First Languages Project

In Fall 2023, ESOL instructors Luciana Diniz and Davida Jordan met with current and former PCC ESOL students from around the world. The students taught learners how to say 'Hi! How are you?' in the students' first languages. In the videos below, students repeat their greeting four times. They begin by speaking naturally, then very slowly, then a little slower than normal, and finally, at natural speed again. You can review and practice the words in the videos below to welcome people from other countries.

Amuzgo

Amuzgo is a native language spoken by about 44,000 people primarily in the Guerrero and Oaxaca regions of Mexico.

Arabic

Arabic and its various dialects is a language spoken by 360 million people, and is one of the five most spoken languages in the world. It is the national language of 24 sovereign states.

Bahasa Indonesian

Bahasa Indonesian is the official language of Indonesia, with over 200 million speakers.

Belarusian

Belarusian is an East Slavic language with over 5 million native speakers.

Chinese Mandarin

Mandarin is a language spoke in northern and southwestern China, with over 920 million native speakers.

Dari

Dari is an official language of Afghanistan, with about 16 million people who speak it as a first language.

Farsi

Farsi is the official language of Iran, and dialects of Farsi are also spoken in other countries such as Afghanistan and Tajikistan. There are about 81 million native speakers of Farsi.

French

French is the official language of 28 independent nations or territories. Worldwide, there are 80 million native speakers of French.

Japanese

Japanese is the official language of Japan, with 128 million native speakers.

Korean (Casual)

Korean is the native language of South Korea and North Korea, with 82 million native speakers.

Korean (Formal)

Korean is the native language of South Korea and North Korea, with 82 million native speakers.

Pashto

Pashto is a first language of about 54 million people, primarily in Afghanistan and Pakistan

Portuguese

Portuguese is the official language of countries such as Brazil, Portugal, Cape Verde and Guinea-Bissau. There are over 230 million native speakers of Portuguese.

Russian

Russian is an East Slavic language, with over 150 million native speakers.

Sinhala

Sinhala is an official language of Sri Lanka, and is spoken as a first language by 16 million people.

Somali

Somali is an official language of countries such as Somalia and Ethiopia. There are over 21 million native speakers of Somali.

Spanish

Spanish is the official language of 20 countries, and is a native language of 500 million people worldwide.

Swahili

Swahili is spoken in countries such as Tanzania, Kenya, and Mozambique. It is widely used in southeast Africa, and is a native language of about 18 million people.

Thai

Thai is the official language of Thailand, with over 61 million native speakers.

Turkish

Turkish is the national language of Türkiye and North Cyprus. There are 83 million native speakers of Turkish.

Ukrainian

Ukrainian is an East Slavic language, with about 27 million native speakers.

Vietnamese

Vietnamese is the official language of Vietnam, with 85 million native speakers.