Hey man I sometimes see some negative comments regarding you learning lithuanian and just wanted to say that you should ignore them, go at your own pace and most importantly don't give up. Keep up the great work
What negative comments exactly, if I can ask? It seems that memesters and trolls will always find a way to take down someone, just so they can aid into the conversation. I am disgusted by the recent Internet culture, people should be rather impressed and excited that someone chose to learn a language, esepecially a small one, even though it is not mandatory.
As a native English speaker also learning Lithuanian, I'd suggest focusing on vocabulary and not trying to learn the grammar rules. Trying to learn Lithuanian grammar is insanely discouraging, and I've never really been misunderstood because of my bad Lithuanian grammar (and I know it's terrible). The only time I've had trouble is when I don't know the Lithuanian word for something. Only my mother-in-law corrects my grammar.
I agree, the reason why we learn languages is to communicate with people. Language journey usually consists of several stages: 1) learning the basics 2) learning to speak 3) learning to understand We can learn to speak somehow, but once the other side says something you do not understand, the conversation could end. Grammar is important, in order to make the speech correct, but once the speaker does not know vocabulary, grammar is useless. Other way around, you paradoxically are more advanced.
Messing up in grammar is no big deal, as we usually understand 95% of what is being told, my friend actually was learning and it was easier at first to speak with mistakes and later on, as he got used to it, it was easier to understand the grammar and make assumption's what should be correct and for most time now he is correct.
That's what I wanted to write. Extending vocabulary is the major thing. Grammar will come automatically when you will start using the language on daily basis.
Interesting! And also nice to hear other people agree with you and say the same thing. In that case, I guess I’ll focus more on building vocabulary! Thank you 😊
Your Lithuanian in the shop was gražu! :) When I was learning Spanish from scratch at uni in the UK, I didn't have time for homework, let alone for extra practice, because I had to work in the evenings and on the weekends to pay for everything. Let me share with you some of my methods how to learn a language without spending extra time or money (you create an immertion in the language): 1. Write down the names of things on every appliance utencil, piece of furniture, etc, that you use everyday and read the name of the thing out loud every time you use it. E.g. you write spintelė on a piece of sticky paper and stick it onto a cupboard in the kitchen. Whenever you reach for a cup or a plate, before opening the door of the cupboard you read spintelė out loud. If you're wife is around, she can correct you pronunciation. 2. Change the language on all your devices and online accounts to Lithuanian. You probably know what is what and use it automatically by now anyway, so why not have it in Lithuanian, right...? 3. When you watch something online, on social media, on TV, try to do it without English translation. Do it in Lithuanian. The best way would be watching in Lithuanian and reading subtitles in the same language that you're watching. If you're going to watch it anyway, why not do it in the original language? Of course, at the beginning you won't understand much but be patient and you'll reap the benefits. 4. My prefered method to learn a language and to maintain the acquired level is listening to the radio, to podcasts, audio books, etc, while I'm cooking something, folding clothes and doing other household chores, or even when exercising. Even if you don't understand anything, leave it in the background - you'll start separating phrases and words, you'll hear which part of the word is stressed, and so on. So, for people like me who say they don't have time for foreign languages, I recommend these methods of not dedicating extra money or time to learn them. Sėkmės!
The second one, bingo! Although I am not that ready to use Lithuanian for such accounts, my Facebook is set to Hungarian, my mobile Facebook to Polish and RUclips is in Slovenian. It really helps to remember some things, once it is impossible to unsee them, while using the Internet.
I've just remembered another piece of advice I could give. I could add it to the point regarding the use of the language you're learning in your smart devices: When you're creating a calendar reminder/event, a to-do/shopping list or something similar in your phone or computer, do it in LT. I know, I know, it's tedious, takes much more time because at the beginning you need to check every single word in the dictionary. But this way you're explanding your vocab with the words you actually would use on a daily basis, as opposed to some random vocab that you're taught in language classes (just for the record, I'm not saying that your vocab in LT classes is random - I think you'll understand what I'm trying to say). E.g. an excerpt from my to-do list: - Lidl: galletas (translation: biscuits) - Lidl: arroz (transl: rice) - Lidl: té (tea) (I live right next to Lidl so that's where I shop - this is not an attempt to promote it) Examples from my calendar: - Peluquería (hairdresser's) - Recoger DPD (Collect DPD) - Recoger Omniva (Collect Omniva) Don't worry - the hardest part is the very beginning of learning a language. The more you learn, the easier it'll get, especially if you start doing everything in Lithuanian and speaking to others in Lithuanian. Just to motivate you even more, I'll tell you a "secret": once you learn one foreign language, it'll be so much easier to learn any other language. Lithuanian for you now is that threshold - once you step over it, once you win that uphill battle, the rest will be so much easier you'll be surprised. You'll mark my words. Sėkmės! Ačiū už pastangas!
I can ensure you that we do not care if you make grammatical mistakes - we are very happy to hear a foreigner at least trying, so don't let the grammar discourage you! Hearing you speak Lithuanian was really wholesome :)
As someone who has learned a fair amount of Lithuanian I would recommend the following. 1. Activity based learning is fantastic! It will help you to more naturally learn a lot of words and build confidence. You can then make grammar activities by saying "this week/month I'm focusing on prepositions" and then think of some activities that require prepositions. 2. Lithuanian Grammar is much more surmountable using tables, although I don't think I have my grammar books with me anymore. If you are interested I can draw out two tables that I came up with. One for all "-ing" equivalents in Lithuanian and one for Lithuania numbers using some shortcuts. 3. Yes learning "kirčavimas" rules is very difficult. I don't even know most (80%) of them.
Id say your brain has to feel the need. Something like as if your survival depended on it. You cant lie to your brain about: "what is the point?". Otherwise youll forget everything mid-way. Brains are professionals at cleaning up things we dont frequently use - and thats why we forget. Turning off your eject-button and forcing yourself to make-do with whatever you know might help. DO NOT be afraid to feel stupid - main reason why kids learn so fast. And butcher my language all you want - she will survive and still love you. You will have to perfect it at some point though :D Im proud of you!
I am on a life goal of learning Lithuanian also. You and I are both from Canada. The advantages you have are. 1. Living in Lithuania you have opportunities to use the language each day, 2. Pasakyk tavo žmonai, nekalbėk man angliškai. 3. Watch cartoons and go to the movies and have fun with people in Lithuanian. .4. Master an area before moving on. First declension nouns, for example. You confuse yourself learning multiple areas at once.. 5. Expose yourself to the language as much as you can 6. Try Lithuania for You on RUclips. Edmundas is like a friend to me.
There is a way to find out which part of the word needs to be stressed. It's called kirčiuotė. And there are rules around it. Though from a foreighner's perspective chances are it will be easier just to memorise the stress location. Also another interesting thing about lithuanian is that many times unlike in english you can rearange the words in a sentence and it will be a completely valid sentence that has the same meaning. Example: I went to the store Aš ėjau į parduotuvę. Į parduotuvę ėjau aš. Ėjau aš į parduotuvę. Ėjau į parduotuvę aš. So from this perspective it might be easier as the word position doesn't have to follow the same logic order as in english. And figuring out why and when this works might be an interesting challenge and might give you the motivation you need.
Ačiū! That’s good to hear. I think that is where the app can be an issue because there is only ever one correct answer to a question- even if in reality, a rearranged sentence might be understandable. I will have to keep all this in mind
@@LithuaniaExplained Actually he lied to you a little bit. Each phrasing (the different word position) has a different connotation. like first "as ejau i parduotuve" means just i went to store. the second "i parduotuve ejau as" means "i was going to the store". The third means "i went to the store" and fourth means "it was me who went to the store". Althou they all mean the same, but words position means a tidy bit different things, ask your wife.
There's always a point in learning a new language when you get past the basics and realize there's seemingly no end to what you don't yet know. That's a very tough place to be. I felt that learning Japanese, especially the Kanji characters. About 3 years ago I made a decision to learn 1 new character every day and stuck to it. Just 1 new thing every morning with my coffee. I can now read books, online articles, work messages, etc. As your teacher said, ignore the totality of what you don't know and have a 15-20 minute daily routine of learning something new, no matter how small. It does accumulate over time and the pressure of learning 1 thing is not intimidating. Sėkmės! :)
Perfection takes time, no matter, how hard you try. But I suppose that you should be glad and motivated for knowing the basics, as people will appreciate that very effort. With every successful conversation, where both of you spoke Lithuanian, be glad that it happened, because that is a hell of a progress! But do not forget to take a break sometimes, grab a beer, have some soup, relax, load some energy, anything, but relax. I do have my own language too, but I haven't been working on it for some month or two, otherwise I would go crazy!
You seem to be having exactly the same challenges, thoughts and experiences with learning Lithuanian as I am! It’s good to know I’m not crazy, and will definitely give Ling a try! Well done in the shop too, no way could I do that yet
Like others said, you need routine :) From my experience with other languages - while watching videos or tv shows in Lithuanian is not a bad idea, it's definitely a slow way to learn and not that effective for total beginners. The most important things should be: 1) pick up a Lithuanian grammar book and do exercises there, that way you gonna learn both dictionary and grammar and if possible, have some listening exercises (also it's good for routine building), 2) speak with others (your spouse here might help), 3) read books! You can start with children's books and move up gradually but I guarantee, it's the best way to learn ACTIVELY not passively the vocabulary and structure of sentences
I've had a fair bit of experience in both learning as well as teaching languages (including lithuanian) and my biggest takeaway is the importance of vocabulary over grammar. Generally, even if you just smash random forms of words together, people will understand the main idea. Also, since Lithuanians know we have a really difficult language, we have a lot of appreciation of foreigners even trying to learn it. Obviously, at some stage grammar is important, but once you build up a bit of vocabulary it makes communication easier and gives additional motivation, as you can notice your progress a lot more. Otherwise, well done, even if we are given just snippets, you seem to be making a lot of progress!
I like to read really random words in lithuanian here and there and check what they mean rather than put into my head the vocabulary "i should know" :)
It have to agree with Antanas that motivation isn't consistent enough and that you have to rely on habits. I also think it gets a lot easier to devote time to it as you progress. I went from spending 20 minutes a day at most to around an hour and 20, which I never could have imagined doing at the beginning. Congrats on your successes and good luck in the future!
Do not worry too much about the pronunciation, it's quite difficult eaven for native speakers. So unless your a linguist or a journalist speaking on tv, it's ok not to be perfect. Lithuanian is more forgiving for mispronouncing words then other languages (like japanese or chinese).
own those mistakes! Belt them out LOUD! :) i mean that in the most constructive way possible! :) I've commented before on the mistakes I made learning Dutch - one VERY embarrasing mistake , lol - you are 100% right - it makes them memorable and you will never make that mistake again! You'll do great! - one other little "trick" that I used before I was comfortable with Lithuanian: I made sure to, intentionally, make my American accent known - my pronounciation was pretty good, but by going out of my way to keep my american accent, they knew I was a foreigner, even when everything was perfect - I slowly (over the years) morphed into a more 'LT' accent (although, you can still tell that I am 'foreign', but not exactly American) - that got me through some moments where, I think, the people I was interacting with, spoke slower and more clearly due to my accent.
Here's what you can do to kinda skip all the boring grammar memorization stuff. First find a video in lithuanian which has a voice similar to yours or which you like, second start shadowing that video, meaning repeating everything in the same cadence. This will sort out emphasis for you. Turn on subtitles for context. Visuals will help as well to link the words to their meanings. Practice this as if you were practicing to play a musical instrument. If this doesn't make sense, google shadowing technique. Hope this helps 👍
@@LithuaniaExplained Finding something with lithuanian subs is hard, finding something good with lithuanian subs might be impossible. I still think you'd benefit more with English subs, especially the ones that have translations of idioms and local sayings. Don't worry about it too much tho, you'll learn it eventually. You just need to find something or someone to practice on. You can try going to prison, that way you'll learn russian as a bonus 🤣
I think that the biggest advantage of learning lithuanian is the fact that you can truly enjoy and understand lithuanian poetry, since imo it doesn't have the same charm when translated into english. Don't know if that's your thing though.
Yes, it's a good idea to learn something about food when you are in a kitchen and to learn something about nature when you are in a forest. Read all you see written when you are walking in the city. Listen to what do you hear around. Make your wife speak Lithuanian to you. Use the Lithuanian speaking versions of self-pay counters. Read them and listen to them.
I use Memrise, Clozemaster and Mondly Languages as apps on my phone to study Lithuanian. I also watch LithuanianForYou channel for grammar explaining. For more content I watch two programs from the LRT Čis mano sodas which is about gardening the other on cooking called Beatos Virtuvė
@@LithuaniaExplained not very. One of my Lithuanian heritage Facebook groups was meeting biweekly and we were using RUclips videos. After about two months the meetings stopped due to low attendance. I'm going to look for a tutor after we file our taxes to see how much money I can budget.
I decided to learn some Polish this year. I lack motivation as well, and I even don’t live in Poland, and don’t have a Polish husband with his Polish friends and relatives around.
@@RichieLarpa , todél, kad mūsų didelė kaimyninė šalis yra Lenkija ir būtų įdomu semtis informacijos iš lenkiškų šaltinių. Man visai patinka Lenkija ir tai, kaip mandagiai dauguma lenkų bendrauja lenkiškai. Czy pan może to rozumieć?
Thank you for another wonderful video! I was wondering if you or the community have any recommendations for shows or movies with subtitles in Lithuanian? I've been struggling to find any media with lithuanian subtitles. My language tutor recommended watching Gustavo Enciklopedija, which has been fine as I enjoy the silliness, but I'd like to find some other programs to watch. 💙
That has been my struggle too- finding any content - even Lithuanian stuff- that has Lithuanian subtitling. I’ll make a post about it and see if anyone has any suggestions
You didn't butcher Lithuanian too much if you were understood by a listener without too much trouble. I would define "too much trouble" as something that manifests the following way: a mouth is agape; not a flicker of comprehension in eyes full of terror; uncoordinated gesticulation in an attempt to invent an ad hoc sign language; inarticulate inquiring squeaks that don't make sense in any language. If that was not the case, then you did fine. Also, I know a few English-speaking guys that are now quite fluent in Lithuanian. Their grammar is spot on, too, most of the time. So don't worry, Lithuanian is not some impenetrable fortress for English speakers. There is the internal logic there.
at 2:40 you mention the idea of having thematic lessons. Why don't you try making your first video in lithuanian? while you think it may be a catastrophy - the same logic would apply, you would be doing something you totally enjoy, content creation, just in a different language. I'd watch Lithuanian TV shows as well.
Is it just me or this comment section is full of foreign men who are learning Lithuanian because nearly all of them have Lithuanian wifes/girlfriends? Insert *surprised pikachu*. Are there foreign women who are learning Lithuanian instead only Foreign men?
@@LithuaniaExplained Do you have theory why your channel attracts more male? I guess that most of them have Lithuanian wifes/girlfriends. If that's true, that would be insane.
Ok, so YOU MUST PATENT YOUR IDEA OF HOW TO LEARN A LANGUAGE (learning any specific type of vocabulary by doing the activity that utilizes that specific vocabulary). This is such a great idea! 😁👍👍👍👏👏👏👏
Hey man I sometimes see some negative comments regarding you learning lithuanian and just wanted to say that you should ignore them, go at your own pace and most importantly don't give up. Keep up the great work
What negative comments exactly, if I can ask? It seems that memesters and trolls will always find a way to take down someone, just so they can aid into the conversation. I am disgusted by the recent Internet culture, people should be rather impressed and excited that someone chose to learn a language, esepecially a small one, even though it is not mandatory.
Thank you!
Šaunuolis, kad stengiesi, taip ir toliau! Nepasiduok!
Ačiū labai!
As a native English speaker also learning Lithuanian, I'd suggest focusing on vocabulary and not trying to learn the grammar rules. Trying to learn Lithuanian grammar is insanely discouraging, and I've never really been misunderstood because of my bad Lithuanian grammar (and I know it's terrible). The only time I've had trouble is when I don't know the Lithuanian word for something. Only my mother-in-law corrects my grammar.
I agree, the reason why we learn languages is to communicate with people. Language journey usually consists of several stages:
1) learning the basics
2) learning to speak
3) learning to understand
We can learn to speak somehow, but once the other side says something you do not understand, the conversation could end. Grammar is important, in order to make the speech correct, but once the speaker does not know vocabulary, grammar is useless. Other way around, you paradoxically are more advanced.
Messing up in grammar is no big deal, as we usually understand 95% of what is being told, my friend actually was learning and it was easier at first to speak with mistakes and later on, as he got used to it, it was easier to understand the grammar and make assumption's what should be correct and for most time now he is correct.
agree, 100%
That's what I wanted to write. Extending vocabulary is the major thing.
Grammar will come automatically when you will start using the language on daily basis.
Interesting! And also nice to hear other people agree with you and say the same thing. In that case, I guess I’ll focus more on building vocabulary! Thank you 😊
Your Lithuanian in the shop was gražu! :)
When I was learning Spanish from scratch at uni in the UK, I didn't have time for homework, let alone for extra practice, because I had to work in the evenings and on the weekends to pay for everything. Let me share with you some of my methods how to learn a language without spending extra time or money (you create an immertion in the language):
1. Write down the names of things on every appliance utencil, piece of furniture, etc, that you use everyday and read the name of the thing out loud every time you use it. E.g. you write spintelė on a piece of sticky paper and stick it onto a cupboard in the kitchen. Whenever you reach for a cup or a plate, before opening the door of the cupboard you read spintelė out loud. If you're wife is around, she can correct you pronunciation.
2. Change the language on all your devices and online accounts to Lithuanian. You probably know what is what and use it automatically by now anyway, so why not have it in Lithuanian, right...?
3. When you watch something online, on social media, on TV, try to do it without English translation. Do it in Lithuanian. The best way would be watching in Lithuanian and reading subtitles in the same language that you're watching. If you're going to watch it anyway, why not do it in the original language? Of course, at the beginning you won't understand much but be patient and you'll reap the benefits.
4. My prefered method to learn a language and to maintain the acquired level is listening to the radio, to podcasts, audio books, etc, while I'm cooking something, folding clothes and doing other household chores, or even when exercising. Even if you don't understand anything, leave it in the background - you'll start separating phrases and words, you'll hear which part of the word is stressed, and so on.
So, for people like me who say they don't have time for foreign languages, I recommend these methods of not dedicating extra money or time to learn them.
Sėkmės!
The second one, bingo! Although I am not that ready to use Lithuanian for such accounts, my Facebook is set to Hungarian, my mobile Facebook to Polish and RUclips is in Slovenian. It really helps to remember some things, once it is impossible to unsee them, while using the Internet.
I've just remembered another piece of advice I could give. I could add it to the point regarding the use of the language you're learning in your smart devices:
When you're creating a calendar reminder/event, a to-do/shopping list or something similar in your phone or computer, do it in LT. I know, I know, it's tedious, takes much more time because at the beginning you need to check every single word in the dictionary. But this way you're explanding your vocab with the words you actually would use on a daily basis, as opposed to some random vocab that you're taught in language classes (just for the record, I'm not saying that your vocab in LT classes is random - I think you'll understand what I'm trying to say).
E.g. an excerpt from my to-do list:
- Lidl: galletas (translation: biscuits)
- Lidl: arroz (transl: rice)
- Lidl: té (tea)
(I live right next to Lidl so that's where I shop - this is not an attempt to promote it)
Examples from my calendar:
- Peluquería (hairdresser's)
- Recoger DPD (Collect DPD)
- Recoger Omniva (Collect Omniva)
Don't worry - the hardest part is the very beginning of learning a language. The more you learn, the easier it'll get, especially if you start doing everything in Lithuanian and speaking to others in Lithuanian.
Just to motivate you even more, I'll tell you a "secret": once you learn one foreign language, it'll be so much easier to learn any other language. Lithuanian for you now is that threshold - once you step over it, once you win that uphill battle, the rest will be so much easier you'll be surprised. You'll mark my words.
Sėkmės! Ačiū už pastangas!
Thanks for all the advice! I might just try some of these :)
I can ensure you that we do not care if you make grammatical mistakes - we are very happy to hear a foreigner at least trying, so don't let the grammar discourage you! Hearing you speak Lithuanian was really wholesome :)
It goes like that. It is a rollercoaster. It happens with every language. If you keep pushing, suddenly everything will start to make sense.
Thank you!
Lithuanian grammar is hard even for native speakers, so I totally get why it's difficult for foreigners.
As someone who has learned a fair amount of Lithuanian I would recommend the following.
1. Activity based learning is fantastic! It will help you to more naturally learn a lot of words and build confidence.
You can then make grammar activities by saying "this week/month I'm focusing on prepositions" and then think of some activities that require prepositions.
2. Lithuanian Grammar is much more surmountable using tables, although I don't think I have my grammar books with me anymore. If you are interested I can draw out two tables that I came up with. One for all "-ing" equivalents in Lithuanian and one for Lithuania numbers using some shortcuts.
3. Yes learning "kirčavimas" rules is very difficult. I don't even know most (80%) of them.
Thank you!
Id say your brain has to feel the need. Something like as if your survival depended on it. You cant lie to your brain about: "what is the point?". Otherwise youll forget everything mid-way. Brains are professionals at cleaning up things we dont frequently use - and thats why we forget. Turning off your eject-button and forcing yourself to make-do with whatever you know might help.
DO NOT be afraid to feel stupid - main reason why kids learn so fast. And butcher my language all you want - she will survive and still love you. You will have to perfect it at some point though :D
Im proud of you!
I am on a life goal of learning Lithuanian also. You and I are both from Canada. The advantages you have are. 1. Living in Lithuania you have opportunities to use the language each day, 2. Pasakyk tavo žmonai, nekalbėk man angliškai. 3. Watch cartoons and go to the movies and have fun with people in Lithuanian. .4. Master an area before moving on. First declension nouns, for example. You confuse yourself learning multiple areas at once.. 5. Expose yourself to the language as much as you can 6. Try Lithuania for You on RUclips. Edmundas is like a friend to me.
There is a way to find out which part of the word needs to be stressed. It's called kirčiuotė. And there are rules around it. Though from a foreighner's perspective chances are it will be easier just to memorise the stress location.
Also another interesting thing about lithuanian is that many times unlike in english you can rearange the words in a sentence and it will be a completely valid sentence that has the same meaning.
Example: I went to the store
Aš ėjau į parduotuvę.
Į parduotuvę ėjau aš.
Ėjau aš į parduotuvę.
Ėjau į parduotuvę aš.
So from this perspective it might be easier as the word position doesn't have to follow the same logic order as in english. And figuring out why and when this works might be an interesting challenge and might give you the motivation you need.
The same as latin, then?
@@Jestersage exactly, though some forms sometimes sound more archaic then others, but all are perfectly intelligible
@@Jestersage yup or similar-ish
Ačiū! That’s good to hear. I think that is where the app can be an issue because there is only ever one correct answer to a question- even if in reality, a rearranged sentence might be understandable. I will have to keep all this in mind
@@LithuaniaExplained Actually he lied to you a little bit. Each phrasing (the different word position) has a different connotation. like first "as ejau i parduotuve" means just i went to store. the second "i parduotuve ejau as" means "i was going to the store". The third means "i went to the store" and fourth means "it was me who went to the store". Althou they all mean the same, but words position means a tidy bit different things, ask your wife.
I believe in you, you can do it!
Thank you!!!
There's always a point in learning a new language when you get past the basics and realize there's seemingly no end to what you don't yet know. That's a very tough place to be. I felt that learning Japanese, especially the Kanji characters. About 3 years ago I made a decision to learn 1 new character every day and stuck to it. Just 1 new thing every morning with my coffee. I can now read books, online articles, work messages, etc. As your teacher said, ignore the totality of what you don't know and have a 15-20 minute daily routine of learning something new, no matter how small. It does accumulate over time and the pressure of learning 1 thing is not intimidating. Sėkmės! :)
Perfection takes time, no matter, how hard you try. But I suppose that you should be glad and motivated for knowing the basics, as people will appreciate that very effort. With every successful conversation, where both of you spoke Lithuanian, be glad that it happened, because that is a hell of a progress!
But do not forget to take a break sometimes, grab a beer, have some soup, relax, load some energy, anything, but relax. I do have my own language too, but I haven't been working on it for some month or two, otherwise I would go crazy!
You seem to be having exactly the same challenges, thoughts and experiences with learning Lithuanian as I am! It’s good to know I’m not crazy, and will definitely give Ling a try! Well done in the shop too, no way could I do that yet
I love the attitude - It’s OK to be inperfect 😊
Thanks!
Question: does your wife to speak Lithuanian to you at home, at least when it comes to simple sentences? I think it would help a lot of.
She does. It helps. But I have to constantly request lėčiau prašau 😅
Like others said, you need routine :) From my experience with other languages - while watching videos or tv shows in Lithuanian is not a bad idea, it's definitely a slow way to learn and not that effective for total beginners. The most important things should be: 1) pick up a Lithuanian grammar book and do exercises there, that way you gonna learn both dictionary and grammar and if possible, have some listening exercises (also it's good for routine building), 2) speak with others (your spouse here might help), 3) read books! You can start with children's books and move up gradually but I guarantee, it's the best way to learn ACTIVELY not passively the vocabulary and structure of sentences
I realy like your progress learning lithuanian.
Thanks! 😃
I've had a fair bit of experience in both learning as well as teaching languages (including lithuanian) and my biggest takeaway is the importance of vocabulary over grammar. Generally, even if you just smash random forms of words together, people will understand the main idea. Also, since Lithuanians know we have a really difficult language, we have a lot of appreciation of foreigners even trying to learn it. Obviously, at some stage grammar is important, but once you build up a bit of vocabulary it makes communication easier and gives additional motivation, as you can notice your progress a lot more. Otherwise, well done, even if we are given just snippets, you seem to be making a lot of progress!
Thank you!!
I like to read really random words in lithuanian here and there and check what they mean rather than put into my head the vocabulary "i should know" :)
The most important of what Antanas said was: don’t forget to learn some Lithuanian everyday.
Thanks!
@@LithuaniaExplained , yeah, but also relax. It all will come with time.
Yeah, the Lithuanian words have endings, but they don’t have prepositions then.
1:54 there is a mistake? Meninkas instead of Menininkas, haha
Oh no!! My wife already detected other mistakes in the app too 🙈
It have to agree with Antanas that motivation isn't consistent enough and that you have to rely on habits. I also think it gets a lot easier to devote time to it as you progress. I went from spending 20 minutes a day at most to around an hour and 20, which I never could have imagined doing at the beginning.
Congrats on your successes and good luck in the future!
Thanks for sharing!!
Do not worry too much about the pronunciation, it's quite difficult eaven for native speakers. So unless your a linguist or a journalist speaking on tv, it's ok not to be perfect. Lithuanian is more forgiving for mispronouncing words then other languages (like japanese or chinese).
own those mistakes! Belt them out LOUD! :) i mean that in the most constructive way possible! :) I've commented before on the mistakes I made learning Dutch - one VERY embarrasing mistake , lol - you are 100% right - it makes them memorable and you will never make that mistake again! You'll do great! - one other little "trick" that I used before I was comfortable with Lithuanian: I made sure to, intentionally, make my American accent known - my pronounciation was pretty good, but by going out of my way to keep my american accent, they knew I was a foreigner, even when everything was perfect - I slowly (over the years) morphed into a more 'LT' accent (although, you can still tell that I am 'foreign', but not exactly American) - that got me through some moments where, I think, the people I was interacting with, spoke slower and more clearly due to my accent.
Thanks Sean!!
Here's what you can do to kinda skip all the boring grammar memorization stuff. First find a video in lithuanian which has a voice similar to yours or which you like, second start shadowing that video, meaning repeating everything in the same cadence. This will sort out emphasis for you. Turn on subtitles for context. Visuals will help as well to link the words to their meanings. Practice this as if you were practicing to play a musical instrument. If this doesn't make sense, google shadowing technique. Hope this helps 👍
I need to find content with Lithuanian subtitles… it’s harder than I thought!
@@LithuaniaExplained Finding something with lithuanian subs is hard, finding something good with lithuanian subs might be impossible. I still think you'd benefit more with English subs, especially the ones that have translations of idioms and local sayings. Don't worry about it too much tho, you'll learn it eventually. You just need to find something or someone to practice on. You can try going to prison, that way you'll learn russian as a bonus 🤣
@@LithuaniaExplained pick some videos you like and post them on your channel, I'm sure we'll be able to help you out with the captions
I think that the biggest advantage of learning lithuanian is the fact that you can truly enjoy and understand lithuanian poetry, since imo it doesn't have the same charm when translated into english. Don't know if that's your thing though.
Yes, it's a good idea to learn something about food when you are in a kitchen and to learn something about nature when you are in a forest.
Read all you see written when you are walking in the city.
Listen to what do you hear around.
Make your wife speak Lithuanian to you.
Use the Lithuanian speaking versions of self-pay counters. Read them and listen to them.
I use Memrise, Clozemaster and Mondly Languages as apps on my phone to study Lithuanian. I also watch LithuanianForYou channel for grammar explaining. For more content I watch two programs from the LRT Čis mano sodas which is about gardening the other on cooking called Beatos Virtuvė
As Lithuanian, motivation to learn lithuanian was hard to come by as well. No worries there.
U always can learn with me lithuanian language.
Lašas po lašo ir akmenį pratašo.
A drop after drop hews even through stone.
Persistent tiny steps will give results. You're doing fine.
Correct Lithuanian accentuation is very common problem for both Lithuanians and Lithuanian learners alike don't sweat it.
That Friends clip is perfect for my feelings when trying to learn Lithuanian.
😂😂😂 so many times I’ve said to my wife after she corrects my pronounciation- “what are you talking about?, that’s exactly what I said!”
@@LithuaniaExplained apparently I add vowels where none exist and make the "h" sound for no reason.
@@emilycurtis4398 it’s the effort that counts right? At least that’s what everyone watching these videos is saying. How far along are you right now?
@@LithuaniaExplained not very. One of my Lithuanian heritage Facebook groups was meeting biweekly and we were using RUclips videos. After about two months the meetings stopped due to low attendance. I'm going to look for a tutor after we file our taxes to see how much money I can budget.
I decided to learn some Polish this year. I lack motivation as well, and I even don’t live in Poland, and don’t have a Polish husband with his Polish friends and relatives around.
Tai įdomus. Ir kodėl mokotės lenkų kalbos, jei galiu paklausti?
@@RichieLarpa , todél, kad mūsų didelė kaimyninė šalis yra Lenkija ir būtų įdomu semtis informacijos iš lenkiškų šaltinių. Man visai patinka Lenkija ir tai, kaip mandagiai dauguma lenkų bendrauja lenkiškai.
Czy pan może to rozumieć?
3:57 reminds me of German. Die Der Das.. Never know which one to use, unless you know, there is no strict rule ;)
I tried learning German once- I stopped shortly after hitting that roadblock 😂
@@LithuaniaExplained here in Lithuania it's one of the second foreign language that is mandatory to learn 👌🏻
Thank you for another wonderful video! I was wondering if you or the community have any recommendations for shows or movies with subtitles in Lithuanian? I've been struggling to find any media with lithuanian subtitles. My language tutor recommended watching Gustavo Enciklopedija, which has been fine as I enjoy the silliness, but I'd like to find some other programs to watch. 💙
That has been my struggle too- finding any content - even Lithuanian stuff- that has Lithuanian subtitling. I’ll make a post about it and see if anyone has any suggestions
@Lithuania Explained good to know it's not just me. Thank you for the help!
Question to yourself: "I am looking for excuses NOT to do the task?" :P
You didn't butcher Lithuanian too much if you were understood by a listener without too much trouble. I would define "too much trouble" as something that manifests the following way: a mouth is agape; not a flicker of comprehension in eyes full of terror; uncoordinated gesticulation in an attempt to invent an ad hoc sign language; inarticulate inquiring squeaks that don't make sense in any language.
If that was not the case, then you did fine. Also, I know a few English-speaking guys that are now quite fluent in Lithuanian. Their grammar is spot on, too, most of the time. So don't worry, Lithuanian is not some impenetrable fortress for English speakers. There is the internal logic there.
Thanks! I don't feel like my brain is wired well for picking up another language but I have to keep trying!
Maybe do some other you tube channel completely in lithuanian, sure: people of this channel wont understand, but perhaps lithuanians will do.
How do you fight that amount of noun endings? I am a bit terrified.
You can learn Lithuanian and Latin at the same time. The same method for both.
at 2:40 you mention the idea of having thematic lessons. Why don't you try making your first video in lithuanian? while you think it may be a catastrophy - the same logic would apply, you would be doing something you totally enjoy, content creation, just in a different language. I'd watch Lithuanian TV shows as well.
Yes I think I will make a video in Lithuanian soon. Thanks for the idea and encouragement:)
Yeah us native lithuanians don't get the grammar, don't stress yourself :DDD
Planuoji turėti Lietuvos respublikos pilietybę?
dar nezinau
pirmas
Gerai.
Is it just me or this comment section is full of foreign men who are learning Lithuanian because nearly all of them have Lithuanian wifes/girlfriends? Insert *surprised pikachu*.
Are there foreign women who are learning Lithuanian instead only Foreign men?
If that is the case (I haven’t checked/asked), it would probably be because 77% of people who watch this channel are male.
@@LithuaniaExplained Do you have theory why your channel attracts more male? I guess that most of them have Lithuanian wifes/girlfriends. If that's true, that would be insane.
@@erika4843 No, I'm not sure. But if you read a lot of the comments, it's clear a lot of them are Lithuanian men, and not foreigners.
@@LithuaniaExplained Ohh, I get it. I didn't think about it. Thanks for explanation.
@@erika4843 Thanks for being one of the few female viewers, and commentors :D
An equal balance one day would be good.
Ok, so YOU MUST PATENT YOUR IDEA OF HOW TO LEARN A LANGUAGE (learning any specific type of vocabulary by doing the activity that utilizes that specific vocabulary).
This is such a great idea! 😁👍👍👍👏👏👏👏