Hindi is the major language of India. The best estimates available put native speakers of Hindi at around 180 million. Common, everyday spoken Hindi is nearly identical to Pakistan’s national language, Urdu. However, Hindi and Urdu have different written forms. Urdu uses a form of Arabic script, while Hindi uses a script called Devangari. Urdu derives its vocabulary primarily from Persian and Arabic, while most Hindi’s words come from Sanskrit. The Devangari script contains a relatively small number of characters, ten vowels and forty consonants, and is written left to right like English. Another advantage for English speakers is that Hindi is a highly phonetic language. English speakers can use the written forms of words as a very reliable guide to their pronunciation.
On the other hand, Hindi grammar has little in common with that of English. Words are consistently stressed fully and without hesitation. Verb tenses are not really equivalent between the languages either. While this is not really an issue in casual conversation, it becomes problematic in a business setting or other situations where precise language is required. Articles frequently confuse native English speakers as well. Hindi lacks a definite article, and an object always precedes the verb.
The Language Island offers comprehensive, one-on-one instruction for students at every point on their journey to learning Hindi. Tutors work with a student to develop an individualized lesson plan tailored to his or her needs. Our tutors are passionate, caring and highly fluent in the languages they teach. They pride themselves on connecting with their students and being able to carry on fluent, natural sounding conversations entirely in the language being taught. Entry-level classes are taught in both Hindi and in English, with an increasing amount of Hindi being used as student becomes more comfortable with the new language. Intermediate and advanced-level students can take advantage of full-immersion classes, where the course is taught entirely in Hindi. Our tutors use only the best materials available. They have sorted through the fads and gimmicks to find the most effective techniques that have truly stood the test of time.