I can highly recommend a TH-cam channel called Learn Slovak with Stories, because it is one of the best language learning channels that I've come across on TH-cam. The teacher there speaks fairly simple and clear Slovak and uses visual cues to make her language more understandable. Her approach is ideal for learning to understand Slovak better, but you also need to practise speaking if you want to become conversational in the language.
@@JonoGraham In addition to the TH-cam channel that I mentioned in my earlier comment, I'd like to point out two other resources for anyone interested in learning Slovak. The first one is a website called e-Slovak, which is essentially an online language course for beginners (levels A1 and A2), and the second one is a book called Colloquial Slovak, which is another beginner's course, specifically tailored to people who are learning the language by themselves without a teacher. - Both resources are generally very good, but one significant difference between the two is the price. E-Slovak is completely free to use, while Colloquial Slovak is rather pricey at over 40 Euros per copy. Nevertheless, the information provided in Colloquial Slovak feels a bit more accessible to the self-directed learner, so it's worth to check out both resources before deciding which one to use.
@@JonoGraham When I started listening to her videos, it sounded like "Blah, Blah, Blah." Now it almost sounds like English. What I'm having a hard time with is finding content that is slightly harder so that I can catch more "low hanging fruit" (i + 1).
@@greensquidmc111Tiež som Slovenka, ale čeština je ťažšia. Tiež som tomu neverila a potom som sa začala učiť česky. A poviem ti, že ich gramatika je úplne iný level obtiažnosti. Majú taaaak veľa foriem jedného podstatného mena v jednom páde. Navyše ich pricastia sú iné než ich prídavné mena, čo nie je prípad slovenčiny-my vždy používame prídavné mená. V podstate nemáme pricastia. Tvary prechodnikov sú tiež ťažšie než v slovenčine. To je niečo, čo sa Slovák musí doslova učiť tak ako sa napríklad učí angličtinu.
regardless your slovak skill level, with this beard you look a lot like the most important person in the history of slovak language - ľudovít štúr himself no kidding. hope it gives you a new kick in your challenge. good luck
OMG, you are right. Just a little trim and he would look just like Štúr. You know he used to carry a beard set with him so his beard would look always perfect.
Hello. I am originally from Slovakia, but I was living in Prague around 15 years and now I am in Ireland. I just want to say to you that I completely understand yours feelings. I am struggle with English same as you with Slovak language. I'm in Ireland 6 years now and it is still hard. I decided to stop to care about grammar and focus on speaking. Because first 2 years I was not able to speak at all, I just repeat first 3 lessons from my English book. I was soo frustrated that I am not able to speak. I am still do many mistakes, but I do not care anymore. Just keep fighting, you will get that what you want in the end. 😉
As a teacher in language school I highly recommend finding someone who can teach you. we have a student who lives in Slovakia for 8 years but only in the past few months he made a huge progress by attending slovak course. it makes difference if you got it explained by someone whose only job is to explain language 😅 on top of that, try to watch movies, translate slovak songs, maybe read books written in simple language. Whatever feels natural to you. You just have to do it often
As a Pole also knowing Slovak, Czech and some other languages, I would reccomend you the following: 1. Learn vocabulary, don't care too much about declension, it is new for you and it will come with time 2. Listen as much as possible. Go out with Slovak people and just listen. With time, you will understand each month a little more. The key here is to recognize separate words, not to hear a meaningless noise. 3. Learn some standard questions and responses by heart. 4. If possible, participate in holy masses in a church - print a text of the mass and follow. This is a very powerful tool to master comprehension and phonetics. Try to repeat, also singing if possible. 5. Listen to Slovak songs (especially Slovak folklore but also rock is adorable) asking your Slovak friends to find/write the text for you. 6. While memorizing words, do not care too much about the length of vowels. It will come naturally with time. To understand the grammar, just think about the English "I/me or She/Her". This is the concept of cases. 7. Try to find the beauty/mistery hidden in the Slovak language and culture. Personally, I adore the long plural genitive: ženy:žien, hory:hôr. It has a feel of a cold, misty Carpathian forest.
I have to say, as a native English speaker, one of the big turnarounds for me learning Slovak was when I finally realized the difference between the perfective/imperfective verb pairs (verbal aspect or slovesný vid - dokonavý vs nedokonavý vid). It's not intuitive for English speakers, and I was so concerned with case endings that I went an entire year in Slovakia, living with Slovak families without knowing about verbal aspect. But when I understood why "Zabijem ťa" is correct and "Budem ťa zabiť" is NOT correct, I leveled up. Another thing is declension of nouns and adjectives. Something that helped me, besides just looking at the declension charts, was learning the actual "template" or "model" words that Slovaks use. Vzor is the word for template/model/example. "Dub" is an oak, and also the template word for masculine nonliving nouns that end in a hard consonant. So all similar words will decline "podľa vzoru Dub" or according to the template Dub. "Stroj" (machine) is the other template word for masculine nonliving nouns, but which end in a soft consonant. So I memorized vzor Dub and vzor Stroj, and found it easier to think up the right case endings. Pronunciation is something you'll have to tough out until you can get those consonant clusters, but it's fun getting a laugh out of Slovaks when you talk about ice cream, ostriches or anything happening on Thursdays lol. At least you don't have to deal with that funky Czech ř. I had a Canadian friend attending gymnázium in Czech Republic - her classmates always giggled when she said the name of their teacher Mrs. Řiřikova.
@@osamely_varan I think for someone who already knows the language, these points of grammar are boring and tedious. They are helpful for foreign learners, at least for me. But then again, I also think grammar books are fascinating and I've killed entire weekends learning how Navajo or Hungarian verbs work lol
the thing is, in any language, you don't want to think about "why do they say it like that" or "why is this correct and that incorrect?" instead, you just want to listen how do people speak and repeat after them the same phrases .. it will come to you naturally. That's how you learned your native language, and it's also the best way to learn any language. Does it take longer? Yes, but you don't want to rush this, if you really want to become fluent.
Jono, I am impressed in your videos with your upbeat attitude and honesty. I am trying to learn the language (Slovak) of my great-grandparents while living in a sea of English (USA). I heard a lot of Slovak when I was young, but it was not passed down to us. In addition to the TH-cam channels others have recommended there's also a series by "Slovak Girl" which I find very useful. Keep trying, keep struggling. You're awesome!
@@JonoGraham I don't have any immediate plans to visit Slovakia but since I'm now retired, I do want to visit "the old country" within a few years, specifically the Prešov and Košice kraje which is where my roots are. I chat via Italki once a week with a tutor (Lukáš) - there are about 17 teacher/tutors on Italki and they each have a video introduction. Check it out.
I think this must have appeared in my feed because I am Welsh, trying to learn Slovak and really struggling with the grammar and have been trying to find TH-cam videos about the cases It is killing me!!!! I live in Bratislava and everyone just switches to English because it is too difficult to understand me. I would recommend online courses from the language schools tbh - they are the only way I have managed to learn anything at all and have it stick. I have found that most will let you pay in instalments because they are a big outlay but they are worth it if you want to learn because Slovaks just can't understand what it is that we don't understand about the cases or explain. Slovak is really hard for English speakers because it is just so different to English and you have to remember so many things to be able to form a sentence and the people who say to only learn words are talking nonsense - people legit can't understand us if we do this! This is a few months after this video so I hope that you are making progress.
Don't give up. While it might seem like English and Slovak couldn't be further apart, there are some shared things within how languages work so that might be helpful with learning. It will take some time to learn but you will get there. Maybe you could find some teacher who specializes in Slovak Language and has English as their second subject to give you some lessons? Compared to English, pronunciation rules are clear and always the same so as soon as you learn the correct way of how each letter sound when spoken you can say any word without having to think twice how you should pronounce it. And on the other hand don't be so hard on yourself, Slovak of a native speaker is often not as perfect as it might seem to you as foreigner, simply because there are many dialects spoken and they influence the "proper" Slovak of the speaker.
Hey! Slovak is very difficult, if it weren’t for my parents speaking to me since I was a child, I probably wouldn’t be able to learn it. The pronunciation of certain letters is really difficult like t vs ť and d vs ď. You got it, immerse yourself in it and just listen, grammar is hard, you just have to go by what “sounds right”.
You crack me up, Jono. The way you describe a Slovak sentence “with all the kicks and marks”, I totally get it. One suggestion for the marks, the dĺžeň (like here, over the letter l) is the long line over some letters, mostly vowels, it makes a long sound. Think of a double letter in English, such as in words speed, keep, loop, etc. These words would be written in Slovak sa spíd, kíp, lúp, etc. When it comes to mäkčeň (as seen over the letters c and ň), that makes the letter soft. Much harder to explain 😏
in my opinion the hardest thing for foreigners is verb timing, we have just 3 tenses (in english u call them simple), but correct verb timing will be tough. its something like irregular verbs in english, but even in english there are "few" of them, in Slovak u should learn correct timing for every verb. Go ahead, fingers crossed. And i forgot to composition of sentences. You should slightly change your mind, that was/is also another "hard" thing when i came back home or "talking" with anybody in my previous job.
@@JonoGraham dont worry, people can understand you even if you make a mistake everything will come step by step. my english isnt perfect too, there are mistakes but you can understand what i mean. so go ahead.
lolol oh goodness poor guy. youll be good. all that matters is your trying and giving much effort. . and believe me,. that is all that others will notice and care about. believe me!.....oh, and good pick on the pivo!!!! golden pheasant! lolol memories!!! i miss SK. hopefully ill be back within the year. ive got a suggestion for somewhere youd really like to visit or maybe even live since i heard your into outdoors and natures and what-not if interested. . take care bud.
Hi Jono. I’m a Brit living an hour from you so I understand the problem. The way I work the language is to not try to get everything perfect. If you just use the present tenses, neuteral and the informal, people will understand you. You can build on it bit by bit. Also if you want a book check out ‘Colloquial Slovak’ by James Naughton. It comes with CDs and is written by an Englishman. I have other resources if you need them. Vel’a štastia!
Slovak is mega hard, i am a chilean married to a slovak and living also in a small village like you, for 4 years, and only thanks to taking 6 months of lessons (check the migration centers, IOM, they offer something like a "scholarship" to help foreigners integrate to the country, they gave me aprox 450 euros for lessons of slovak, which i had to pay first and then show them the receipt, and then they gave me back the money) thanks to that i can finally have basic conversations with my friends here and i get about 80%, sometimes everything, sometimes nothing at all, sometimes context, otherwise i would still be struggling to speak :D i recommend you to check the IOM migration center, for example, for me the money for the lessons was enough for only present tense, so, i still make a lot of mistakes in past and future tense, but it is enough to be understood and to move around alone (except doctors appointments, i still need my husband for that) so it was definitely a bitg big help. Keep up the good work :)
Some suggestions from native speaker. 1 Slovak has many nuances and small details that is hard for native speakers plus it has many dialects. Do not try to master advanced normal conversational Slovak , start with simple correct phrases on elementary level from elementary school textbooks or basic conversational textbooks that teach English , use books for samoukov ( people that learn on their own) the fastest way to learn foreign language is not to use your native language at all. Do not be embarrassed at all to ask for help or correct pronunciation, people will highly respect you for trying to learn their language. Everyday is a new adventure, do not establish artificial deadlines to master all learning because even after many years you will still not be perfect, that is fine continue to improve and enjoy each day, and the most important God loves you no matter what. You will do it.
a non-native speaker of any language will always have a larger passive vocabulary than the active vocabulary. If you focus too much on the grammar it will take away the spontaneous talking from you. However, it is important to study the slovak sentence structure since the Slavic language is a different language group to your native english or afrikaans. From When I learnt english I remember the SVOMPT (subject, verb, object, manner, place and time). I am sure similar tools are available for Slovak learners. And this is what will help you to construct your sentence and will get the conversation going. Doesn’t matter that the verb endings are wrong, those are just details. And then of course focus on expanding vocabulary. Plus I am sure your personality will help you talk to anybody 😊 best of luck
You think slovak is hard yes true. Im from tibava okres sobrance .Hope you can understand the Eastern dialect that would throw you completely.Keep it up do t give up you can do it i am learning Spanish the same way as you. Trim se
I can suggest you one thing which really helped me with learning English. I found tv show which was about 25 minutes long and I've been watching one episode every day with Slovakian subtitles. So try to find some short slovak tv show and watch it with English subtitles it might help you.
@@rogbafils3939 It's quite difficult to find Slovak TV station with english subtitles. You might try to watch some older movies dubbed in Slovak language which you might be familiar with in your own native language such as Home alone, Harry Potter saga or tv shows like friends or the big bang theory with english subtitles Also make sure you'll find it in Slovak dubbing as majority of these movies could be found in Czech dubbing which is similar to Slovak language, but slightly different which could be confusing for a new learner. For an advanced or native speaker is not a big deal as many tv stations in Slovakia broadcasting movies in Czech language as well.
I’m Swedish and am trying to learn slovak aswel and it’s not at all easy. The amount of markings on the letters make understanding it and speaking it incredibly difficult.
Hi mate, I am Slovakian and have been living in Australia since 2009. I completely relate to how you feel. When I first arrived I didn't speak any English at all. I started by reading children's books. I still remember picking one up at the book store - it was supposed to be for children between 3-4 years young. Mate, I struggled :-). Get yourself a book for kids. The other aspect of learning any language is I guess stop beating yourself up for not understanding it. It's the process. We can't really see how much we have grown until... Also, it would be many times while reading something that I get stuck on a word I didn't understand. If that happens, move on, keep on reading or whatever. In retrospect, it took me good 3 years to start absorbing the language. By the way, in all these years living here I've met only one Australian who spoke a bit of Slovak so you're doing a great job mate!
Wow Australia. Do you miss the cold at all? Thanks for the advice, I am taking everything everyone suggests and finding what works for me best,so thank you for that.
Your not Slovakian because there is no such word Slovakian. If you were born in Slovakia you are Slovak. Slovak people, Slovak cities, Slovak mountains etc.
Good thing about learning Slovak language is that after you are able to have fluent conversation you will more or less understand Czech language...after while you will understand Polish quite easily...and few years after you will find yourself that west Slavic languages are close to south Slavics and east Slavics
That's what I find amazing about my partner aswell, she can communicate in Polish, Czech and even Russian. Hopefully one day I will master the language.
@@JonoGraham Funny thing :D I am Slovak, but except of few words I do not understand polish at all :D understanding Czech was easy, because I have family there. And in my childhood, there were many movies in Czech in our TV :)
Jono, not every person learn easy other languages because we all have different abilities for something else and if you can't learn Slovak that doesn't mean you are something less. I know many Slovak who can't learn any languages even Slav. Don't be frustrating yourself. Just if you like my advice about that stickers on thinks around you - you will see for couple weeks how you will memorialize all that things because constantly you will see that and read loudly when you past that object - even if your pronunciation will be not correct don't be discourage and if somebody laughs of you just tell them " Nauč ma " NA -OUCH MA !
I have done something similar to the stickers, I have made like a scrap book with pictures I cut out and labeled, abit child like but it's working so far
@@JonoGraham put the stickers on EACH items in the house and garage etc and when you going around read that loudly - you will see after couple weeks ..
if you can get your hands on them, A1-A2 Krizom Krazom books are fantastic. it took me nearly 2 years to get my copies (i live in america- even trying to order these online is a struggle) and i finally got a set from a bookstore in the galleria mall in Kosice (slovakia). Currently i am taking an online class that is being taught out of a university in bratislava (i can give you the info if you want it). it was about 350 euros and worth every cent. something ive learned from studying languages for a few years now, if you get a teacher, make sure they are a native speaker. there are many teachers out there of languages that dont fully understand the ins and outs, or are forced to guess bcs they simply dont know. and half the class time then goes into a debate from other students 'oh my grandma said it this way, oh my aunt always said it this other way'...45 mins later nothing is resolved and its a big pain. and what you're left with is some jumbled version of both that sounds very strange, possibly inaccurate and even have another meaning *entirely*
When you said that all the Slovaks watching will probably say that Slovak isn't that hard I disagree, I'm Slovak and our language is just way too complicated with too much rules each with exceptions so I understand how hard it must be too learn for a foreigner. I'm in seventh grade right now and last year were were learning still learning like pretty important and basic stuff after six years of learning the language but I think you can do it and wish you luck it is a pretty and unique language after all.
I'm not great at all but I can get by with basics. I just started learning a lot of vocabulary and the grammar will come. We can meet up and practice when I'm over in January if you want.
It's a hard language I'm learning it and it's a challenge I was in Bratislava last may and had to have everything translated between the family your a year on now how's it going?
Slovak language is not the hardest but one of the hardest. But my advice is something that one well known youtuber "bald and bankrupt" already have said (he has some really cool videos). He learned russian the same way that I want you recommend to do it on learning slovak language. Learn words... skip the grammar!!! Grammar is the hardest part. But at least at the beginning you don't need it. When you know the words and you put them together into sentance WE WILL UNDERSTAND YOU even if you will not use the correct tense or gender. Also the order of the words is not strict in slovak language as it is e.g. in german language. Our grammar only somehow change the final parts of the verbs... but the main part of the word stays mostly the same and understandable. That is my advice... from native slovak speaker. :)
My suggestion is , watch Slovak tv watch Slovak YT channels and speak with your family only in Slovak, It will take a little while, but slowly it will be better and better. Try that style not to learn a rules but patterns. That's the style like children's are learning language and it works.
I can not really give recommendation on how to learn language :) I still have problem with using y/i in slovak grammar, and I am Slovak :) but I can tell you, how did I learn english. I did not really learned it in school. I had trouble to remember words because I was not using them anywhere else only in 2 hours per week in school. But around 15 I had start to watch english movies with english subtitles (f.e. stargate series). it took me few hours to watch one episode. bud as time passed I learned new words with it. And I still do not know how all the times should work :) so I would say, find some series that is translated to slovak and you like :) find slovak subtitles for it. and start watching it whenever you have time. stop it when you find word you do not know and try to translate. From the beginning it would take time. but as time passes it will be quicker :) because hopefully you would remember some words already. took me 5 years to get to B1 from A1.
Mate, I feel your pain. I speak Slovak, Czech, German and English. From the complexity upwards, it's: English......German.........Czech...Slovak. As for people laughing at you. Might be kids. Especially yours. As for adult people, talking for myself, but I think, it might apply to a lot of others. Personally I am flattered and humbled, that you are putting up videos about our country and trying to learn our language, that is spoken by less people, that live in NYC. As for any help. Not sure, it will help much, but it might be useful to understand, what is going on and why things are as they are. Let's say nouns: There are 3 genders - female, male, undefined (called "middle"). Every gender has 4 template words (vzor), so each noun (98%) falls into one of these templates. There is singular and plural for every one. Every noun is bent based on the context it is used in (pád) - meaning the suffix of each word changes. There is a difference, when you talk about "who, what" and "with whom, with what" - there is 6 different contexts (contices ?). So overall, each noun has 12 possible bending options (2 for singular/plural times 6 possible contexts). Also, there are overall 144 noun bending rules, that will cover 98% of all nouns (12 templates x 2 singular/plural x 6 contexts). The verbs also bend with respect to the tense, of which we only have 3 most commonly used (past, present, future). I could go on and on, but the truth is, our kids are learning the rules in basic school for years while already being fluid, so it is impossible to list them here. I think, what could be useful, would be watching some Slovak dabbed movies with english subtitles. Like learning by listening first. I have not learned a new language for a long time now, but this used to work, when I was younger.
I'm watching loads of movies with English subtitles and also listening to audio lessons I've managed to find. Also there are some TH-cam channels that have been recommended to me, I'll get there eventually
Hi, I know this video was a while ago. I was born in Slovakia, and living in the UK. I know how hard is to learn the Slovakian language. If you need some help, please let me know.
@@JonoGraham if I'm not wrong, onw of the biggest problems is that we have declinations (skloňovanie). among other things of course. why would slovak be so easy to learn as to have only one hard thing.
I have a few acquaintances but not really any friends, I tend to keep myself to myself, I have always been like this. I get abit lonely sometimes but enjoy my own company so that swiftly passes. Lol
I like to help u with Slovak language i could try to teach you something but iam not teacher so I cant really teach you like grammar staff but I think for selflearning is best to try learn some of basic phrases and words and try to learn alphabet and how to pronounc words and letters (for start)
Slovak is one of the hardest languages to learn and I'm amazed by every single person who volunterily chooses to learn it (I'm from Slovakia and I strugle with y and i - not a good thing to flex with 🤣) And a tip for you... depending on what you're struggeling with but for example try speaking just slovak for a day or with your close people some people say it is best to have a conversation with someone who does not understand your language at all but I know that that can be were frustrating so try giving yourself chalenges like these again depending on what you struggeling with 😊
Yeah it is hard, I have been practicing around the house and talking with my kids ( who think it's so funny) and I'm slowly slowly getting it I think, time will tell I guess. 👍
Good news - Slovak is not the most difficult language in the world, it was a huge hoax here a decade ago, even had to be disproved by the Institute of Linguistics. Slovak is actually the easiest West Slavic language (out of Polish, Czech and Slovak) and one of the easier Slavic languages in general. But still a difficult one for a non-slavic speaker, of course. I'm sure you can do it though, the few words I have heard you say in your videos were pronounced perfectly. Going slow is probably a good idea, or the grammar will overwhelm you, no need to be perfect and mistakes are friends. If you need resources, I can send you a few (pdf + mp3).
Hey there, that would be amazing as any help I can get will definitely be an advantage. And that is good news, hopefully I will surprise everyone soon and be able to do a whole video in Slovak, 👍
Ahoj! I hope this isn't too late since this comment is from 2 years ago, but I am quite interested in the resources you have and if you are willing to share them with me. I am a Dutchie trying to learn slovak so every resource is welcome!
Be glad that you are not in a big city! Yes, you wouldn't need to speak Slovak there, but if you would learn it, people will answer in English either way, since for some reason, when people nowadays hear one tiny mistake in your speech, they mostly automatically switch to English and your language practice ends there and your months that you put into learning a language will be useless. P. S.: to motivate you a little bit, you are not a Slav, so not having a conversation after 1,5 years is not catastrophic, also the way you pronunced "Zlatý Bažant" sounded almost fluent, so at least you know, how to read those things and I say it as a Czech person, who understands Slovak naturally.
Ja som zo Slovenska a slovenčina je lahká ako prekoho len treba vedieť tieto písmená: "č",ä,á,é,ľ,ž Please translate it i know that slovakian language is not easy but if you jnow to read these last words then you can speak slovakian little bit How to learn slovakian Step 1:go to slovakia Step 2:try to listen to the slovakian talk Step 3:try to communicate to slovakians some how And the best restaurant in slovakia is "modrá ryba"in kováčovo Best castle is in bojnice:Bojnický hrad
Hi Jono, firstly thank you for nice video. I live in Australia and the same like you ( even I am from Slovakia ) I don't like or I miss the ocean and don't like cold and stupid drivers etc... I speak 10 languages and I give you advice if you like how to learn easy other language. You write on small stickers everything around you inside and outside example; Chair - stolichka or how is sound for you - phonetically and then learn to some easy sentence "could you please help me I not speak Slovak - Mozete mi prosim pomoct - nerozumiem slovensky " How you said this - ako povies toto ? Or staff what you need most.? Then you have Google translator on your phone ? Or write that short sentences on small card. Then if you live in Ruzomberok and so many trucks come trough ask some who doing weekly trip from other western country make you shopping of something what you need. Or going couple families together and make trip to Austria or Hungry. If you want connection of foreigners ( aussies ) living close to you ask me one is living in Dolny Kubin and other in Moravia, one of my friend from Australia is now in Lip. Sliace ... I wish you all the best. Maybe one day we meet up there :)
Naučiť sa po slovensky je ťažké, ale vďaka tomu, že nás jazyk pozná ch, č, š, dž, ô a podobne zvuky sa práve Slovák dokáže naučiť akýkoľvek jazyk či už tvrdý či mäkký, pretože nás jazyk je taký dutý a človek komu je to materinský jazyk si dokáže navyknuť na každú reč.
Slovak language isnt that hard to learn, u just have to learn how to pronounce every letter. In slovak language , you mostly say it same way in every word. Ask your woman if she can healp you this much, hopefully it will help. :)
Heeey. U are unlucky because Czech language is also hard but I think not so much as like Slovak language. I would like to help you with that, but.. I'm originally from the Czech republic, so - I'm not a good teacher:d.
I can highly recommend a TH-cam channel called Learn Slovak with Stories, because it is one of the best language learning channels that I've come across on TH-cam. The teacher there speaks fairly simple and clear Slovak and uses visual cues to make her language more understandable. Her approach is ideal for learning to understand Slovak better, but you also need to practise speaking if you want to become conversational in the language.
Awesome thank you, I will subscribe to that channel now and start learning. Really appreciate you taking the time to comment and help!
@@JonoGraham You're welcome!
@@JonoGraham In addition to the TH-cam channel that I mentioned in my earlier comment, I'd like to point out two other resources for anyone interested in learning Slovak. The first one is a website called e-Slovak, which is essentially an online language course for beginners (levels A1 and A2), and the second one is a book called Colloquial Slovak, which is another beginner's course, specifically tailored to people who are learning the language by themselves without a teacher.
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Both resources are generally very good, but one significant difference between the two is the price. E-Slovak is completely free to use, while Colloquial Slovak is rather pricey at over 40 Euros per copy. Nevertheless, the information provided in Colloquial Slovak feels a bit more accessible to the self-directed learner, so it's worth to check out both resources before deciding which one to use.
@@JonoGraham That's what did it for me too. I was struggling for a long time because nothing was comprehensible.
@@JonoGraham When I started listening to her videos, it sounded like "Blah, Blah, Blah." Now it almost sounds like English. What I'm having a hard time with is finding content that is slightly harder so that I can catch more "low hanging fruit" (i + 1).
In my opinion, no language is hard, it's hard to find inspiration and time. I am confident you'll learn our beautiful language! Good luck!
Thanks Nick, I'm getting there slowly
I agree
Well it's objectively true that some languages are harder than others.
i am slovak and you need to remember so many things so i dont agree
@@greensquidmc111Tiež som Slovenka, ale čeština je ťažšia. Tiež som tomu neverila a potom som sa začala učiť česky. A poviem ti, že ich gramatika je úplne iný level obtiažnosti. Majú taaaak veľa foriem jedného podstatného mena v jednom páde. Navyše ich pricastia sú iné než ich prídavné mena, čo nie je prípad slovenčiny-my vždy používame prídavné mená. V podstate nemáme pricastia. Tvary prechodnikov sú tiež ťažšie než v slovenčine. To je niečo, čo sa Slovák musí doslova učiť tak ako sa napríklad učí angličtinu.
regardless your slovak skill level, with this beard you look a lot like the most important person in the history of slovak language - ľudovít štúr himself no kidding. hope it gives you a new kick in your challenge. good luck
Thank you mate. And my Mrs was like "omg you actually do", I googled and had a proper smile on my face so thanks for that! Have a great weekend!
OMG, you are right. Just a little trim and he would look just like Štúr. You know he used to carry a beard set with him so his beard would look always perfect.
Hello. I am originally from Slovakia, but I was living in Prague around 15 years and now I am in Ireland. I just want to say to you that I completely understand yours feelings. I am struggle with English same as you with Slovak language. I'm in Ireland 6 years now and it is still hard. I decided to stop to care about grammar and focus on speaking. Because first 2 years I was not able to speak at all, I just repeat first 3 lessons from my English book. I was soo frustrated that I am not able to speak. I am still do many mistakes, but I do not care anymore. Just keep fighting, you will get that what you want in the end. 😉
As a teacher in language school I highly recommend finding someone who can teach you. we have a student who lives in Slovakia for 8 years but only in the past few months he made a huge progress by attending slovak course. it makes difference if you got it explained by someone whose only job is to explain language 😅 on top of that, try to watch movies, translate slovak songs, maybe read books written in simple language. Whatever feels natural to you. You just have to do it often
As a Pole also knowing Slovak, Czech and some other languages, I would reccomend you the following:
1. Learn vocabulary, don't care too much about declension, it is new for you and it will come with time
2. Listen as much as possible. Go out with Slovak people and just listen. With time, you will understand each month a little more. The key here is to recognize separate words, not to hear a meaningless noise.
3. Learn some standard questions and responses by heart.
4. If possible, participate in holy masses in a church - print a text of the mass and follow. This is a very powerful tool to master comprehension and phonetics. Try to repeat, also singing if possible.
5. Listen to Slovak songs (especially Slovak folklore but also rock is adorable) asking your Slovak friends to find/write the text for you.
6. While memorizing words, do not care too much about the length of vowels. It will come naturally with time.
To understand the grammar, just think about the English "I/me or She/Her". This is the concept of cases.
7. Try to find the beauty/mistery hidden in the Slovak language and culture. Personally, I adore the long plural genitive: ženy:žien, hory:hôr. It has a feel of a cold, misty Carpathian forest.
I have to say, as a native English speaker, one of the big turnarounds for me learning Slovak was when I finally realized the difference between the perfective/imperfective verb pairs (verbal aspect or slovesný vid - dokonavý vs nedokonavý vid). It's not intuitive for English speakers, and I was so concerned with case endings that I went an entire year in Slovakia, living with Slovak families without knowing about verbal aspect. But when I understood why "Zabijem ťa" is correct and "Budem ťa zabiť" is NOT correct, I leveled up.
Another thing is declension of nouns and adjectives. Something that helped me, besides just looking at the declension charts, was learning the actual "template" or "model" words that Slovaks use. Vzor is the word for template/model/example. "Dub" is an oak, and also the template word for masculine nonliving nouns that end in a hard consonant. So all similar words will decline "podľa vzoru Dub" or according to the template Dub. "Stroj" (machine) is the other template word for masculine nonliving nouns, but which end in a soft consonant. So I memorized vzor Dub and vzor Stroj, and found it easier to think up the right case endings.
Pronunciation is something you'll have to tough out until you can get those consonant clusters, but it's fun getting a laugh out of Slovaks when you talk about ice cream, ostriches or anything happening on Thursdays lol. At least you don't have to deal with that funky Czech ř. I had a Canadian friend attending gymnázium in Czech Republic - her classmates always giggled when she said the name of their teacher Mrs. Řiřikova.
So those templates are actually helping? As a native speaker I used to hate those things at school. Good to know it is actually useful for someone :)
@@osamely_varan I think for someone who already knows the language, these points of grammar are boring and tedious. They are helpful for foreign learners, at least for me. But then again, I also think grammar books are fascinating and I've killed entire weekends learning how Navajo or Hungarian verbs work lol
the thing is, in any language, you don't want to think about "why do they say it like that" or "why is this correct and that incorrect?" instead, you just want to listen how do people speak and repeat after them the same phrases .. it will come to you naturally. That's how you learned your native language, and it's also the best way to learn any language. Does it take longer? Yes, but you don't want to rush this, if you really want to become fluent.
Jono, I am impressed in your videos with your upbeat attitude and honesty. I am trying to learn the language (Slovak) of my great-grandparents while living in a sea of English (USA). I heard a lot of Slovak when I was young, but it was not passed down to us. In addition to the TH-cam channels others have recommended there's also a series by "Slovak Girl" which I find very useful. Keep trying, keep struggling. You're awesome!
Hello mate, thank you for your kind words. I'll have a look at the mentioned channel.
Do you have plans on visiting Slovakia in the future?
@@JonoGraham I don't have any immediate plans to visit Slovakia but since I'm now retired, I do want to visit "the old country" within a few years, specifically the Prešov and Košice kraje which is where my roots are. I chat via Italki once a week with a tutor (Lukáš) - there are about 17 teacher/tutors on Italki and they each have a video introduction. Check it out.
I think this must have appeared in my feed because I am Welsh, trying to learn Slovak and really struggling with the grammar and have been trying to find TH-cam videos about the cases It is killing me!!!! I live in Bratislava and everyone just switches to English because it is too difficult to understand me. I would recommend online courses from the language schools tbh - they are the only way I have managed to learn anything at all and have it stick. I have found that most will let you pay in instalments because they are a big outlay but they are worth it if you want to learn because Slovaks just can't understand what it is that we don't understand about the cases or explain. Slovak is really hard for English speakers because it is just so different to English and you have to remember so many things to be able to form a sentence and the people who say to only learn words are talking nonsense - people legit can't understand us if we do this! This is a few months after this video so I hope that you are making progress.
Don't give up. While it might seem like English and Slovak couldn't be further apart, there are some shared things within how languages work so that might be helpful with learning. It will take some time to learn but you will get there. Maybe you could find some teacher who specializes in Slovak Language and has English as their second subject to give you some lessons?
Compared to English, pronunciation rules are clear and always the same so as soon as you learn the correct way of how each letter sound when spoken you can say any word without having to think twice how you should pronounce it.
And on the other hand don't be so hard on yourself, Slovak of a native speaker is often not as perfect as it might seem to you as foreigner, simply because there are many dialects spoken and they influence the "proper" Slovak of the speaker.
Hey! Slovak is very difficult, if it weren’t for my parents speaking to me since I was a child, I probably wouldn’t be able to learn it. The pronunciation of certain letters is really difficult like t vs ť and d vs ď. You got it, immerse yourself in it and just listen, grammar is hard, you just have to go by what “sounds right”.
You crack me up, Jono. The way you describe a Slovak sentence “with all the kicks and marks”, I totally get it.
One suggestion for the marks, the dĺžeň (like here, over the letter l) is the long line over some letters, mostly vowels, it makes a long sound. Think of a double letter in English, such as in words speed, keep, loop, etc. These words would be written in Slovak sa spíd, kíp, lúp, etc. When it comes to mäkčeň (as seen over the letters c and ň), that makes the letter soft. Much harder to explain 😏
I think I got that. Cheers for the help
in my opinion the hardest thing for foreigners is verb timing, we have just 3 tenses (in english u call them simple), but correct verb timing will be tough. its something like irregular verbs in english, but even in english there are "few" of them, in Slovak u should learn correct timing for every verb. Go ahead, fingers crossed. And i forgot to composition of sentences. You should slightly change your mind, that was/is also another "hard" thing when i came back home or "talking" with anybody in my previous job.
So confusing,lol. I'm struggling but will do it. Thank for the tips
@@JonoGraham dont worry, people can understand you even if you make a mistake everything will come step by step. my english isnt perfect too, there are mistakes but you can understand what i mean. so go ahead.
lolol oh goodness poor guy. youll be good. all that matters is your trying and giving much effort. . and believe me,. that is all that others will notice and care about. believe me!.....oh, and good pick on the pivo!!!! golden pheasant! lolol memories!!! i miss SK. hopefully ill be back within the year. ive got a suggestion for somewhere youd really like to visit or maybe even live since i heard your into outdoors and natures and what-not if interested. . take care bud.
Hi Jono. I’m a Brit living an hour from you so I understand the problem. The way I work the language is to not try to get everything perfect. If you just use the present tenses, neuteral and the informal, people will understand you. You can build on it bit by bit. Also if you want a book check out ‘Colloquial Slovak’ by James Naughton. It comes with CDs and is written by an Englishman. I have other resources if you need them. Vel’a štastia!
Thank you mate, I will check that out.
Yes I have that book and was listening to the cds in my car while driving!
Slovak is mega hard, i am a chilean married to a slovak and living also in a small village like you, for 4 years, and only thanks to taking 6 months of lessons (check the migration centers, IOM, they offer something like a "scholarship" to help foreigners integrate to the country, they gave me aprox 450 euros for lessons of slovak, which i had to pay first and then show them the receipt, and then they gave me back the money) thanks to that i can finally have basic conversations with my friends here and i get about 80%, sometimes everything, sometimes nothing at all, sometimes context, otherwise i would still be struggling to speak :D i recommend you to check the IOM migration center, for example, for me the money for the lessons was enough for only present tense, so, i still make a lot of mistakes in past and future tense, but it is enough to be understood and to move around alone (except doctors appointments, i still need my husband for that) so it was definitely a bitg big help. Keep up the good work :)
Thank you, I will definitely check that out!
Some suggestions from native speaker. 1 Slovak has many nuances and small details that is hard for native speakers plus it has many dialects. Do not try to master advanced normal conversational Slovak , start with simple correct phrases on elementary level from elementary school textbooks or basic conversational textbooks that teach English , use books for samoukov ( people that learn on their own) the fastest way to learn foreign language is not to use your native language at all. Do not be embarrassed at all to ask for help or correct pronunciation, people will highly respect you for trying to learn their language. Everyday is a new adventure, do not establish artificial deadlines to master all learning because even after many years you will still not be perfect, that is fine continue to improve and enjoy each day, and the most important God loves you no matter what. You will do it.
we have 7000 caves in Slovakia but only few are open for visitors. You can visit them - remember mondays are all caves closed.
true I live in Slovakia
@@mirka329 ty si tiež jaskyniarka?
a non-native speaker of any language will always have a larger passive vocabulary than the active vocabulary. If you focus too much on the grammar it will take away the spontaneous talking from you. However, it is important to study the slovak sentence structure since the Slavic language is a different language group to your native english or afrikaans. From When I learnt english I remember the SVOMPT (subject, verb, object, manner, place and time). I am sure similar tools are available for Slovak learners. And this is what will help you to construct your sentence and will get the conversation going. Doesn’t matter that the verb endings are wrong, those are just details. And then of course focus on expanding vocabulary. Plus I am sure your personality will help you talk to anybody 😊 best of luck
You think slovak is hard yes true. Im from tibava okres sobrance .Hope you can understand the Eastern dialect that would throw you completely.Keep it up do t give up you can do it i am learning Spanish the same way as you.
Trim se
I can suggest you one thing which really helped me with learning English. I found tv show which was about 25 minutes long and I've been watching one episode every day with Slovakian subtitles. So try to find some short slovak tv show and watch it with English subtitles it might help you.
Hi can you recommend slovak TV stations with English subtitles? I have searched to no avail..
@@rogbafils3939 It's quite difficult to find Slovak TV station with english subtitles. You might try to watch some older movies dubbed in Slovak language which you might be familiar with in your own native language such as Home alone, Harry Potter saga or tv shows like friends or the big bang theory with english subtitles Also make sure you'll find it in Slovak dubbing as majority of these movies could be found in Czech dubbing which is similar to Slovak language, but slightly different which could be confusing for a new learner. For an advanced or native speaker is not a big deal as many tv stations in Slovakia broadcasting movies in Czech language as well.
@@appleusher I see..thanks alot!
I’m Swedish and am trying to learn slovak aswel and it’s not at all easy. The amount of markings on the letters make understanding it and speaking it incredibly difficult.
Hi mate, I am Slovakian and have been living in Australia since 2009. I completely relate to how you feel. When I first arrived I didn't speak any English at all. I started by reading children's books. I still remember picking one up at the book store - it was supposed to be for children between 3-4 years young. Mate, I struggled :-). Get yourself a book for kids. The other aspect of learning any language is I guess stop beating yourself up for not understanding it. It's the process. We can't really see how much we have grown until... Also, it would be many times while reading something that I get stuck on a word I didn't understand. If that happens, move on, keep on reading or whatever. In retrospect, it took me good 3 years to start absorbing the language. By the way, in all these years living here I've met only one Australian who spoke a bit of Slovak so you're doing a great job mate!
Wow Australia. Do you miss the cold at all?
Thanks for the advice, I am taking everything everyone suggests and finding what works for me best,so thank you for that.
Your not Slovakian because there is no such word Slovakian. If you were born in Slovakia you are Slovak. Slovak people, Slovak cities, Slovak mountains etc.
@@bobberes7155 you can use bot Slovak/Slovakian both are correct according the grammar... :D
Apparently they have cold weather in Australia too. Even mountains and snow. Who would have thought. Sorry, I couldn't resist 😉
Good thing about learning Slovak language is that after you are able to have fluent conversation you will more or less understand Czech language...after while you will understand Polish quite easily...and few years after you will find yourself that west Slavic languages are close to south Slavics and east Slavics
That's what I find amazing about my partner aswell, she can communicate in Polish, Czech and even Russian. Hopefully one day I will master the language.
@@JonoGraham Funny thing :D I am Slovak, but except of few words I do not understand polish at all :D
understanding Czech was easy, because I have family there. And in my childhood, there were many movies in Czech in our TV :)
Jono, not every person learn easy other languages because we all have different abilities for something else and if you can't learn Slovak that doesn't mean you are something less. I know many Slovak who can't learn any languages even Slav. Don't be frustrating yourself. Just if you like my advice about that stickers on thinks around you - you will see for couple weeks how you will memorialize all that things because constantly you will see that and read loudly when you past that object - even if your pronunciation will be not correct don't be discourage and if somebody laughs of you just tell them " Nauč ma " NA -OUCH MA !
I have done something similar to the stickers, I have made like a scrap book with pictures I cut out and labeled, abit child like but it's working so far
@@JonoGraham put the stickers on EACH items in the house and garage etc and when you going around read that loudly - you will see after couple weeks ..
if you can get your hands on them, A1-A2 Krizom Krazom books are fantastic. it took me nearly 2 years to get my copies (i live in america- even trying to order these online is a struggle) and i finally got a set from a bookstore in the galleria mall in Kosice (slovakia). Currently i am taking an online class that is being taught out of a university in bratislava (i can give you the info if you want it). it was about 350 euros and worth every cent. something ive learned from studying languages for a few years now, if you get a teacher, make sure they are a native speaker. there are many teachers out there of languages that dont fully understand the ins and outs, or are forced to guess bcs they simply dont know. and half the class time then goes into a debate from other students 'oh my grandma said it this way, oh my aunt always said it this other way'...45 mins later nothing is resolved and its a big pain. and what you're left with is some jumbled version of both that sounds very strange, possibly inaccurate and even have another meaning *entirely*
When you said that all the Slovaks watching will probably say that Slovak isn't that hard I disagree, I'm Slovak and our language is just way too complicated with too much rules each with exceptions so I understand how hard it must be too learn for a foreigner. I'm in seventh grade right now and last year were were learning still learning like pretty important and basic stuff after six years of learning the language but I think you can do it and wish you luck it is a pretty and unique language after all.
I'm not great at all but I can get by with basics. I just started learning a lot of vocabulary and the grammar will come. We can meet up and practice when I'm over in January if you want.
up for a meet up for sure mate
It's a hard language I'm learning it and it's a challenge I was in Bratislava last may and had to have everything translated between the family your a year on now how's it going?
You have really beautiful eyes.
Also, yeah, the Slovak language is crazy. The pronunciation and grammar is off the charts difficult.
Thank you. Yeah I'm still battling but I'll get there eventually.
hi, good luck with learning. did you done any progress with?
A little bit so far, still need alot of work but I will get there in the end.
Fun fact Slovak has the longest European alphabet :)
I didn't know that,thank you!
Im subsribing so that I can motivate you. Keep it up. It says video was uploaded year ago, I hope you made some progress. Peace
Slovak language is not the hardest but one of the hardest.
But my advice is something that one well known youtuber "bald and bankrupt" already have said (he has some really cool videos). He learned russian the same way that I want you recommend to do it on learning slovak language.
Learn words... skip the grammar!!!
Grammar is the hardest part. But at least at the beginning you don't need it. When you know the words and you put them together into sentance WE WILL UNDERSTAND YOU even if you will not use the correct tense or gender. Also the order of the words is not strict in slovak language as it is e.g. in german language. Our grammar only somehow change the final parts of the verbs... but the main part of the word stays mostly the same and understandable.
That is my advice... from native slovak speaker. :)
Thank you, very much appreciated! I'm getting there,although alot slower than I'd like but I will get there.
My suggestion is , watch Slovak tv watch Slovak YT channels and speak with your family only in Slovak, It will take a little while, but slowly it will be better and better. Try that style not to learn a rules but patterns. That's the style like children's are learning language and it works.
I can not really give recommendation on how to learn language :) I still have problem with using y/i in slovak grammar, and I am Slovak :)
but I can tell you, how did I learn english. I did not really learned it in school. I had trouble to remember words because I was not using them anywhere else only in 2 hours per week in school. But around 15 I had start to watch english movies with english subtitles (f.e. stargate series). it took me few hours to watch one episode. bud as time passed I learned new words with it. And I still do not know how all the times should work :)
so I would say, find some series that is translated to slovak and you like :) find slovak subtitles for it. and start watching it whenever you have time. stop it when you find word you do not know and try to translate. From the beginning it would take time. but as time passes it will be quicker :) because hopefully you would remember some words already. took me 5 years to get to B1 from A1.
Mate, I feel your pain. I speak Slovak, Czech, German and English. From the complexity upwards, it's: English......German.........Czech...Slovak. As for people laughing at you. Might be kids. Especially yours. As for adult people, talking for myself, but I think, it might apply to a lot of others. Personally I am flattered and humbled, that you are putting up videos about our country and trying to learn our language, that is spoken by less people, that live in NYC.
As for any help. Not sure, it will help much, but it might be useful to understand, what is going on and why things are as they are.
Let's say nouns:
There are 3 genders - female, male, undefined (called "middle"). Every gender has 4 template words (vzor), so each noun (98%) falls into one of these templates. There is singular and plural for every one. Every noun is bent based on the context it is used in (pád) - meaning the suffix of each word changes. There is a difference, when you talk about "who, what" and "with whom, with what" - there is 6 different contexts (contices ?). So overall, each noun has 12 possible bending options (2 for singular/plural times 6 possible contexts). Also, there are overall 144 noun bending rules, that will cover 98% of all nouns (12 templates x 2 singular/plural x 6 contexts). The verbs also bend with respect to the tense, of which we only have 3 most commonly used (past, present, future).
I could go on and on, but the truth is, our kids are learning the rules in basic school for years while already being fluid, so it is impossible to list them here.
I think, what could be useful, would be watching some Slovak dabbed movies with english subtitles. Like learning by listening first. I have not learned a new language for a long time now, but this used to work, when I was younger.
I'm watching loads of movies with English subtitles and also listening to audio lessons I've managed to find. Also there are some TH-cam channels that have been recommended to me, I'll get there eventually
Slavic language area hard , true !
just started learning slovak myself how's your progess so far? do you have any tips for a new learner?
My progress is terrible haha, I'm struggling along and getting there very slowly
Slovenski je ľahké som zo Slovenska😎👍
WHAT VILLAGE?
Slovak version:AKÁ DEDINA?
Hi a i am from slovakia Ahoj som zo slovenska what is name of village you are living in ako sa volá dedina v ktorej bývaš?
Hi, I know this video was a while ago. I was born in Slovakia, and living in the UK. I know how hard is to learn the Slovakian language. If you need some help, please let me know.
Im from slovakia BUT ITS SO HARD TO LEARN OTHER ONES
I am still struggling.
I am slovakian and I hate slovak because of how hard and unnecessarily complicated it is.
Hey. It's April. How are You doing?
don't worry, it's hard even for slovaks at school... 😅
Haha. Yeah my kids say the same
@@JonoGraham if I'm not wrong, onw of the biggest problems is that we have declinations (skloňovanie). among other things of course. why would slovak be so easy to learn as to have only one hard thing.
You got many local friends or other non native friends?
I have a few acquaintances but not really any friends, I tend to keep myself to myself, I have always been like this. I get abit lonely sometimes but enjoy my own company so that swiftly passes. Lol
Have you succesfully progressed? How does your learning curve look like? Steep or flat? :)
I think I'm getting alot better, I think confidence is a big part of it really, I have found it hard but I'm pushing on
in 1 year dude got over 2000 subs
I have a document with a lot of language resources I can share. Let me know how I can send it to you. I'm sure something there can help!
Cheers mate, you can send it to jonograham55@gmail.com . Thank you for that
I like to help u with Slovak language i could try to teach you something but iam not teacher so I cant really teach you like grammar staff but I think for selflearning is best to try learn some of basic phrases and words and try to learn alphabet and how to pronounc words and letters (for start)
but not in work...
Slovak is one of the hardest languages to learn and I'm amazed by every single person who volunterily chooses to learn it (I'm from Slovakia and I strugle with y and i - not a good thing to flex with 🤣)
And a tip for you... depending on what you're struggeling with but for example try speaking just slovak for a day or with your close people some people say it is best to have a conversation with someone who does not understand your language at all but I know that that can be were frustrating so try giving yourself chalenges like these again depending on what you struggeling with 😊
Yeah it is hard, I have been practicing around the house and talking with my kids ( who think it's so funny) and I'm slowly slowly getting it I think, time will tell I guess. 👍
Good news - Slovak is not the most difficult language in the world, it was a huge hoax here a decade ago, even had to be disproved by the Institute of Linguistics. Slovak is actually the easiest West Slavic language (out of Polish, Czech and Slovak) and one of the easier Slavic languages in general. But still a difficult one for a non-slavic speaker, of course. I'm sure you can do it though, the few words I have heard you say in your videos were pronounced perfectly. Going slow is probably a good idea, or the grammar will overwhelm you, no need to be perfect and mistakes are friends. If you need resources, I can send you a few (pdf + mp3).
Hey there, that would be amazing as any help I can get will definitely be an advantage.
And that is good news, hopefully I will surprise everyone soon and be able to do a whole video in Slovak, 👍
Ahoj! I hope this isn't too late since this comment is from 2 years ago, but I am quite interested in the resources you have and if you are willing to share them with me. I am a Dutchie trying to learn slovak so every resource is welcome!
@@jeroenvanpoeijer4339 Ahoj! I'm just checking out if you've seen my comment, because it's been a month already. Do you still want those resources?
Be glad that you are not in a big city! Yes, you wouldn't need to speak Slovak there, but if you would learn it, people will answer in English either way, since for some reason, when people nowadays hear one tiny mistake in your speech, they mostly automatically switch to English and your language practice ends there and your months that you put into learning a language will be useless.
P. S.: to motivate you a little bit, you are not a Slav, so not having a conversation after 1,5 years is not catastrophic, also the way you pronunced "Zlatý Bažant" sounded almost fluent, so at least you know, how to read those things and I say it as a Czech person, who understands Slovak naturally.
Ja som zo Slovenska a slovenčina je lahká ako prekoho len treba vedieť tieto písmená: "č",ä,á,é,ľ,ž
Please translate it i know that slovakian language is not easy but if you jnow to read these last words then you can speak slovakian little bit
How to learn slovakian
Step 1:go to slovakia
Step 2:try to listen to the slovakian talk
Step 3:try to communicate to slovakians some how
And the best restaurant in slovakia is "modrá ryba"in kováčovo
Best castle is in bojnice:Bojnický hrad
Good luck you hero if you only realy start learn slovak lenguage 👍👍👍🤠👍
subscribed ;)
Thank you.
I know your pain bro hahaha
Fun ey,lol. I'll get there, I'm super motivated now!
Hi Jono, firstly thank you for nice video. I live in Australia and the same like you ( even I am from Slovakia ) I don't like or I miss the ocean and don't like cold and stupid drivers etc... I speak 10 languages and I give you advice if you like how to learn easy other language. You write on small stickers everything around you inside and outside example; Chair - stolichka or how is sound for you - phonetically and then learn to some easy sentence "could you please help me I not speak Slovak - Mozete mi prosim pomoct - nerozumiem slovensky " How you said this - ako povies toto ? Or staff what you need most.? Then you have Google translator on your phone ? Or write that short sentences on small card. Then if you live in Ruzomberok and so many trucks come trough ask some who doing weekly trip from other western country make you shopping of something what you need. Or going couple families together and make trip to Austria or Hungry. If you want connection of foreigners ( aussies ) living close to you ask me one is living in Dolny Kubin and other in Moravia, one of my friend from Australia is now in Lip. Sliace ... I wish you all the best. Maybe one day we meet up there :)
That would be cool mate, would like to meet up with some people so if you're ever in the area send me a message and we'll go for a beer or something.
Just dont care about grammar and talk as much as you can..usually ppl will say it right after you so you can remember it
Try 17 minute language
Není to také ťažké sa naučiť po slovensky.Ja som zo Slovenska-that's not that hard to learn Slovakian language.I am from Slovakia.
Not true. It really is hard for native English speakers.
Naučiť sa po slovensky je ťažké, ale vďaka tomu, že nás jazyk pozná ch, č, š, dž, ô a podobne zvuky sa práve Slovák dokáže naučiť akýkoľvek jazyk či už tvrdý či mäkký, pretože nás jazyk je taký dutý a človek komu je to materinský jazyk si dokáže navyknuť na každú reč.
It's Slovak not Slovakian. There is no such
word Slovakian.
@@bobberes7155 I know. People use that too much LOL
@@bobberes7155 funny English.
Slovák=Slovak
Slovenský=Slovak
Slovenský Čech= Slovak Czech? Or?
You need to go to a pub for a beer and you will be a translator, only the form of communication will be a bit vulgar.🍺🍻🤪
Slovak language isnt that hard to learn, u just have to learn how to pronounce every letter. In slovak language , you mostly say it same way in every word. Ask your woman if she can healp you this much, hopefully it will help. :)
Not even all slovaks speak good slovak so.......
agreed (najvacsia hovadina su tvrde a makke i)
Heeey. U are unlucky because Czech language is also hard but I think not so much as like Slovak language. I would like to help you with that, but.. I'm originally from the Czech republic, so - I'm not a good teacher:d.
I would say that Slovak and Czech are the same for hardness of learning. :D
@@wollwo since Slovak does have Czech origins but I am no historian
for me Slovakia IS very easy because I was borned in Slovakia
Ahoj ako sa máš : Hello how are you?
The Slovak language is not difficult. I learned it when I was 2-3 years old. Just kidding... good luck with your studies
Lol, thank you. My kids say the same thing
hi! am from slovak or slovakia and i say is hard to learn slovak there is i,í,à,y,à,ä. hahah learn how to speak slovak or slovakia.
I am Slovak and still suck at grammar. I know English better than my native language, lol.