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Learn more about Natasha

• Do you speak this language fluently because of your origins or because a teacher inspired you to learn?

  I learned English from my father, French from my mother and Dutch at school when I started primary school in the Netherlands at age 6.

• Can you name a living, historical or fictional character that you think is the emblematic representative of the language's culture?

  There definitely are many but I think those that are worth mentioning are for French, Asterix and Obelix, for English, Shakespeare of course and for Dutch I would have to say the writer Ronald Giphart.

• Is there a typical word, phrase, tradition or behaviour in the language that you particularly like?

  My favourite word in Dutch to use is "gezellig". For English, my favourite tradition is celebrating the holidays like in the movies, and for French, I love how they look at life with the phrase "c'est la vie".

• Why does speaking this language matter to you?

  Speaking English matters to me because it's how we communicate with the world. Dutch matters to me because it represents a better future my parents gave me and I can hopefully give my children as well. Speaking French also matters to me because it represents my Lebanese roots and family.

• What is the main difficulty in learning this language and what can help the process of learning?

  The main difficulty in learning Dutch is perhaps the accent and what can help is listening to a lot of native speech. For French the main difficulty would be the grammar and the best way to learn that is through lots and lots of practice, exercises and repetition. For English, I would say it's confidence. Because most people speak a bit of English but don't feel confident enough to elevate their level. So to help with that my suggestion would be to interact with as many English speakers as you can to grow your confidence in your own abilities.

• Could you share a valuable anecdote related to your language learning or your days at school?

  The anecdote that sticks out to me is a school friend telling me that when I first started primary school in the Netherlands, I could only speak English in class. However, I have no memory of this. I just learned Dutch naturally and effortlessly. So what I take from this is that if you learn a second or third language at a young enough age, you won't even remember how you learned it! But if you decide to learn a new language as an adult, you have to be prepared to put in the effort. And you will see the results!

• How has travel or a specific trip helped you to increase your skill and knowledge of the language?

  As I started speaking more English and Dutch, French became less of a priority. Therefore I decided to travel to France and do an internship for 5 months to have the opportunity to speak the language more. This helped me tremendously to become more fluent again and gain more confidence and to know that it's okay to make mistakes when interacting with native speakers. Even though it's like riding a bicycle, we must continue to speak a language to not lose it!

• What makes you a Superprof in language?

  My family. Growing up in a multicultural family has opened me up to different languages and cultures. I am very thankful to my family for this opportunity as languages have played an important role throughout my life.