What are some good Dutch movies/TV shows for someone learning Dutch?
Always begin with children's programming. The language is designed to be simple and easy to understand.Watch reclame's/advertisements. They are designed for easy and immediate comprehension.And for TV show, I'd recommend "Kinderen Geen Bezwaar."I never had a problem understanding this Dutch version of the Brady Bunch.For advanced learning, I would try "Commissaris Witse." This program is Belgian, and is in Flemish.But, once your Dutch is improved, you should be able to understand ±95% of what you hear, aside from occasional "Flanderisms."I'm doubly grateful to Philip Newton and Anshuman Bhattacharjee for the A2A.
What are the best TV shows, series or movies for learning English?
I don’t know about English, but when I moved to Brussels in 1991 and discovered there was a (for me) whole new language to learn (Dutch/Flemish), I watched Jeopardy on the Dutch and Flemish channels whenever I had the chance. At the time, the show didn’t yet exist in Denmark, so it was new to me, and as a language learning tool, it was great: You’re presented with the question (okay, the answer, but you know what I mean…) on the screen and have it read aloud to you while seeing it yourself, something you don’t have in many programmes - plus, it’s fun to guess along, which gives you a dose of cultural understanding at the same time.
How come Dutch people speak English so well?
Dutch people (from the Netherlands) are known to be multilingual; most of them speak 2 to 3 foreign languages fluently. Is that really true? If so, what is their scerets? Do they have an effective ways of learning a foreign languages? Below are the questions for Dutch people. 1. In the Netherlands, when do you begin to learn English at school? What grade? 2. When do you begin to learn other foreign languages and what are the popular foreign languages in the Netherlands? 3. What do you think your secrets to learn a foreign language effectively and fluently? I'll be waiting for your replies.
Is Dutch easier to learn in Flanders or the Netherlands?
I think it is equally difficult. Flemish and Dutch people are alike in many regards and our educational systems are pretty much on the same line as well. Both educational systems teach English starting from a young age and both are exposed to English in their daily lives (songs, subtitled movies and TV series...). Therefore, both Dutch and Flemish people will switch to English quickly if they notice that your Dutch isn't amazing... (also because most of us find it hard to believe anyone would actually want to learn Dutch when we can communicate in English.)So yes, in the end, I'd say it's equally difficult.(On a side note: Depending on where you learn Dutch, you will speak a different Dutch. Regional dialects are very prevalent and flemish Dutch has retained a lot of old Dutch, whereas Dutch Dutch dropped a lot of those words and opted to use a lot more (English) loanwords. Accents differ, pronunciation can differ, heck, even certain letters sound a certain way depending on the region where you learned Dutch.)
In what other European countries, do they speak English very well like in the Netherlands?
First of all, exclude Ireland and the UK because English is their official language. When I went to France and Italy, I always had language problems and it is hard to order something when you go to their restaurants or stores. But in the Netherlands, I was so surprised that Dutch people speak really good English everywhere. Are there any other countries like that in Europe? What about Norway and Denmark?
How can I learn Belgian Dutch?
What people see today as Belgian Dutch is usually just Standard Dutch pronounced in a number of very different ways (as with Scottish and Irish English and Cockney even). With a few percent of words and expressions being different. But beneath that there are actually dialects that go back to the Middle Ages and who are even different in their grammar. (Especially "historical" Flemish / Zeelandic and Limburghic ones, who didn't contribute as much to Standard Dutch as Brabantian did.) Due to their isolation, low social status and lack of standardization, they have never been taken all that seriously. But who knows: perhaps in the future?! (For Standard Belgian Dutch, like it's spoken at university, you'll likely do fine with Standard "Dutch" Dutch. Watching the news might also help. For proper dialects, I'm afraid you'll have to rely on dictionaries and online recordings of old people here and there.)