(Why Spanish classes can be much more than language learning)
Learning Spanish is more than memorising vocabulary or practising grammar. For many children of Latin American immigrants living in the Netherlands, the UK, or anywhere in Europe, learning Spanish is an act of reconnection. It is a way of recovering family history, strengthening identity, and rebuilding emotional ties that may feel distant. At Het Latin Lab, we see it every day: taking Spanish lessons or joining Spanish classes isn’t only an academic choice — it can be a deeply personal journey.
The languages around us shape the different stages of our lives. I was born in Uruguay, spent my teenage years in Argentina, and later made France my second home. In my childhood, my mother and grandmother often used words, expressions, and lullabies in Portuguese — the language they had spoken at school and with their paternal family, descendants of French settlers in Brazil. Many years later, when my son was born, I found myself singing the same lullabies in Brazilian Portuguese. A whole language I thought I had forgotten resurfaced naturally. It had never been an active language for me, yet what remained was something deeper than use: an emotional imprint, a memory carried quietly over time. This is what happens for many heritage speakers who decide to learn Spanish again: the language was never fully lost — it was simply waiting.
Language is not just a tool for communication; it influences how we imagine, feel, and navigate the world. My childhood in Uruguay was filled with images of gauchos, open plains, horses, Charrúa warriors, alligators and pumas. But in France, the stories I encountered spoke of kings and princesses, wolves, ravens, giraffes, elephants, and witches. Cultural differences also appear in how we interact with others. In France, when you approach someone for information, you begin with “Excuse me”—a polite, expected norm. In Argentina, if you start that way, the other person might think you’re trying to sell them something and walk away. Learning a language means stepping into a different way of interpreting the world.
When students join our Spanish classes — especially heritage speakers — they often tell us: they can finally speak directly with their grandparents family jokes suddenly make sense old letters and messages feel warmer and more familiar they feel more connected to their identity and origins Spanish may feel distant at first, but once it becomes yours again, it gives something back: belonging.
Spanish is more than communication. It is history, memory, and family. It is the connection between generations — whether you learned it as a child, half-remember it, or are starting now as an adult. Languages do not disappear; they wait. Quietly. Patiently. For the moment we choose to speak them again. If you’re ready to learn Spanish or reclaim the Spanish that lives inside you, our Latin American Spanish lessons are designed exactly for that: structured, human, cultural, and made for people who want to reconnect with their roots.
By Daniela Vitancourt – Founder of Het Latin Lab
The Languages That Live Within Us
The languages around us shape the different stages of our lives. I was born in Uruguay, spent my teenage years in Argentina, and later made France my second home. In my childhood, my mother and grandmother often used words, expressions, and lullabies in Portuguese — the language they had spoken at school and with their paternal family, descendants of French settlers in Brazil. Many years later, when my son was born, I found myself singing the same lullabies in Brazilian Portuguese. A whole language I thought I had forgotten resurfaced naturally. It had never been an active language for me, yet what remained was something deeper than use: an emotional imprint, a memory carried quietly over time. This is what happens for many heritage speakers who decide to learn Spanish again: the language was never fully lost — it was simply waiting.
The Words That Shape How We See the World
Language is not just a tool for communication; it influences how we imagine, feel, and navigate the world. My childhood in Uruguay was filled with images of gauchos, open plains, horses, Charrúa warriors, alligators and pumas. But in France, the stories I encountered spoke of kings and princesses, wolves, ravens, giraffes, elephants, and witches. Cultural differences also appear in how we interact with others. In France, when you approach someone for information, you begin with “Excuse me”—a polite, expected norm. In Argentina, if you start that way, the other person might think you’re trying to sell them something and walk away. Learning a language means stepping into a different way of interpreting the world.
Learning Spanish Is Opening a Door
When students join our Spanish classes — especially heritage speakers — they often tell us: they can finally speak directly with their grandparents family jokes suddenly make sense old letters and messages feel warmer and more familiar they feel more connected to their identity and origins Spanish may feel distant at first, but once it becomes yours again, it gives something back: belonging.
Spanish as a Home You Can Always Return To
Spanish is more than communication. It is history, memory, and family. It is the connection between generations — whether you learned it as a child, half-remember it, or are starting now as an adult. Languages do not disappear; they wait. Quietly. Patiently. For the moment we choose to speak them again. If you’re ready to learn Spanish or reclaim the Spanish that lives inside you, our Latin American Spanish lessons are designed exactly for that: structured, human, cultural, and made for people who want to reconnect with their roots.
By Daniela Vitancourt – Founder of Het Latin Lab
