The official language of Germany, Austria and Liechtenstein, German is also taught as a second language in many countries. There are many regional dialects, many of which evolved due to the migration of tribes, centuries ago. Listening to native German speakers is the best way to learn German, in order to pick up correct pronunciation and sentence structures.

There are many words in the German language that have been incorporated into the English language. We are all familiar with ‘kindergarten’, and hamburgers are named after their German city of origin – Hamburg! If you are a beginner to learning German, then you will be pleased to know that new spelling and grammar rules were put in to force by the German government in 1998. The new language system has cut down drastically on the number of rules that previously existed.

There are several courses available from Rosetta Stone, which make learning German fun and easy. If you’re wondering how to learn German fast, then this may be the answer. As mentioned, there is no substitute for hearing native speakers, and you will be able to do just that. There is no English spoken on the CD-ROMS, which may sound daunting, but actually mimics the way we all learn to speak as infants. An example would be seeing many pictures of a different object, such as a book or a house, and hearing the German translation each time. You will quickly learn to associate the word with the object, even though no-one has explained it in English. This way, there is less effort involved, and you will hear correct pronunciations – no doubt the best way to learn German.

There are five levels to choose from, ranging from learning German for beginners, to level 5, which is related to commerce and solving problems. There are discounts for buying packs of levels, rather than just one at a time, and all the software is covered by a six-month money back guarantee if you aren’t happy with the course. Included with the CD-ROMS is an audio companion set of CDs to listen to on CD or mp3 players. There is also a headset for testing out your pronunciation using the speech recognition software.

An alternative to the discs is to pay for a three or six monthly subscription. This allows access to all five levels and is a less costly option.