experienced language learner's tips on how to start Na'vi!

[irishpolyglot]

Hey guys - I'm an Irish polyglot - I've been travelling for a few years and have a pretty good method to learn languages. So I decided to apply that to Na'vi and give tips for others interested in trying!
I don't go into too much detail on the background of the language, but I explain the attitude to have when learning this language and give some examples of how it can be easier than you think. Hope you like it!! Any comments appreciated
Fluent in 3 months - Learning Na'vi for your Avatar

[Erimeyz]

Wow, great tips about attitude!  Thanks for sharing.

Of course, some of your suggestions won't work all that well with Na'vi, since we have precious few native speakers to converse with.  I think we've just got Prrton and that's it.

  - Eri

[Eight]

I love to see more Na'vi on the internet.

The 'r' in Na'vi is rolled, so you should work on that as well as generally getting rid of your English accent.

The 'r' is a flap. 'rr' is trilled/rolled.

[irishpolyglot]

@Eight Glad you liked it Sometimes we still call the "flap" a rolled r (I'm not sure if that's accurate or not, but I've heard it a lot), but good to know that it follows basically the same rules as Spanish with r vs rr (presuming the single r isn't at the beginning of the word)
@Eri My post presumes the reader actually is going to Pandora and has already secured their Avatar. It's not quite so good for the non-fantasy world! It's more of a theoretical look on how even alien languages could be learned with the right attitude, and just stirring some interest in Na'vi for those curious to find out some basics of how it works

[omängum fra'uti]

The single r can indeed be at the beginning of a word (rutxe, for example).

[Tanhì Tireafya'o]

It won't be that hard, right? Rolling the 'r'? I mean, everyone is used to speaking the normal R. Like in 'word' 'dirt' 'quaqsire'.
How to explain the rolling R. I don't know. I could do it ever since I can remember.

Great link, thanks!!

[Eight]

Sometimes we still call the "flap" a rolled r (I'm not sure if that's accurate or not, but I've heard it a lot)

Now that you mention it, that's true - you do often hear people say that. But if memory serves, and it rarely does , I think a rolled r is really a trill not a flap. Not that it matters as long as people get the right idea.

Rs are surprising tricky for people. Whether it's the standard English r giving foreign language speakers trouble, the weird uvular fricative [ʁ] in French, the beautifully trilled Rs of some European languages, or those pesky flaps. It really is a very poorly designed letter of the alphabet. Too many options.

I've spoken French for years (on and off and to varying levels of fluency) and I still struggle with R. Whereas the flap I'm fine with.

[Nìwotxkrr Tìyawn]

Now that you mention it, that's true - you do often hear people say that. But if memory serves, and it rarely does , I think a rolled r is really a trill not a flap. Not that it matters as long as people get the right idea.

Rs are surprising tricky for people. Whether it's the standard English r giving foreign language speakers trouble, the weird uvular fricative [ʁ] in French, the beautifully trilled Rs of some European languages, or those pesky flaps. It really is a very poorly designed letter of the alphabet. Too many options.

I've spoken French for years (on and off and to varying levels of fluency) and I still struggle with R. Whereas the flap I'm fine with.

Pronouncing things comes easily to me.