LingoflyAt an Armenian course in Western Armenian
At a language school: level, schedule, price and how progress will be checked in Western Armenian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Բարեւ ձեզ (parev tsez)։ Հայերէնի դասընթացներ կը փնտռեմ (hayereni tasənt'atsner gə p'ndrrem)։» — Hello. I am looking for Armenian courses; «Բարեւ (parev)։ Լեզուի (lezui) ի՞նչ (inch) մակարդակ ունիք (unik)։» — Hello. What is your language level?
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: at a language school: level, schedule, price and how progress will be checked. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- Բարեւ ձեզ։ Հայերէնի դասընթացներ կը փնտռեմ։parev tsez Hayereni tasənt'atsner gə p'ndrremHello. I am looking for Armenian courses.
- ayt barakayin ardasanut'yun yev lsoghut'yun Arrachin tasə anvjar eIn that case — pronunciation and listening. The first lesson is free.
- Իսկ քերականութի՞ւնը։ Ինծի դժուար կու գայ։isg k'eraganut'yunə Indzi tzhuar gu kayAnd the grammar? It comes hard to me.
- k'ayl arr k'ayl Desut'yunə k'ich, bragdigan shadStep by step. Little theory, much practice.
- ayo, arrtsants Ink'nuruyn bidi lratsnek', yev amen ankam aveli lav bidi əllayYes, online. You'll catch up on your own, and each time it will be better.
Lines one by one
| Western Armenian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Բարեւ ձեզ (parev tsez)։ Հայերէնի դասընթացներ կը փնտռեմ (hayereni tasənt'atsner gə p'ndrrem)։ | parev tsez Hayereni tasənt'atsner gə p'ndrrem | Hello. I am looking for Armenian courses. |
| Բարեւ (parev)։ Լեզուի (lezui) ի՞նչ (inch) մակարդակ ունիք (unik)։ | parev Lezvi inch magartag unik' | Hello. What is your language level? |
| Դեռ (terr) սկսնակ (sgsnag) եմ (em)։ Կը (gə) կարդամ (gartam), բայց (payts) լսելով (lselov) դժուար (tzhvar) կը (gə) հասկնամ (hasgnam)։ | terr sgsnag em Gə gartam, payts lselov tzhuar gə hasgnam | I am still a beginner. I read, but I understand by ear with difficulty. |
| Այդ պարագային (ayt baragayin)՝ արտասանութիւն (ardasanut'yun) եւ (yev) լսողութիւն։ Առաջին դասը անվճար է (arrachin tasə anvjar e)։ | ayt barakayin ardasanut'yun yev lsoghut'yun Arrachin tasə anvjar e | In that case — pronunciation and listening. The first lesson is free. |
| Իսկ (isg) քերականութի՞ւնը։ Ինծի (indzi) դժուար կու գայ (tzhuar gu kay)։ | isg k'eraganut'yunə Indzi tzhuar gu kay | And the grammar? It comes hard to me. |
| Քայլ առ քայլ (k'ayl arr k'ayl)։ Տեսութիւնը (desut'yunə) քիչ (k'ich), պրակտիկան (bragdigan)՝ շատ (shad)։ | k'ayl arr k'ayl Desut'yunə k'ich, bragdigan shad | Step by step. Little theory, much practice. |
| Եթէ (yet'e) դաս (tas) բաց (pats) թողում, նօթեր պիտի (bidi) ըլլա՞ն։ | yet'e tas pats t'oghum, not'er bidi əllan | If I miss a class, will there be notes? |
| Այո (ayo), առցանց (arrtsants)։ Ինքնուրոյն (ink'nuruyn) պիտի (bidi) լրացնէք, եւ (yev) ամէն անգամ աւելի լաւ (amen ankam aveli lav) պիտի (bidi) ըլլայ (əllay)։ | ayo, arrtsants Ink'nuruyn bidi lratsnek', yev amen ankam aveli lav bidi əllay | Yes, online. You'll catch up on your own, and each time it will be better. |
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)։ Հայերէնի դասընթացներ կը փնտռեմ (hayereni tasənt'atsner gə p'ndrrem)։” (parev tsez Hayereni tasənt'atsner gə p'ndrrem) — Hello. I am looking for Armenian courses. 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.