eli5 How did colonizers spread their culture to natives despite a language barrier?

Question

I was wondering how they were even able to spread culture to their colonies when they first attempted communication with natives, there should be a language barrier, no? for example, The Spaniards when they tried to talk to the Filipino natives in the 1500s

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Answer 1

The same way you teach a baby how to speak whatever language. The baby doesn’t know what an “apple” is until you point at it and say “apple”. Now, adults aren’t babies, so it’s easier for them to learn, but the principle still holds. For actions, you can mime the action and say what it is. Repeat for every thing that’s physically expressible, like emotions. Once you have actions and emotions, you can describe cultural things, like prayer or customs (“sit, clasp hands, murmur, eat, *happy*” would describe saying grace before a meal).