Thinking language: an update

In my post Thinking language, I wrote about my curiosity on the subject of inner monologues, especially those of bilingual and multi-lingual people. This led me to ask a question in the Web Writers’ Forum, which I knew is full of excellent writers from around the world, many of whom speak more than one language. I was not disappointed.

Juhis, a native Finnish speaker, spoke of a very similar experience to the one I had. He had learned English (and Swedish) in school, and spending a lot of time in tech circles has resulted in English becoming his default language. He admitted to thinking in English and taking his personal notes in English. He also said:

These days, I encounter more “hmm, how do I say this in Finnish” translation issues than the other way around.

I can certainly relate, and as I had explained in my previous post, I have become more articulate in English than in my native language. Living in an English-speaking country has certainly had an effect, but I distinctly remember my mental switch to English happened long before we moved continents. In my case, being exposed to films, TV, music and books in abundance became an anchor for this change.

Ruben, who writes in both English and his native language, Dutch, on his website said that he finds it harder to write in Dutch than in English. He pointed out how his thinking language adapts depending on his work environment, and how in day-to-day life he thinks in Dutch, except for some occasions where it is “an unholy mix” of both English and Dutch. I was surprised to learn that English was used widely in advertising in the Netherlands. In Ruben’s words:

In general, especially in advertising, English is used a lot here in the Netherlands: I think it is still seen as more “modern” / “hip” / “sophisticated” / “cosmopolitan” / whatever than Dutch.

This made me think of the outsized influence the English language has in Sri Lanka, too. It is widely known that having a good command in the English language can result in favourable outcomes in life, especially in the job market. It can be a powerful economic accelerant. It made me wonder about where I may be today if the aforementioned switch didn’t happen in my head. Would I have had the same opportunities?

Naty, who lives in Hong Kong, speaks in Cantonese, a Chinese dialect, mostly in her day-to-day life, but has never written any Chinese content on the internet. She claims her brain works in English, but she appreciates the Chinese language and wants to explore it more.

Marisabel says English is her mental default, even though she converses mostly in Dutch in day-to-day life and in Spanish when speaking to her family. She then shared two nuggets I found to be extremely fascinating:

I end up talking to myself in Dutch as well, and at work I am 100% Dutch mode, which makes for awkward conversations when a Dutch colleague — used to switching to English due to being an international University — addresses me in English and I auto-reply in Dutch because it takes a lot of effort to switch.

and

If I hear Spanish (TV or words) I end up thinking in Spanish for a few minutes before it wears out.

Intriguing, isn’t it? I wonder how these triggers work in our brains, in completely opposite ways sometimes. I wonder, if I spoke a third language, what would I default to in day-to-day life? Which one would I feel most comfortable, and most eloquent in? Which language would make my thoughts feel like they were my own?

I have more questions than answers, but it was certainly enlightening to hear more thoughts and experiences on the subject. I’m grateful that I was exposed to the English language at a young age. My community would have been a lot smaller if I wasn’t.