Learn Hardcore Esperanto: Mi mem lernas Esperanton en mia ĉambro.

Mi lernas Esperanton en mia ĉambro = I learn / am learning Esperanto in my room.
Mi mem lernas Esperanton en mia ĉambro = I myself am learning Esperanto in my room.

It suggests that:

I am the one doing it (not someone else), and
often, in context, that I am learning it by myself (self‑study, without a teacher).

So mem emphasizes the subject mi rather than changing the basic meaning of the verb lernas.

Can I leave out mem? Is the sentence still correct?

Yes, you can omit mem:

Mi lernas Esperanton en mia ĉambro.

This is perfectly correct and neutral. It just means you learn / are learning Esperanto in your room, without any special emphasis.

Adding mem:

Mi mem lernas Esperanton en mia ĉambro.

adds the nuance that you are doing it yourself (often “on my own / self‑taught” or “I, personally” in contrast to someone else).

Where does mem normally go? Could I say Mi lernas mem Esperanton or Mem mi lernas Esperanton?

The most natural and common position is right after the word it emphasizes, here the pronoun:

Mi mem lernas Esperanton en mia ĉambro. ✅

Other positions are possible in Esperanto, but they are less neutral and can sound unusual to beginners:

Mi lernas mem Esperanton… — can be understood, but it feels less standard; it tends to emphasize the manner (“I learn it by myself”) rather than “I myself”.
Mem mi lernas Esperanton… — possible in very marked, poetic, or strongly emphasized speech, but not the normal pattern.

As a learner, it’s best to stick with the simple, very common pattern:

[pronoun/noun] + mem → mi mem, li mem, mia frato mem, etc.

Why does Esperanton end in -n?

The -n at the end marks the accusative case: the direct object of the verb.

Mi lernas Esperanton.
- Mi = I (subject, doer of the action)
- lernas = learn / am learning
- Esperanton = Esperanto (direct object, the thing being learned)

In Esperanto:

Basic noun ending is -o: Esperanto.
Direct object (accusative) adds -n: Esperanton.

So “What do I learn?” → Esperanton, hence the -n.

This -n also lets Esperanto use flexible word order without losing who is doing what to whom.

Why isn’t there a word for the in the sentence? Esperanto has la, right?

Yes, Esperanto has a definite article la (similar to English the), but:

There is no indefinite article (no equivalent of a / an).
La is only used when you actually want to mark something as “the specific one(s)”.

In this sentence:

Esperanton is used in a general sense: “Esperanto (the language)” as a thing you are learning, not some particular instance, so la is not needed.
mia ĉambro already includes a possessive mia (my).
With possessives (mia, via, lia, ŝia, nia, ilia) and similar words, you normally don’t add la, because they are already specific.

So:

Mi lernas Esperanton en mia ĉambro. = I am learning Esperanto in my room.
la would only appear if you specifically needed it for some other reason, which you don’t here.

Why doesn’t mia ĉambro have -n like Esperanton?

Because mia ĉambro is not the direct object of the verb; it’s inside a prepositional phrase.

The verb is lernas.
The direct object (accusative) of lernas is Esperanton, so it gets -n.
En mia ĉambro is a phrase with the preposition en (in), showing where the action happens.

In Esperanto, when a noun is governed by a normal preposition (like en, sur, sub, etc.), it usually stays in the basic form (no accusative -n, unless you are using a special directional meaning):

en mia ĉambro = in my room (location, no -n)

Could I ever say en mian ĉambron instead of en mia ĉambro?

Yes, but it changes the meaning:

en mia ĉambro (no -n) → in my room (location, where something is or happens).
- Mi lernas Esperanton en mia ĉambro. = I learn Esperanto in my room.
en mian ĉambron (with -n) → into my room (direction, movement to a place).
- Mi iras en mian ĉambron. = I go into my room.

So:

No -n after en → static location (in).
With -n after en → movement/direction (into).

In your sentence we talk about where you are learning, not moving into the room, so en mia ĉambro is correct.

Does lernas mean learn or am learning?

Lernas covers both meanings. Esperanto doesn’t grammatically distinguish between simple present and present progressive.

lerni = to learn
lernas = learn / learns / am learning / is learning / are learning (present)
lernis = learned / was learning / has learned (past)
lernos = will learn / will be learning (future)

So:

Mi lernas Esperanton en mia ĉambro.
Can mean:
- I learn Esperanto in my room.
- I am learning Esperanto in my room.

Context decides which English version sounds better.

What exactly is mia? Does it change form?

Mia is the possessive form of mi (I → my).

It behaves like an adjective:

Basic adjective ending is -a.
- bona ĉambro = good room
- mia ĉambro = my room

About endings:

mia agrees in number and case with the noun when needed:
- mia ĉambro = my room (one room, basic form)
- miaj ĉambroj = my rooms (plural: -j)
- mian ĉambron = my room (as a direct object: -n)
In your sentence we have a simple prepositional phrase for location:
- en mia ĉambro → no plural, no accusative, so mia stays just mia.

Is the word order fixed, or can I move parts of the sentence around?

Word order in Esperanto is quite flexible, thanks to the endings (especially the accusative -n). All of these are grammatically correct:

Mi mem lernas Esperanton en mia ĉambro.
Mi lernas Esperanton mem en mia ĉambro. (slightly different emphasis)
En mia ĉambro mi mem lernas Esperanton.
Esperanton mi mem lernas en mia ĉambro. (strong emphasis on Esperanto)

However:

The original order is very natural and neutral.
When you move things around, you change what is emphasized in the sentence.

As a beginner, it’s safe to keep the basic S‑V‑O pattern:

Mi mem lernas Esperanton en mia ĉambro.

How do I pronounce ĉambro and the special letter ĉ?

Pronunciation:

ĉ is a single consonant, pronounced like ch in English chair or church.
ĉam‑bro:
- ĉa like cha in charm (but with a pure a as in father)
- bro like bro in broke, but o is a pure vowel, like the o in Italian Roma (no diphthong).

So ĉambro sounds roughly like CHAHM-bro, with two clear syllables.

For Esperanton:

Stress is always on the second‑to‑last syllable: Es-pe-RAN-ton → es-pe-RAHN-ton (with a clear o at the end).

Is there any difference between lerni and studi for languages?

Yes, there is a nuance:

lerni = to learn, to acquire a skill or knowledge (result‑focused).
- Mi lernas Esperanton. = I am learning Esperanto (I’m acquiring the language).
studi = to study, to examine systematically (process‑focused, more “academic”).
- Mi studas Esperanton. = I study Esperanto (for example, as an academic subject, or in a more formal/analytic way).

In everyday speech about picking up a language, lerni is usually the natural choice, as in your sentence.