26Jun/080
More on Chinese vs. Japanese
Six weeks ago, I wondered which language was more difficult to learn for the English native speaker- Japanese or Chinese. A friend in Kunming told me that getting "OK" at Japanese didn't require that much effort or time but at more advanced levels the language starts to get really difficult. Meanwhile, in Chinese it's very difficult just to get the hang of it, but at more advanced levels the language becomes easier and easier (in terms of understanding the grammar, etc.).
At Sinosplice, John has produced a couple of nifty charts analyzing acquisition of pronunciation and grammar within the languages. His conclusions seem to dovetail with mine, though John has studied Japanese before while I haven't.
