5 Reasons to Learn Catalan
1.Knowing Catalan goes a long way when it comes to Universitat de Barcelona classes! In the 2014-15 academic year, two-thirds of class time at UB was conducted in Catalan, while a quarter was conducted in Spanish. Additionally, as more businesses and international firms tailor their products to Catalan consumers, speaking Catalan is an increasingly relevant qualification.
2.Catalan can help you make new friends. Whether it’s through normal Universitat de Barcelona classes, extracurricular activities, or language classes themselves, deciding to study Catalan can give you a big social boost! Many Catalans see their language as an important part of their identity, and are pleased and impressed when foreigners make an effort to speak Catalan. People from all over the world take Catalan classes with Serveis Lingüístics as well, and the classroom is a perfect place to meet international friends!
3.Catalan helps you integrate into everyday life. Metro announcements, opera subtitles, museum captions, grocery store labels...make no mistake, Catalan is often the language of Barcelona’s day-to-day, and the language receives legal protection in the commercial and public spheres. There’s no better way to feel like a local in Barcelona than to speak the same language as the àvies (grannies) at your neighborhood market or the soccer fans chanting at a Barça game!
4.Calling all history buffs, bookworms, and museum lovers! Your appreciation of works as diverse as the Romanesque frescoes at Barcelona’s MNAC or Mercè Rodoreda’s novel La plaça del Diamant can only deepen once you’ve experienced these creations in their original language. Additionally, Catalan has played a pivotal role in Barcelona’s two-thousand-year-long history, as the language of centuries-long institutions like the Consell de Cent.
5.Catalan will make you better at tongue twisters. Learning Catalan means you’ll learn how to decipher and pronounce lexical specimens like xiuxiueig, emmagatzematge, fal·laç, nyèbit, xitxarel·lo, Llull, zitzània, and pampalluguejar. That’s a talent not everyone can boast!
