LingoflyAn argument at a meeting in Western Armenian
A meeting at a firm: two opinions about moving the office, arguments and a shared decision in Western Armenian. 8 phrases that the conversation is made of: «Կ'առաջարկեմ գրասենեակը (kraseneagə) կեդրոն (getron) փոխադրել։» — I suggest moving the office to the centre; «Ես (yes) դէմ (tem) եմ (em)։ Իմ կարծիքով (im gardzik'ov) վարձքը երկու անգամ (yergu ankam) բարձր (partsr) պիտի (bidi) ըլլայ (əllay)։» — I am against. In my opinion the rent will be twice as high.
How the whole thing sounds
The situation: a meeting at a firm: two opinions about moving the office, arguments and a shared decision. First the whole conversation, then each line on its own, with a translation.
- Կ'առաջարկեմ գրասենեակը կեդրոն փոխադրել։g'arrachargem kraseneagə getron p'okhatrelI suggest moving the office to the centre.
- yes tem em Im gardzik'ov vartsk'ə yergu ankam partsr bidi əllayI am against. In my opinion the rent will be twice as high.
- voch t'e yergu ankam, ayl k'arrasun dogosov Asiga p'asd eNot twice — by forty percent. That is a fact.
- Ահա հարցումին տուեալները։ Առաւելութիւնը յաճախորդներուն մօտիկութիւնն է։aha hartsumin dvealnerə Arravelut'yunə hajakhortnerun modigut'yunn eHere is the survey data. The advantage is the closeness to the clients.
- Իսկ թերութիւնը՝ կայանատեղի չկայ։ Հաշուի առէք նաեւ ատիկա։isg t'erut'yunə gayanadeghi chgay Hashvi arrek' naev adigaAnd the drawback — there is no parking. Take that into account too.
- amen baragayi voroshumə miasin gayatsnenk', voch t'e shdabIn any case we'll decide together, not in a hurry.
Lines one by one
| Western Armenian | Reading | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| Կ'առաջարկեմ գրասենեակը (kraseneagə) կեդրոն (getron) փոխադրել։ | g'arrachargem kraseneagə getron p'okhatrel | I suggest moving the office to the centre. |
| Ես (yes) դէմ (tem) եմ (em)։ Իմ կարծիքով (im gardzik'ov) վարձքը երկու անգամ (yergu ankam) բարձր (partsr) պիտի (bidi) ըլլայ (əllay)։ | yes tem em Im gardzik'ov vartsk'ə yergu ankam partsr bidi əllay | I am against. In my opinion the rent will be twice as high. |
| Ոչ (voch) թէ (t'e) երկու անգամ (yergu ankam), այլ (ayl) քառասուն (k'arrasun) տոկոսով (dogosov)։ Ասիկա (asiga) փաստ (p'asd) է։ | voch t'e yergu ankam, ayl k'arrasun dogosov Asiga p'asd e | Not twice — by forty percent. That is a fact. |
| Կրնա՞ք ապացուցել (abatsutsel)։ Անցեալ (antsyal) տարուան (daruan) հետ (hed) համեմատած (hamemadadz) գիները (kinerə) փոխուած (p'okhuadz) են (en)։ | grnak' abatsutsel Antseal darvan hed hamemadadz kinerə p'okhvadz en | Can you prove it? Compared with last year the prices have changed. |
| Ահա (aha) հարցումին (hartsumin) տուեալները (dvealnerə)։ Առաւելութիւնը (arravelut'yunə) յաճախորդներուն մօտիկութիւնն է։ | aha hartsumin dvealnerə Arravelut'yunə hajakhortnerun modigut'yunn e | Here is the survey data. The advantage is the closeness to the clients. |
| Իսկ (isg) թերութիւնը (t'erut'yunə)՝ կայանատեղի (gayanadeghi) չկայ (chgay)։ Հաշուի (hashui) առէք (arrek) նաեւ ատիկա (adiga)։ | isg t'erut'yunə gayanadeghi chgay Hashvi arrek' naev adiga | And the drawback — there is no parking. Take that into account too. |
| Սխալս կ'ընդունիմ։ Ատիկա (adiga) իսկապէս լուրջ (lurch) թերութիւն (t'erut'yun) է։ | skhals g'əntunim Adiga isgabes lurch t'erut'yun e | I admit my mistake. That is indeed a serious drawback. |
| Ամէն պարագայի (amen baragayi) որոշումը (voroshumə) միասին (miasin) կայացնենք, ոչ (voch) թէ (t'e) շտապ (shdab)։ | amen baragayi voroshumə miasin gayatsnenk', voch t'e shdab | In any case we'll decide together, not in a hurry. |
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?
“Կ'առաջարկեմ գրասենեակը (kraseneagə) կեդրոն (getron) փոխադրել։” (g'arrachargem kraseneagə getron p'okhatrel) — I suggest moving the office to the centre. 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.