LingoflyAt the museum entrance in Western Armenian
By the museum entrance: tickets, opening hours, photographing in Western Armenian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Բարեւ ձեզ (parev tsez)։ Երկու տոմս, խնդրեմ (yergu doms, khntrem)։» — Hello. Two tickets, please; «Մեծահասա՞կ, թէ (t'e)՞ ուսանող (usanogh)։» — Adult or student?
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: by the museum entrance: tickets, opening hours, photographing. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- yerguss al medzahasag enk' T'ankaranə minchev zhamə k'anisin e patsWe are both adults. Until what time is the museum open?
- Մինչեւ վեցը։ Երկուշաբթի օրը փակ ենք։minchev vetsə Yergushapt'i orə p'ag enk'Until six. We are closed on Mondays.
- Հասկցայ։ Էքսկուրսիա հայերէն կա՞յ։hasgtsay Ek'sgursia hayeren gayGot it. Is there a tour in Armenian?
Lines one by one
| Western Armenian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Բարեւ ձեզ (parev tsez)։ Երկու տոմս, խնդրեմ (yergu doms, khntrem)։ | parev tsez Yergu doms, khntrem | Hello. Two tickets, please. |
| Մեծահասա՞կ, թէ (t'e)՞ ուսանող (usanogh)։ | medzahasag, t'e usanogh | Adult or student? |
| Երկուսս ալ (al) մեծահասակ (medzahasag) ենք (enk)։ Թանգարանը (t'ankaranə) մինչեւ (minchev) ժամը քանիսի՞ն (zhamə k'anisin) է բաց (pats)։ | yerguss al medzahasag enk' T'ankaranə minchev zhamə k'anisin e pats | We are both adults. Until what time is the museum open? |
| Մինչեւ (minchev) վեցը (vetsə)։ Երկուշաբթի (yergushapt'i) օրը (orə) փակ (p'ag) ենք (enk)։ | minchev vetsə Yergushapt'i orə p'ag enk' | Until six. We are closed on Mondays. |
| Հոս (hos) լուսանկարել (lusangarel) կարելի (gareli)՞ է։ | hos lusangarel gareli e | Is it allowed to take photos here? |
| Առանց (arrants) լոյսի (luysi)՝ այո (ayo)։ Տեսանիւթ (desanyut') նկարել (ngarel) չի (chi) կարելի (gareli)։ | arrants luysi ayo Desanyut' ngarel chi gareli | Without flash — yes. Filming video is not allowed. |
| Հասկցայ (hasgtsa)։ Էքսկուրսիա (ek'sgursia) հայերէն (hayeren) կա՞յ (gay)։ | hasgtsay Ek'sgursia hayeren gay | Got it. Is there a tour in Armenian? |
| Այո (ayo), ժամը (zhamə) երեքին (yerek'in)։ Զբօսաւարը (zposavarə) կը (gə) սպասէ (sbase) երկրորդ (yergrort) յարկին (hargin) մէջ (mech)։ | ayo, zhamə yerek'in Zposavarə gə sbase yergrort hargin mech | Yes, at three o'clock. The guide is waiting on the second floor. |
How to prepare for a conversation like this
Memorizing the lines is not enough: the other person will say their own thing, not what is written. What helps more is catching the key words by ear and keeping three rescue phrases ready: “I don't understand”, “repeat, please”, “slower”.
And one more thing phrasebooks do not mention: awkwardness gets in the way more than not knowing the words.
- Fear of making mistakes gets in the way of learning a language, and noticeably so. The link turns up study after study, and together those studies cover almost twenty thousand people.checked many timesTeimouri, Goetze & Plonsky, 2019, Studies in Second Language Acquisition 41(2) · 19,933 participants from 23 countries; correlation with results r = −0.36.
- That fear can be dealt with — the methods have been tested and they work.checked many timesXiong et al., 2024, Journal of Language and Social Psychology · 37 studies, anxiety reduced by −0.61. Of the seven conditions examined, only age turned out to matter.
Frequently asked
How do you start a conversation in Western Armenian in this situation?
“Բարեւ ձեզ (parev tsez)։ Երկու տոմս, խնդրեմ (yergu doms, khntrem)։” (parev tsez Yergu doms, khntrem) — Hello. Two tickets, please. The first line in such a conversation is almost always the same, and that is the one worth learning: the other person will carry it from there.
What if you did not understand the reply?
Say “I don't understand” and “repeat, please” — both are in the rescue set. Admitting your language is still shaky almost always makes the other person more patient.
Should you memorize the dialogue?
No. It is more useful to catch the key words by ear: the other person will say their own thing, and a memorized line will not always fit their reply.