October is Czech Heritage Month, a time for celebrating the music, art, food, literature, and linguistic culture of this middle European ancestry. According to the U.S. Census Bureau approximately a million and a half Americans consider themselves to be of Czech or Czechoslovakian descent. What better way to honor the culture of the Czech people than to learn its language.
The Czech Language Around the World
Czech is a Slavic language belonging the Indo-European language family. Czech and Slovak are very similar and are mutually intelligible. According the UCLA Language Materials Project, Czech is spoken by about 12 million people, the majority of whom live in the Czech Republic where it is the official language. Over a million Czech speakers reportedly live in the U.S., with nearly 28,000 living in Canada. Czech speakers also live in the Ukraine, Poland, Austria, and Israel.
Basic Greetings in Czech
- Dobrý den – Good day (most common formal greeting)
- Dobré ráno – Good morning (used only during the early morning)
- Dobrý vecer – Good evening
- Dobrou noc – Good night
- Na shledanou – Goodbye / See you later (formal)
- Nashle – Bye / See you (informal)
- Ahoj / Cau / Nazdar – Hello/Hi / Bye (informal; used with friends)
- Hezký den! – Have a nice day!
- Prosím - Please / You're welcome / Here you are
- Dekuji – Thank you (formal)
- Vítejte – Welcome (formal; plural)
- Jak se máš? (informal) / Jak se máte? (formal) – How are you?
- Mám se dobre. – I'm fine.
- Jak se jmenuješ / jmenujete? - What's your name? (informal singular / formal or familiar plural)
- Jmenuji se... - My name is...
Numbers in Czech
- nula – zero
- jeden / jedna / jedno – one
- dva / dve – two
- tri – three
- ctyri – four
- pet – five
- šest – six
- sedm – seven
- osm – eight
- devet – nine
- deset – ten
Resources for Learning the Czech Language
LocalLingo.com is a comprehensive online community and resource established specifically to aid those learning to speak Czech. The site offers an audio pronunciation guide, an grammar overview, phrases, vocabulary, and online exercises. Language students can also participate in message boards on the topic of Czech language learning.
Czechprimer.org, also known as Little Czech Primer in Pictures, uses cartoon graphics to illustrate verbs, nouns, and adjectives. Run the cursor over the Czech word to get the English translation and avoid guesswork. The site also includes lists of language learning resources, both in print form and online.
Bohemica.com offers itself as a “junction for Czech language and culture.” The site is a compilation of everything Czech with tabs for language, culture, a bookstore, photo gallery, resources for teachers, and a center for translation. The site is free but does require registration in order to access much of its material.
The Pimsleur Audio Language series [Simon & Schuster] offers several versions of its popular language learning audio (CD) programs in Czech.
Berlitz also offers audio CD Czech language programs, as well as a variety of phrasebooks and Czech-English dictionaries.
Whether planning a trip to Prague and the Czech Republic, or simply wanting to learn more about and to honor the Czech heritage, learning the language can be a fulfilling challenge. The resources listed above are offered as a starting point. A number of colleges and universities throughout the country offer Czech language courses for those interested in more intensive study.
