“Stop butchering my language!” This is the message that James Winegar, a physics student, got when he tried to strike a conversation in Czech with a local PhD student at Austin Peay State University in Czech Republic. This is after James had spent one summer trying to develop his language skills. James admitted that even though it was tough for him to learn Czech, the language came in handy when he got a grant from Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program and had to spend 3 months in Czech carrying out his undergraduate research. Not many Czech locals speak English so it is imperative that you know some Czech when you plan to visit the country. There are different dialects of Czech. This includes common Czech which is spoken in Bohemia and the dialects spoken in east Moravian, central Moravian and Lasko region. Even though the differences are based on the geographical regions of the speakers, everyone who speaks Czech can be able to understand each other.
Czech is a west Slavic language spoken by 12 million people in Czech Republic. It is the only official language of Czech Republic but some other languages are also spoken in the country. This includes Slovak, Polish, German and Romani. Czech is also spoken in Austria, Ukraine, Germany, Australia, Canada, Poland, Croatia and Romania. The largest group of speakers who live outside the Czech Republic can be found in the United States in New York, Chicago, Texas, Wisconsin, Minnesota and Nebraska. Czech is closely associated with Sorbian, Polish and Slovak. There is a difference between written Czech and the spoken language in terms of vocabulary. Diacritics are normally used in the spelling system, which is based on the Latin alphabet.
A play on language is characteristic of different languages all over the world. Czech is not excluded and you can find various word games. This includes tongue twisters, crossword puzzles, riddles, quizzes and even jokes. Some of these games can be accessed online for free. The advantage of the games is that they can assist you to master the language while having fun.
