24 April, 2024

CROATIAN LANGUAGE INSTRUCTION | DOCUMENT TRANSLATION SERVICES

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COMPASS CROATIA

So you are learning Croatian, that sounds great! There are plenty of good reasons for doing it, and I am sure that you have yours.

Croatian map graphicThe mission of Compass Croatia and this website is to provide cultural navigation with our Croatian language, the best destinations and optimum experiences for your next visit.

Croatian is a Slavic language spoken most commonly by Croats in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina. The current structure of the language is a combination of Croatian Church Slavonic and the lingua franca, which has been evolving since a millennium. Its history has been somewhat complex due to a few notable events that have affected the language.

There are gillions of language and travels tips on the internet, so why do we think we offer a unique service?

Compass Croatia as an idea originated by Lidija Kosak in 2019. But, with reflection, as early as Lidija can remember, she was curious about experiences and culture beyond her small town of Koprivnica.

This provided the opportunity to meet people from all over the world and help them by providing the necessary information about our country. Although Compass Croatia clients primarily need or want to learn Croatian, many of them still needed additional information. Read more…

Reviewing the feedback from our many customers, we have discovered that the following tips will help you learn and integrate the Croatian language into your vacation travel, your business interests and any other interactions in or with Croatia that are important to you in the future:

You learn best when the resources you are feeding on are relevant to you and your interests. Making your language learning a meaningful experience will keep you motivated and on track.

Croatian soccer playerSee, there is a myriad of Croatian language learning resources out there, many of them online and for free – from flashcards and language exchange apps to podcasts and YouTube channels * catering to language learners.

But while such a resource abundance may be seen as a blessing, the truth is that separating the wheat from the chaff and knowing what you should be focusing on is not that easy, especially for beginners still finding their way in.

One way to avoid getting drowned in this sea of resources is to be selective and to choose only those resources that align well with your passions. Consider setting up an affordable monthly contract with us?

Are you into sports, music, gaming, food, outdoors? Whatever it is, try to select the content that best agrees with your interests and hobbies. In so doing, your Croatian language practice will become effective and sustained over time.

Learning Croatian stock photoThere is no better way to enable daily practice than to build it into your daily routines. And here’s the thing: you don’t actually need to time-block your day to stay in touch with Croatians! Just take it with you as you go through your daily routines.

For instance, look around you and start recalling the words for the objects you’re seeing: what’s the Croatian word for coffee? And how do you say fork?

Or, embrace the habit of speaking out in plain sentences that describe your actions at any given time. How do you say, I am taking a shower in Croatian? How about “I will eat lunch now”?

Note that speaking it out – in opposition to merely formulating sentences in your head – gets you used to actually speaking Croatian, which is a huge step!

Here are some more ideas-

  • Why not spend five to ten minutes every morning listening to a Croatian podcast episode at breakfast?
  • Finding a Croatian language-exchange buddy to text with throughout the day is also an excellent tool to keep you engaged daily.
  • Add a Croatian keyboard to your mobile’s operating system (or any other devices) to Croatian and get automatically exposed to the language.
  • Do you use a guided meditation app to relax right before you go to bed? Maybe you can set it to Croatian and fall asleep while listening to your new language.

These were only a few suggestions to melt Croatian into your daily life. Now it is up to you to take it into your own hands and come up with ideas and actions that fit your circumstances. We can help you with a monthly contract for regular texting or talking via Zoom.

If you need to use your time wisely, prioritize in-context input over vocabulary lists or grammar drills. In-context learning is simply more effective.

girl learning language photoIn-context learning materials presuppose stories you can relate to and make sense of. Often, you’ll learn new words and expressions without having to look them up on the lexicon – you learn them from the context instead.

It also helps you keep motivated and in touch with the language on a daily basis, provided that the materials are compelling to read or listen to. And here’s the thing, such a gratifying experience is likely to increase your word-retention rate in the long run.

But there’s more!

In-context input designed for language learners (and when properly done) is normally propped with colloquial expressions used in everyday life. That helps you develop a sound idiomatic feel for the language and, as a result, you’ll sound more natural when speaking.

Think this way, what would make you learn Croatian the best? Being exposed to the language as spoken by native speakers, or going through tedious word lists truncated from their context?

Did it ever happen to you, having learned 300+ words in a new language and still not being able to string them together into a sentence in a real-life conversation?

You’re definitely not alone (me included), and that’s because many language learners spend their time memorizing amorphous words and fixed phrases instead of spending time with the “living beast” itself!

So, consider using more in-context learning materials to learn the language. Its benefits will show rather quickly.

Girl practicing language stock photoOne common belief among language learners is that it will be a good while until you are able to start speaking in Croatian. Wrong.

As a matter of fact, you can and should start drilling your speaking from an early stage in your learning journey.

Here’s the thing. The ability to speak in your target language stems to a great extent from you getting used to doing just that – to speaking it out.

See, much of the speaking barriers experienced by language learners (even at the advanced level) are due more to them feeling uncomfortable doing it than the lacking of vocab or knowledge about syntax rules – knowledge alone won’t cut it!

So, making yourself at home speaking in your target language – regardless of how basic and rough it may sound – is a great move towards fluency.

Now, you will have to be patient and endure a good stretch of time until you reach the point where you can actually engage in meaningful conversations. Hands down! But that’s not what I am talking about anyway.

Instead, I am suggesting that you practice and drill speaking Croatian by enunciating short and plain sentences, using whatever vocab you’ve already learned thus far.