and might be especially useful in Eastern Europe. There are another 80 million speakers of German as a second language.

There are of course other languages you could learn, but unless you are a frequent traveler to the country or countries that use the language, there isn’t much point. Why master Swedish if you never go to Sweden? On the other hand, if you are looking to retreat or retire to foreign climes, make it a high priority to learn the local language fluently. Without a fluency in the local speech, you will be forever completely on the outside and a target in bad times.

It’s cheap to learn a language. There are tons of internet sites and language programs available, both free and for a price. Likely there are language courses available from your local college or university. Alternatively, you may be able to advertise for private lessons from a native speaker in your area.

Let’s go back to that roadblock. This time it is you behind the barrier asking the questions. When you realize he doesn’t understand English, you switch to your second language, and it turns out that the traveler is a doctor, and just what is desperately needed in your group. After going through the usual precautions, you’ll invite him to join and add his skills to your group.


C’est juste bon sens.

Es apenas sentido común

Es ist gerade gesunder Menschenverstand

It’s just common sense