Moscow, July 25 - Many Russians speak a foreign language and about half of them would like to expand their linguistic skills, sociologists said.
Two-thirds of the Russian population (67 percent) is fluent in a foreign language, such as English (38 percent), German (19 percent), French (3 percent) or Spanish (1 percent), the Public Opinion Foundation said referring to a phone poll of 1,000 respondents. The respondents were free to name several languages.
Thirty-eight percent said their language skills were useful. Those skills were used recently during trips abroad, in the line of work, in the operation of a computer or when browsing the Internet (7 percent each).
Forty-six percent are seeking knowledge of a new language: 25 percent want to study English, 7 percent preferred French and 5 percent opted for German. Russians are also interested in more exotic languages, such as Chinese (3 percent), Japanese and Arabic (1 percent each).
Fifty-seven percent believe that knowledge of foreign languages is vital, and 40 percent disagree.
Old age (memory deteriorates with age; it becomes more difficult to learn; there is no practical need to learn now – God would not mind me the way I am) and the lack of necessity (no place to speak a foreign language; I live in a village and my only company are cows) are excuses of 19 percent of the respondents unwilling to learn a foreign language. Seven percent said they simply did not have enough free time.
