Culture is fascinating! Did you know that the structure of one's own "foreign" language can influence the way they communicate in English as a second language? Take for example the fact that in English we often show our enthusiasm and connection to a speaker by interjecting our agreement, adding enthusiastic comments and going so far as to complete sentences for the speaker when we are eager and engaged. In casual conversation when we do this we are saying "I get it, we think alike, I am on the same page." But in many languages, such as German for example, this sort of behavior is not only rude, but stops the flow of the communication and possibly the thought process entirely! In German, the verb most often comes at the end of the sentence. So U.S. Americans can’t be sure of exactly what is being said until the German makes his point at the end of the sentence. In languages like Hindi, we sometimes feel that an expression of thanks is absent, or we are looking for a bit more courtesy when someone is making a request, when in actuality words like thank you are often superfluous in languages where there are many, many levels used to express respect and thereby register courtesy. Of course it would be helpful to learn the other's language and thereby communicate more effectively, but improving communication through other means can be helpful too.
