thanks. Now I know savantas is a real french word.

I am getting more excited now, how come I still can't find my dictionary?!

I want to read it myself Ar, so SO interesting!!! Wow?!

Somebody else has delved into the meaning of 'savantas' too. He even went further to mock at Regina Ip's misuse of the Latin suffix.

http://magliabecchi.blogspot.com/2006/07/savantas.html

多謝補充資料。拋磚引玉，得知此地有高人，不枉此役。

I agree that more and more people are learning French now in Hong Kong. However, it is very difficult to learn it well in Hong Kong. Even the teachers in Alliance Française Hong Kong(AFHK) are not all good. Also, lack of the language environment for students to practice, many people I know can write and understand paragraphs in French quite well, but they don't speak or understand the others......

By the way, Japanese is the largest foreign language in HK, I am quite sure. Why don't most of the people have motivation to learn French (or other languages) well? I guess it is because their lack of 'usefulness'. Surely I don't think this way, but most of the people would choose to learn something which can get them a better job or a higher salary, etc. Frankly, if you speak Japanese, you can get a job with much higher salary with the same level and job title; which I haven't seen any job asking for fluency or literacy in French yet (in Hong Kong) so far. Like, there are 'Japanese speaking clerks' in many Japanese companies, but 'French speaking clerks' are not needed. I have only seen a few 'up-market' restaurants saying that they prefer candidates with knowledge in French, and anyway which is not neccessary, and usually this 'qualification' does not give you higher income...

AFHK has tried to do some promotions to 'promote' French learning in HK, but with the limited resources, and the lack of 'need', it doesn't seem very useful. Nevertheless, Le French May, at least, has drawn some attention from the local society already. Hopefully the awareness of the 'not useful' languages is going to increase, as language studies is a good way of all-round training for the students, for them to learn to open up their eyes and to understand the importance of looking at things from different perspectives.

PLEASE, don't say such things, sir! This is really very offensive to some people. No culture is not worth understanding and studying about.

Actually, French is a very interesting language, and French people are also interesting, in a kind of weird way though, I admit. Others' cultures are not for us to under-estimate, esp. before thorough understanding.

I did start learning French for a practical reason, and then I enjoyed the procedure of learning about the cultures, not only the language, but everything linked and related to it, reflected by the ways of communications between the people from a certain cultural background.
Actually, I even want to learn Turkish, surely for NO 'USE' at all.
For thos who love languages, they know the passion and this is something very difficult to explain to the others, esp. those who don't like the arts and science of languages.

Maths. is VERY popular indeed, throughout the globe!
And actually I have studied Maths. a bit. I studied A. Maths. and it was the worst subject ever!!! So, I am not interested in Maths. anymore.

Well, Spanish and Portuguese are MUCH MORE USEFUL! Less and less people in Europe know French nowadays (except in France, Switzerland and Belgium), in fact, but at least Spanish and Portuguese help you communicate with South Americans.

In fact, I haven't assumed anything.
However, it is unfair to criticise a culture and to JUDGE that it is useless, meaningless, etc. BEFORE YOU KNOW ENOUGH about it. Without learning something, you can't tell that it is useless or it does not worth learning.

For example, I didn't know how much French could help me in English learning and teaching before I learnt French. French culture is very very interesting, with their history, diversity and the different meanings of the 'same' words, etc.

I happen to know both the languages you just mentioned, with much better French (I can hardly speak German now, after so long). And I guess I won't continue to learn German, as German, like their culture, is simply too rigid. French is a 'free' language, as the spoken language is totally 'out of grammar' while only written French is strictly controlled, but German needs to follow ALL the rules ALL THE TIME.

Re: The phenomenon you spotted, it is not news. However, a part of the fact is, most French really can't seak English at all. The education system in France is quite strange, and each part has a different standard. However, in most public schools (private schools have a higher academic level), students start to learn a second language (most likely English) at the age of around 10 or even later, and to make it worse, they start learning their third language at 2 to 3 years later, while some more capable students can choose to learn a fourth language 1 year after that.
At the end of the day, that's the result you see - knowing no foreign language at all (except some people working in tourism or business world and some exceptional people).

And frankly, French are just proud, but it is not big a SIN, right? As long as you show your interest in learning their language or culture, they respect you much more. Believe me, as I actually know them. And the worst thing of French is just that they are so 'romantic' and 'THUS' very emotional, otherwise, they are much easy to get along with than Germans. Yes, Germans are more polite, but they are simply rigid, reflected by and in the language. I would say, you can get close to French speaking people more easily than the German speaking people. And, out of topic, just from my observation, although I don't know Italian. Italians seem very passionated and a bit too 'erotic'. Frankly, I believe my understanding towards them are quite superficial, so I will not be so sure before I know enough about the language and the people...... Hope you can try to see it this way, too.