Teach Yourself Get Started in Italian - Beginners Italian -2 Audio CDs and Book
Whatever your reasons for studying Italian, this course will provide you with an excellent introduction to mastering this beautiful language and acquainting yourself with its wonderful people.
Table of Contents:
Introduction
How the course works
Pronunciation guide
1 How are you?
2 What’s your name?
3 Where do you live?
4 How is (it)?
5 How much is it?
6 What’s the time?
7 What time does it leave?
8 What do you want to do today?
9 When do you get up?
10 Did you book?
11 Shopping
12 It is my turn!
13 Going about town
14 Accommodation
15 Enjoy your meal!
16 Family life
17 Keeping fit
18 What’s the weather like?
19 Fill it up, please
20 What shall I write?
Key to the exercises and tests
A summary of grammar
Italian-English vocabulary
English-Italian vocabulary
Taking it further
Index
Are you looking for a course in Italian written for the absolute beginner who has no experience of learning a foreign language? Get Started in Italian will give you the confidence to communicate in Italian.Now fully updated to make your language learning experience fun and interactive. You can still rely on the benefits of a top language teacher and our years of teaching experience, but now with added learning features within the course and online.The emphasis of the course is placed on communication, rather than grammar, and all the teaching is in English, so that you will quickly and effortlessly get started in Italian.
By the end of this course, you will be at Level B1 of the Common European Framework for Languages: Can deal with most situations likely to arise whilst travelling in an area where the language is spoken.Learn effortlessly with new, easy-to-read page design and interactive features:
NOT GOT MUCH TIME?
One, five and ten-minute introductions to key principles to get you started.
AUTHOR INSIGHTS
Lots of instant help with common problems and quick tips for success, based on the author's many years of experience.
USEFUL VOCABULARY
Easy to find and learn, to build a solid foundation for speaking.
DIALOGUES
Read and listen to everyday dialogues to help you speak and understand fast.
PRONUNCIATION
Don't sound like a tourist! Perfect your pronunciation before you go.
TEST YOURSELF
Tests in the book and online to keep track of your progress.
EXTEND YOUR KNOWLEDGE
Extra online articles at: www.teachyourself.com to give you a richer understanding of the culture and history of Italy.
TRY THIS
Innovative exercises illustrate what you've learnt and how to use it.
Easy to follow - the pace and approach mean that this is a course for the true beginner.Practical - covers all the basic structures and vocabulary you will need for everyday situations . Up to date - contains lots of cultural information
About the Author
Vittoria Bowles has taught Italian for 27 years including 18 at the University of Brighton.
About the Italian Language
Italian is a Romance language spoken as a regional language by approximately 62 million inhabitants in Italy, San Marino and parts of Switzerland, Croatia, Slovenia plus France. It is spoken as a primary language by many Italian people and immigrants overseas, for a full amount of approximately seventy million regional speakers. In addition, it is spoken by an additional a hundred and twenty to one hundred fifty million natives as a second language. Nearly all regional speakers are native bilinguals of both standardised Italian and regional varieties. In Switzerland, Italian is one of 4 sanctioned languages, spoken predominantly in the Swiss cantons of Grigioni and Ticino. It is also the official language of San Marino, as well as the primary language of Vatican City. The Italian language adopted by the state after the unification of Italy is based on the Tuscan dialect, which beforehand was only available to upper class Florentine society. Its development was also influenced by other Italian dialects and by the Germanic language of the post-Roman invaders. Italian was often an official language of the various Italian states pre-dating unification, slowly usurping Latin, even when ruled by foreign powers , even though the masses spoke primarily vernacular languages and dialects. Italian was also one of the many recognised languages in the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
Unlike most other Romance languages, Italian has retained the contrast between short and long consonants which existed in Latin. As in most Romance languages, stress is distinctive. Of the Romance languages, Italian is considered to be one of the closest resembling Latin in terms of vocabulary, though Romanian most closely preserves the noun declension system of Classical Latin, and Spanish the verb conjugation system , while Sardinian is the most conservative in terms of phonology. |
