I’m an immigrant and I live in a country full of immigrants but I speak the local language + English + my native language.
I find many people feel annoyed when someone (for example setting at the next table at a cafe) speaking a language they don’t understand.
No matter how they speak they will still be annoying to listen to compared to a language I understand.
Does my brain consider it just noise or what?
EDIT: I’M NOT ANNOYED AT PEOPLE. I AM NOT RACIST GUYS.
I’m annoyed at the fact that I can’t comprehend what they saying and it’s not because I’m paranoid either.
it kinda feels the same as how traffic noise annoys you. that doesn’t mean that I hate cars.
Comments
Yes, something like this. It’s a natural reaction for the brain to get annoyed by information that you can’t understand, or is incomplete. It’s the same reason it’s naturally annoying to be listening to a phone conversation which you can only hear one end of.
Are you saying you feel annoyed, or other people have expressed that they feel annoyed (or both)?
As another multilingual person, I personally feel my attention is slightly drawn to the non-understood language — I assume a natural feature of the human brain that is motivated to learn and understand — but in a positively interested or admiring sort of way rather than any annoyance.
I find other languages in public nice to hear. Definitely doesn’t bother me. More positive by far.
However… however… My mom talking in her language drives me up the wall because she switches to that particular tone of demanding confidence she used to yell at me to clean my room with, and I just.. I just can’t. I’m sorry. It’s fine when my dad speaks it, he’s chill, everyone else speaking it is chill, but my mom is just filled with so much god damn authority in certain contexts it sends my brain scrambling in fear.
I’m the opposite. It doesn’t bother me. If anything I like it more when I don’t understand as I don’t get overwhelmed with information .
I think we tend to assume they may be talking about us. Also it makes you feel ignorant.
It’s just racism where I live
I don’t find it annoying when it’s a language I don’t understand, but it’s annoying when it’s a language I speak a little bit of, because my brain understands just enough that it tries to translate rather than tuning it out.
People who get annoyed by hearing other languages really need to think critically about their perceptions of other cultures. Many probably aren’t consciously aware that it is xenophobic to feel annoyed or offended when people speak their own language
You think they’re talking about you. They’re not. Unless you’re at the nail salon , then they definitely are
I like it. It’s a refreshing sound to my ears, especially if it’s a quiet, nuanced conversation.
Someone yelling into a phone or speaking in an agitated way is quite different and is annoying in any language.
Dunno, I find it interesting. Rarely I hear a different language, except for English (for me it’s different too)
Usually I don’t mind, unless I feel like they are talking about me. That doesn’t happen very often and whenever it does happen it is most likely just my imagination, but i still feel that way.
Other then that I am sometimes annoyed y people talking very loud in public, but that is something I witness people do in many languages, including my own, so it doesn’t really apply to your question.
I found I didn’t actually hate Spanish I was just around people who were bastardizing the language with disgusting slang and poor grammar like many do with English. Huge relief, this is likely your case too.
I like it when people speak a language I don’t understand. It makes it easier to tune them out.
Pretty sure those people are just racists, no?
Being annoyed at another language cuz somebody doesn’t understand it… is weird.
Normal people mind their own business. Most cases, they just simply react like, “oh they are foreigners.”
So what? They are minding their own business, so should we.
But to be annoyed by it??? I personally think that is sus. Like, that person has a hatred for foreign languages and foreign people or something.
Unless the people speaking in the foreign language is talking smack about you, why get annoyed?
I personally can’t imagine why it would be annoying. It’s never occurred to me someone multilingual would take issue with it either.
I figured it was purely the realm of a monolingual ass who’d rather be pissy than mind their own business, or too pissy to learn.
This post flips that idea, I guess. One should never really assume you get someone else’s thought process.
Tbh though, it still sounds stupid, no offense. They’re not even talking to you, why do you care?
It doesn’t bother me at all but I’ve been an immigrant, I’m surrounded by people from many cultures and I honestly don’t care what other people talk about, even if it’s me. I think this mostly bothers those who have insecurity, ignorance, xenophobia or paranoia. I used to project a lot when I was very overweight because I was incredibly insecure about my body. I guess people who are insecure about not speaking those languages or not understanding others may become worried they’re being mocked or something. I don’t care at all because I can’t control other people.
Man, as someone who doesn’t know the local language where I live, if I got annoyed every time I heard someone speaking in a language I don’t understand… I’d spend a lot of time annoyed.
I think it comes from dissonance: you hear a human’s speech, you automatically think that they might be talking to you or about you but you don’t understand. It’s like sounds of birds vs sound of another person’s alarm or siren: birds would never talk to you, but the alarm annoys you because you think it calls for you even if it doesn’t
Also there might be an impression that a large group of people talking in their own language has a community from which you are excluded by default and will never be a part of.
Im never annoyed by someone speaking another language unless their loud or angry… in which case I’d probably be annoyed if they were speaking English too.
I dont really get how its annoying?
hearing a language one doesn’t understand, after having made the effort one’s self to understand the local language likely ties in with not liking the color of their skin, or an assumed religious belief that comes along with that language and may be exacerbated by the tightness of the red ball cap you wear.
a probable diagnosis is magarthitis, which is a condition where one’s racist opinions become inflamed and they get annoyed/angry/outraged having to hear (but not understand the) language from a foreigner. maybe work to pass laws that prohibit foreign languages, maybe even foreign people. let the US be your guide
It’s not annoying. The people who are annoyed are assholes and harbor various dumb nationalist ideas. If you’re talking to someone and they understand you then you’re succeeding in communicating. No one else has to understand what you’re saying if you’re not addressing them.
Probably racism.
I have no idea why anyone would find a problem unless they’re racist. And tbh I barely notice when people are speaking a language I don’t understand. It’s like white noise to me. I live in a country full of migrants, people speak langages other than English often. It’s normal. Heck I personally also speak more than one language.
I have auditory processing issues, so auditory input I can’t understand can kind of drive me crazy.
I’m used to having to ask people to repeat themselves etc. and having to piece information together from incomplete sentences.
Hearing a language I don’t speak messes with that process. I basically assume I didn’t listen hard enough in order to understand what’s going on, but it’s not actually the case.
People tend to be insecure and paranoid
also people tend to be mean little gossips too
to me its natural to not like people speaking languages around you that you dont understand
Is it always justified? No.
But you dont know if they’re planning something or talking crap about you behind your back
It’s that uncertainty that bothers people, its the mystery.
This is why I think it’s rude to speak languages around people when they dont know it.
If you’re a tourist and you dont know the native language than of course an exception is to be made, but if you do know the language than I consider it rude to speak it around people who dont.
Why do I consider it rude?
You and your friend are in a room, you can litterally mock everyone in the room, roast them all to oblivion and they not know you’re doing it.
Come-on bro, if you can speak two languages and you NEVER ONCE IN YOUR LIFE talked bad about someone infront of them cuz you know they cant understand you, than congrats, give yourself a pat on the back, give yourself an award, you deserved it, you are a nice person and I salute you.
But we all know most people at least did it once.
We all know sometimes the kids giggeling on the bus are laughing at you.
We all know that if you hang out around people who speak a different language and they dont know you speak it too there is a good chance youre gonna hear something offensive.
This is why I consider it rude.
I dont blame the person for getting suspcious because we all know people will talk crap about you.
Plenty of videos online of someone being like “just so you know I can understand what youre saying….” and the person gotta apologize because they were saying awful stuff about them.
I only feel annoyed if a group is talking loudly in a place that is supposed to be quiet.
I’ve traveled all over the world. I don’t get annoyed listening to someone speak a language I don’t understand. I’ve been that person hundreds of times.
Personally, I get more annoyed when someone speaks in my language nonstop for hours saying nothing of value. I was on a train Saturday evening for 3 1/2 hours. The woman in front of me talked loudly into her cell phone for at least 30 minutes about nothing and otherwise spoke nonstop about nothing to the woman next to her using an outdoor voice. It’s not surprising that the rest of the world hates American tourists. That behavior is normal.
I never find it annoying. Yet I grew up hearing multiple languages so 🤷🏻♂️
That’s interesting. I’m never annoyed hearing another language I don’t understand
I do not feel annoyed, I try to understand it, or pretend I do. It’s like a puzzle.
Of course, unless they are talking in a group and I am part of that group…
I think people get annoyed with people that obviously stand out. I think people sometimes think “you’re not one of us”.
As for my personal experience: sometimes people look at me with this look that says they’re annoyed, but sometimes I see them grinning and I think it’s because my native language sounds funny to a lot of people.
The ‘noise’ is linguistic. The annoyance is cultural. Do you get annoyed, when you hear sparrows conversing, in the tree, next to the cafe? Definitions of what’s appropriate are arbitrary and culturally specific. For example, Americans are notorious for having tantrums, anywhere in the world they find people not speaking English. Conversely, there are many so-called pre modern cultures—native Hawaiian and the Wendat who encountered some of the first Europeans on Turtle Island, to name two—that are more or less welcoming to outsiders. They are xenophiles, whereas Americans tend toward xenophobe. Where are you from?
Because it always seems to be unnecessarily on speakerphone in a public place.
Paranoia.
I find it so amazing! Love it! I wish I could speak every language!
I don’t feel annoyed by it, but i wonder if you’re just frustrated because you’re nosy lol
I much prefer it, easier to tune out and focus on my own conversion / whatever I’m doing
I like it when people speak languages i don’t understand, my brain likes it similar to how it likes music. Maybe you’re paranoid that whats being said is something you would be better off understanding, and so it makes you feel mildly threatened to have constant stimuli you know is meaningful, but don’t understand
It has never even occurred to me to be annoyed when people are speaking another language. I’m often curious as to what language it is if I don’t recognize it, but that’s all.
I don’t. I’m not multilingual, though I understand quite a bit of Spanish, and can communicate, of them you talk to me like I’m a slightly stupid child. Your conversation isn’t my business. If the other person needs my attention, I’m guessing they know how to get it. Mind your business.
Humans evolved in groups for protection. We can use our intellect to shed those protectionist fears but they are there
Some languages are Not annoying- Gaelic and Portugese and depending on on the voice, volume, and accent, French, Italian, and Puerto Rican Spanish.
But many languages are Nasal, have VERY loooong words so it takes a long time for the person to finish their thought before the other person speaks, some have throaty or clipped sounds that are unpleasant, and some sound like people are Yelling or arguing with each other when they talk- including Boston and New Jersey American English.
I think you’re paranoid. I’ve never gotten annoyed by a language i don’t understand. The nosy bastard in me wants to know what they’re saying but to get annoyed by it, na.
Xenophobia 👍
Funny you’d say that. I visit China frequently where I cannot speak the language or read the signs. I find it comforting – with no hope of understanding, I can’t be distracted by any of it.
It isn’t. For some reason, I have worked at multiple companies (high tech) that hired Russian speaking employees. Never bothered me at all when they spoke Russian, which they did all the time except when talking to me directly.
It’s only annoying when they’re a customer & they make my job really difficult & hold my line up.
I have misophonia so I think for me it’s related to that. I don’t really care what language people speak. It’s not that I think people are talking about me. it’s like a sound or processing thing. It hurts my brain in some kind of way. Except for Haitian Creole. I could listen to people speak that all day. I don’t understand any of the language but I just love the way it sounds.
Many people feel annoyed? Which people are those?
Why would be annoyed about something you don’t even understand? Its obvious that what they’re talking is not even about you either, as you said it’s other people at the next table, who don’t even know you.
If anything, I like hearing other languages sometimes, even when I don’t understand a word. I try to guess in my head which language it is or something.
What annoys me are those who can speak the local language but choose not to and those who refuse to learn the local language even after living here for decades
I never consider it to be annoying or rude, most times I am jealous bc I can be nosy lol
no idea, I find it fascinating myself.
It’s like listening to someone else’s music, mildly unpleasant. It feels like it’s harder to ignore than a language you do understand. I think it’s cause you’re listening for the words and phrases that you do know so it’s distracting in a way.
That’s a new one on me. I’ve never been annoyed at other people speaking different languages that I don’t understand. That is so weird. Like, I’ve been curious, mostly if I can’t place it, otherwise, I really don’t think anything of it.
I don’t feel annoyed.
I find it interesting. I love hearing other languages.
First, I don’t think everyone is annoyed by that, but certainly some are. I remember back when CBs were popular some people would get mad when they heard other CBers speaking anything besides English. I think it might be the same thing that makes people irritated when others around them are only paying attention to their phones when out in public. It’s the idea that they are disconnected from other people, which may go against our natural social instincts. In some weird way, we find it insulting.
I love the sound of other languages. It’s fascinating to me. I love trying to figure out what language, or at least what language family it is.
I don’t!
But, then, I don’t listen to other people’s convos either.
I’ve never been annoyed hearing other people talk in different language, what does ruffle my feathers is other Spanish speakers with different accents.
Doesn’t bother me at all.
It’s because the brain treats it like gibberish, and the brain doesn’t like hearing it. It’s the same for listening to a conversation, only hearing one person talk.
I dont find it annoying
I think there’s a lot of underlying racism in this post and this comment section.
I only speak English. if I had the ability to speak another language I 100% would.
It’s annoying because my brain tries to parse it but can’t.
It doesn’t annoy me. I like hearing different languages and trying to place them. Other commentators have mentioned, that you might feel excluded and not part of the group.
We are social creatures.
We are tribal creatures.
we hear a sound not related to our perceived tribe.
a good person will realize not my business anyways.
but because the human brain likes nuance experiences it still somewhat keys into the stimulus.
a bad person goes “this is ‘merica you need to speak the Gawd given and correct language English in this ‘ere indypendant U-nited eStates” and be triggered by the “other”
tldr it CAN be irritating ’cause we are pattern recognizing machines and this is a pattern we can’t parse but some people see the unknown as a threat and act emotionally.
I feel like this is a YOU problem.
Whenever I hear a language I don’t understand I feel the urge to interrupt and ask what language is that.
I try not to do it, because it’s rude. But sometimes I’m just too curious.
For the same reason it’s annoying when someone is speaking loudly on the phone and you can only hear one side: because your brain is trying to listen even if you’re not. When it can’t process the entire conversation it’s annoying. If it’s another language your brain hears speaking and tries to listen, but can’t.
I find it relaxing.
I think I read or listened to a podcast that was saying that any time you hear a foreign language that you don’t understand, it seems louder than a language you do understand. Also for some people it might sound more like “noise” since they can’t make out the words and cadence of it.
I think it’s mostly about exposure
I grew up in a very rural, monolithic culture where other languages and even accents will throw people into a rage
I now live in one of the biggest cities in the country and regularly hear other languages every day, most people barely notice it
I think it’s more so that you hear this, you identify it as human speach, your brain doesn’t understand what is being said so it doesn’t want to block it out until it “knows” what it is. Like if you hear something outside and you’re trying to figure out what it is but once you realize it’s a tree branch or something, then you an block it out. The foreign language is taking more mental energy because you’re subconsciously trying to understand something you can’t. At least, that’s what I think.
Not because you don’t like the language, or the people speaking it, or because you think they’re talking about you. Just simply because it’s human speech and you don’t understand it.
I don’t care what language anyone speaks. The only thing that bothers me is anyone who’s loud.
It’s just noise. No one wants to listen to noise.
It isn’t. Not even slightly.
You have no reason to be annoyed and should reflect deeply on why you are and then get over it.
I think it is sometimes the equivalent of seeing something out of the corner of your eye, but it vanishes when you look straight at it (common in low light in particular), but reappears when you stop looking directly at it.
You hear language and instinctively your brain works to understand, but it can’t and at a very lizard level you NEED TO KNOW – evolution programs you to want to understand.
You imagine that what they are saying applies to you.
It doesn’t. They are just talking.
When I was a kid, I’d go visit my grandparents. The would speak in a mix of German and Serbo-Croatian and English at the kitchen table. I’d scrape by with my tiny knowledge of those languages but I was lost. It didn’t bother me, I just wasn’t fluent.
Later, I lived around people that spoke a patois of Ojibwe and English. Still, not a big deal.
Then I went to college and it was constant gibbering in Japanese or Chinese among my friends. I didn’t care.
Later, I worked with Spanish speakers, and people that spoke whatever Hmong people speak and I still, didn’t care. Also, I still worked with Chinese speakers. Don’t care.
Don’t worry about it. I speak two languages, English and bad English, as they say. That doesn’t mean I don’t know what you’re saying. My French is reasonable, my German is poor, my Serbo-Croatian is quite limited, my Chinese is near zero. Still, I’ve got the gist of it.
Embrace the language. LIsten. Don’t learn. Just listen. You’ll be OK.
Unfamiliar language also triggers a certain level of mental distraction, since the mind attempts to decipher what is clearly language – but which the mind clearly cannot understand.
It’s like talking to someone who’s too quiet or slurred to understand. It draws a certain uncomfortable attention.
You can’t completely consciously ignore either of these things, because part of the process is occurring subconsciously.
Do you find little kids babbling annoying? Because you may just have a form of misophonia?
Probably your brain is just noticing it more bc it can’t figure it out. Like a misplaced tile in the ground – that’s where your attention is gonna be.
And I’m now realizing I probably tune people out way too easily/automatically lol
It’s a dangerous spot to be irritated by things we don’t understand
It isn’t to me. Why do you assume everyone finds it annoying just because you do?
This is very common and I think stems from not being able to understand what is being said. Our brains are always trying to make sense of what’s around us. Also, sometimes it seems like folks are speaking louder than we are used to and this is another irritating factor.
Probably because you like to know what people are talking about even if it’s none of your business and it frustrates you that you cant eavesdrop
It’s more annoying when I DO understand it. It’s not annoying at all if I don’t understand it. It’s like the sound of rain or the sound of footsteps for me. If you find it annoying if other people talk in a different language which you don’t understand, I feel like there must be something wrong about you.