Do you translate to those around you what you've said to your DC?

[Maia290]

I always speak my language (the minoriity language) to my DC when we are with friends and relatives who don't understand us ( they are monolinguals in the majority language). I feel they may be uncomfortable because they don't have a clue what i've said to my DC. I normally don't translate to them what i've said to my DC, but they may feel excluded or come accross as rude. Do you translate to them? Do you find it is practical?

We're an OPOL family and I'm the minority language speaker. DS is 4&½ and I have never translated to family/friends/carers... What I tell him. MIL likes to comment she doesn't know what I'm telling DS but DH is supporting me. Good luck

No, why would I need to, I'm not speaking to them.

I don't have the problem with relatives though because all relatives speak the minority language. So it's just people outside of our family. TBH though DS' grasp of the majority language is much better than mine so I am not very often using it and it probably sounds very broken when I do, I have never had anybody blink when I switch to talking to DS in English.

Not me personally but my friend speaks several languages. She will sometimes speak in another language to her DCs mainly instructions etc. I wouldn't expect her to translate. I would, if I'm honest, be annoyed if they always spoke in a language in public that we didn't share.

I took my dd and her friend out today. I spoke to dd directly in English, but when speaking to both of them, or all including friends mother, I spoke in French. It would be odd to me to speak dd in French - plus she criticises my pronunciation....

My mother always spoke to me in the minority language. Although she did not always translate for friends and relatives (that would be so time consuming!), she did at least explain that she always spoke to me in French. That way, everyone knew that is was just the way we communicated and we weren't speaking in French to hide anything from them! Once people knew that and got used to it, nobody batted an eyelid.

I'm doing it like Aditya's mother.

I'm watching with interest as I will be the minority language speaker in 2 years when we move to Germany. Most of DP' s family speak some English so it's not an issue for me but my MIL speaks no English so one of us normally translates to her, and when I haven't understood the German (I'm still a novice) she gets someone to translate for me. I am happy to continue for MIL but I wouldn't want to repeat everything for someone else's benefit in the future! Perhaps I would switch to English. Or just let them speculate :)

Switch to German rather!

Most Germans speak English anyway and often are eager to do so so ypu probably won't have to worry too much.

YY I live in Germany and I speak my terrible German to locals and then switch to English for DS, even though his German is better than mine.

no
only if it applies also to the other party like 'nichts mehr naschen' 'no more sweets'

I speak to the DC in the majority language in front of friends/relatives for the most part. We talk to each other plenty in the minority language when no one else is listening in. I do think it's kind of rude to speak a language in front of people that they cannot understand, if you could easily say it in the majority language.

But obviously if you can only communicate well in the minority language, then you use that.

My dc speak the majority language amongst themselves. Neither dh or I speak it (they do through school).

If friends are round I ask them to speak English or translate. They're 14,12,10, so old enough to understand. They're just so used to speaking Ghaidlig to each other and friends at school it's their instinct.

I do what PopularNames does, for the same reasons. I find it very odd to talk to ds in English if we are in german-speaking company. We get plenty of time to speak English at home, with English speaking friends or if we're out and it's just the two of us.

I also grew up bilingual (different language, not German) and we did the same thing, so I suppose it feels the most natural to me.

If I only spoke to the kids in the minority language when no non-minority language speakers were around they wouldn't stand a chance at picking it up to even a basic competency level.

I work full time they go to a majority language school and childcare setting, my husband doesn't really speak the minority language. There simply isn't enough one on one alone time to make it an option to keep both languages going without speaking the minority language in the presence of non speakers

My friend speaks French to her DD, English to us and any surrounding children.

No problem, I'd find it a bit bizarre if she translated it - delightful as her DD is does anyone need a blow by blow account of what you're saying to a toddler?

I am also endlessly amused that despite my very very rusty French I can usually work out exactly what she's saying anyway, because so much of what we say to small children is utterly universal and pan-linguistic

I quite often do translate, but only because PIL don't like being left out of the loop and DH gets funny about it. I also think it is a bit silly though as it is highly unlikely that I am saying anything of importance to my three year old.

I'm a majority language speaker (English in England) but have various friends with dc who have English as an additional language. I would expect, and encourage, the parent to speak the minority language to their dc and don't expect a translation. The exception is my French friend, where I know a bit of French so try and join in which I expect she finds privately hilarious she seems to like

It really depends. If I want other people to know what I said, I will translate or speak in English, my mother tongue is German. When you have a play date with 4 children I don't want to say everything twice.

But in an environment with strangers, at the till of a supermarket, the bus driver etc, no.

DD is known to translate like when DH told her in German that they had to go shopping and she just turned and repeated it in ?English to her nursery nurse.