Could someone learn a language with only a Bible and an audio dictionary? Or from a few films with subtitles? What's the theoretical minimum amount of material necessary to learn a language?

Think about Christian missionaries learning indigenous languages, translating the Bible into those languages, and then using those translations to teach other missionaries the language.

Or even of Star Trek scenarios where there's a universal translator device that can learn any language given enough exposure to native materials.

Theoretically, there should be a minimum amount of material in a foreign language that would contain enough vocabulary and grammar that, if mastered, would yield a basic level of fluency, and subsequently serve as a scaffold for further learning from native materials.

This is not a very practical question because learners in 2024 are generally not limited to a small corpus of materials, but I invite you to explore the question with me and submit your opinions.

submitted by /u/ObjectiveFix1346
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