To acquire cultural knowledge is extremely important so many people believe that an individual can never gain this without speaking the specific language. However, in my opinion, I disagree that speaking the local language is important as it only requires a person’s interest and observational skills.
To begin with, people do not need to speak the native language to know about culture because they can read digital books according to their time. These books can give knowledge about entire history in detail and also one can learn about cultural heritage in their own language. Due to the latest technology, there are many digital books available online related to different countries customs and norms. For example, ‘Indian Independent History’ book is available online in various languages, therefore, anyone can know about Indian history without knowing Hindi language. Thus, people can travel any where in the word and acquire knowledge about the different cultures of a country.
Another point to consider is that people can visit tourist attractions to know about the culture of a nation. In other words, many places have tour guides who can speak national language, people can go there and ask anything they want to know about past or just can observe the place to understand different activities like local dances or festivals. For instance, one of the famous tourist attractions, Niagara falls in Canada has a written history about the place on numerous rocks, therefore, individual do not need to learn their local language French.
In conclusion, having cultural knowledge is important but it is not necessary to vocalize the language. The important consideration in learning about other country’s cultures is to have an interest and observation skills.