Is there a language you just don't like the sound of?

[A0130]

I'm not trying to insult any languages here. They are all very beautiful and very complex. However, I have never particularly liked the sound of French. I like Mandarin, Japanese, Spanish and German... but couldn't get that "wow" from French. I am in the minority, I promise. What about you?

[TimmyToo]

Hmmm, I am not particularly fond of Afghani actually.

[Czarownica]

I don't like Spanish. It's weird, because I used to love Italian (now I don't really love it, but I don't hate it either) and I like French, but I dislike Spanish.

Fortunately, there's a lot of other languages I can learn

[linguaholic]

First of all I would like to point out that I respect any language. Of course there are languages that you like more and languages that you probably like a little bit less :=)

I newer grew fond of the sound of Cantonese. It is a little bit too melodic for me. I really enjoy Mandarin Chinese but Cantonese is maybe not the next language I am going to "target", as I do not like the sound of it very much. Still, as I already speak Mandarin Chinese it would be very interesting to study Cantonese as well.

[Jellyfish]

French. It sounds theatrical to me and is way too soft. You always get the impression they are afraif of speaking words out in a rough way.

[LauraM]

I'm a native speaker of English in the U.S. and surprising as it may seem, as a child and young teen I never really liked the sound of English as compared to other languages that I had heard. 

In fact, that was part of my motivation to learn Spanish, aside from its pragmatic value. I liked how it sounded when I heard it on the Spanish language TV channels and radio, as well as being out in a store, for instance and hearing people speak the language.  I also liked the sound of French which I first heard widely spoken when our family would take trips to Quebec, Canada.  Same with German, which I first heard via German opera.

Especially as a teen, all these other languages seemed to have a "cool" factor that English didn't have. English seemed very dull and lacking in tonal beauty to me although I did like find some of the various forms of spoken English -- British, for instance -- a little more pleasing. 

[deyvion]

Maybe it is because I am Swedish, I don't know, but I am not so fond of how the Finnish language sounds. I know many Finnish people (my best friend is 75% Finnish, and I have no problem with Finnish people, but the language is just so harsh. And reading it? They have like 20-lettered words with like 6 a's in a row (okey, not really, but sometimes it looks like it).

[Gregor]

Now I feel I'm being lead into dangerous territory here because I don't want to offend! However I often feel that German in difficult to listen to - I just can't even estimate where one word ends and the next begins. I used to dislike the sound of Portuguese but I got over that and quite like it now, but the one I have most difficulty with is the Scottish way of speaking English. Maybe it's just negative memories I have about certain Scottish people!

[kitkat0124]

It's not the people I don't like but just the sound of their languages. I dislike Russian and arabic. It seems all the words should be pronounce with R.

[pcgamer]

I believe that all the languages are really ineffable. They have their own beauty, but it's the accent of some people that riles me up sometimes.

[cinderr]

We have an idea some are very guttural, thank you Arnold Scwarzenegger! Those are not the lovliest to the ear. I think Russian may fit inot that category, some people think German does but seriously, I think Mr. S. made a language of his own because Austrian doesn't hurt my ears unless he is speaking it. :wacky:

[mareebaybay]

I too, dislike the Russian language. It sounds like it should not even be spoken. It is one of the worst sounding languages I have ever heard.

[Beverly]

Probably Arabic for me since I grew up in a country where a lot of the people actually write and speak Arabic. It just sounds 'harsh' and the writing is way too difficult for me.

[sayitwell]

I never cared for the sound of Chinese and Japanese.  It seems too stunted and abbreviated.  Maybe the natives just speak it too quickly for my taste.  I also don't like the English accent of those who live in England.  It is sort of cute for a little bit but after listening to them speak for more than five minutes or so it begins to wear on my ears.

[rgaz83]

I can't remember ever hearing a language that I really hated the sound of. Some sound harsher, sure, but I find German as equally interesting and tolerable to listen to as Chinese or Japanese or anything else.

[SpiralArchitect]

  On 9/2/2013 at 9:28 AM, Jellyfish said:

French. It sounds theatrical to me and is way too soft. You always get the impression they are afraif of speaking words out in a rough way.

True. Don't dislike it as such but some French speakers can be quite annoying.

There's a local Indian language called Telugu which sounds so crass and uncouth to my ears that I can't help but dislike it. It doesn't help that a lot of people in my college speak it and I cringe every time I hear it.

[Guest akasha24]

I am not too fond of the Russian language but what I really don't like the sound of is German. It feels so aggressive to me and unfriendly so those are the ones I really dislike and do not like listening to.

[mccanono]

Definitely Arabic for me. It's like they always have phlegm. XD Sorry but I don't mean to offend anybody. Just my observation.

go on.

[Miya]

I don't want to say I don't like it, but I'm not particularly fond of Vietnamese.

[xXPandosXx]

Even though I have a few Swedish friends and I believe that Sweden is a beautiful country, I have to admit that their language sounds a bit too rough for my ears. The consonants have such a strong staccato articulation (probably due to the cold climate of the region) that create a feeling of aggresion.

[limon]

I don't know if there are languages I don't like, but certain accents are a bit less appealing New Jersey, some Australian accents.

I also have more trouble understanding Russian speakers of English than most other accents.

[wannalurnspanish]

Isn't it Russian where they always sound like they're roughly clearing their throats and need to spit something out? That's the one that bothers me. I know, I'm sorry, but hey, who knows what they think of English?

[Meera]

I don't like the sound of Afrikaans, Spanish or Latin.

[polybus]

I would have to say that I just don't care for the sound of Arabic. I like and respect the language in other ways but I cannot get over that ayin sound. It sounds like the person is gagging and it is almost impossible for me to reproduce. I can see why Persian and Urdu speakers when they use Arabic words basically just ignore the ayin or make it a glottal stop.

[Oakster]

I know it's a cliche, but I just think that German sounds angry, no matter what is being said.