- LOS ANGELES -- In ethnically
diverse Los Angeles, many immigrants find that learning Korean, Spanish
or Mandarin is more important than English.
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- Manuel Aliga, a Peruvian immigrant, has spent years studying
Korean. He runs a store that sells soccer supplies in Koreatown.
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- At the beginning, English was very important -- and it
still is, if I need to go to a government office or court or get a license,
Aliaga told the Los Angeles Daily News.
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- Aliaga began learning Korean because he worked in Korean
owned groceries and wanted to talk to his employers and customers. Now,
he needs to communicate with his own customers, suppliers and other business
owners in the neighborhood.
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- But he has also become an admirer of Korean ways and
now spends his spare time studying Korean history.
-
- Martin Paik, a Seoul native who emigrated to Los Angeles
by way of Argentina, does not speak English. He writes a column on conversational
Spanish for the Korea Times.
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- In California, Spanish is more important than English,
Paik. "I haven't found any inconvenience because I don't speak English.
(UPI)
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- http://news.webindia123.com/news/showdetails.a
sp?id=121837&n_date=20050927&cat=World
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