Search from various English teachers...
Finland flagWillem L'Aif
Getting deeper into a culture. What do you think is the best way to get to know a culture?
Please, choose between 1-3 ways and explain why so.

Here's a short list to help you out, if you can't think of anything:
- visit the place
-learn the language
-meet people from the place (in your country, their country or elsewhere)
-get to know "their" history
-read about "them" from traveling or such books
-"their" youtube or similar postings
-music
-"their" international and domestic politics
-learning about "them" at school
-something else

I personally believe in experiencing the culture, one wishes to learn about, 'on the spot' with at least some basics learned from 'their' language. The use of language reveals some thinking patterns and general attitudes and the 'being on the spot' forces one into a situation where there's no avoiding the other culture... which can be a bit too much to some people, though.

Comments · 6

0

About myself , I prefer two ways which are ( visiting the country or staying for a while ) and the second way is reading books .. 
I tried the two ways , and I can say they worked very well  .. I have been living abroad for 17 years of my life and I've gained a huge background of the language and the culture of this country ..it was a great experience for me actually .. 

Second way is reading Books which I consider a golden way of learning .. I'm interested in different cultures and traditions of particular countries .
  But I didn't get the chance go to these countries and there are many people in my case so reading is the best solution in this case , I read a lot of books about the different cultures , customs , politics , and religions and that was really really useful and helpful to me in a Large proportion .

0

While we're on the subject of discovering other cultures, I'd say locals can take initiative as well. It's a mutual benefit, whether missed or grasped.

And I agree, the best way to truly get to know a culture is to actively live with the people of said culture.

0
I think the easiest way to get to know a culture is to live there, at least for a while. You need to make friends with the locals. If they know that you're interested in their culture they will tell you a lot. You don't need to ask a lot of questions, just be a good listener. Many people will be proud that you are interested in their culture. Reading books about the culture also helps.

Some people live abroad but never make the effort to make friends with locals, or maybe they're just shy. At my university in England there were thousands of Chinese and Japanese students, but they always stayed together in groups and never talked with the English students. I think this was a missed opportunity for them. But they were probably nervous about their oral English.
0
I need to choose 4 ways :D
- visit the place : the best way to know a culture,because you can see for yourself what happens there,talk to native people,visit museums and historical places.
-learn the language: the best way to communicate with native people,and native people are very important to learn about the culture. and you can also read the books,visit the important places when you are there,and understand the explanations about it.
-meet people from the place (in your country, their country or elsewhere): I already said that, native  people are a very important part of the experience,because they can tell you better then anyone else what happens in their countries.
-get to know "their" history : yes, the history says everything.
0


When it comes to learning a culture, I'd go for pragmatic ways. Visit the country, learn the history of the country and just put yourself out there for every learning opportunity, without expectations..but with possibilties.

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to learn a language from the comfort of your own home. Browse our selection of experienced language tutors and enroll in your first lesson now!

Start Learning Today