Dominance of English in the world

[edyzmedieval]

I have to do an English presentation about the topic "Dominance of the English language in the world" for my exams, for 15 minutes, and I was wondering if anyone would have some ideas and some links that could help me.

Thanks.

[InsaneApache]

The seven years war. The rise of the British Empire. The fall of the British Empire. The rise of America in the 20th centuary. The legacy of the British Empire; USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand; Offical language of India. etc.

Some things to be going on with.

[Pannonian]

The seven years war. The rise of the British Empire. The fall of the British Empire. The rise of America in the 20th centuary. The legacy of the British Empire; USA, Canada, Australia, New Zealand; Offical language of India. etc.

Some things to be going on with.

Probably by far the biggest factor. The British empire left a legacy, but the US made English a cultural aspiration.

[Yoyoma1910]

There's a good book for you:

Bernard Spolsky, Language Policy. Cambridge Press, 2004.


In Louisiana, during my grandparents' and parents' generation there was a strong policy to eliminate the local dialects of French and Spanish that were spoken by most of the people in the region. If the children were caught speaking anything but English in school, they were severely punished.


You see, while there is no official language in the U.S., there is unofficially an official one. I don't know if I would call that an aspiration, so much as a cultural whip. Speak English, or don't speak.

[Fragony]

But it's also pretty easy to pick up.

[Pannonian]

You see, while there is no official language in the U.S., there is unofficially an official one. I don't know if I would call that an aspiration, so much as a cultural whip. Speak English, or don't speak.

Through the second half of the 20th century, people all over the world wanted to be like America, aspire to their ideals, their culture, etc. America represented freedom, democracy and prosperity, and American cultural and economic products were a way to buy into that brand. The internet helped this along, with the adoption of English as the standard language for universal communication. However the tendency had been there already, and was at base the reason why English was adopted as the standard language.

And I'm saying this as a Brit.

[Marshal Murat]

English came to dominate the world because everyone who traded anything worth having spoke either English, Dutch, or French and these aren't too difficult to learn together because they're somewhat the same.

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

1. The British Empire -> English being language in Canada, USA, Australia, NZ and has official status in many other countries, where the native tongue is a different.
2. The rise of Britain's former colonies in North America to being a super power (especially the winning of WWII).
3. The immense cultural output of the US that's very popular all over the world because it's easily digested (movies e. g.).
4. The rise of the internet.
5. English is a language that's easily acquired on a basic level, and there is quite a big tolerance (imho) towards non-native speakers for making errors -> which will cause the language to degenerate over the long-term and cause its eventual downfall.

[Centurio Nixalsverdrus]

... English, Dutch, or French and these aren't too difficult to learn together because they're somewhat the same.

No Sir.

[Fwapper]

4. The rise of the internet.

There are more Chinese internet users than American ones :P

But as for English it's got to be the British Empire, it did cover a quarter of the surface of the Earth after all...

North America and Australia are obvious first thoughts, but the Empire also brought English to much of Africa, and also the Indian subcontinent which has a population heading towards 2 billion. There are more people in the world who speak English as a second language than those who speak it as their first - and this is from the Empire. The language continues to grow from the cultural influences of these (relatively) new English speakers - not just from the US :)

[InsaneApache]

Good points, well made.

One of the reasons it's the official language of India is the sheer diversity of languages spoken there. It made sense after the Raj to keep the civil service (one of the best in the world) 'in situ', as it were.

[AlexanderSextus]

You should include a section on Hip-Hop culture's impact on english as well. Countless phrases and words were created in English because of it. For example: "whats up" "Bling", "i'll hit you up" instead of "i'll call you" etc.

There is a big difference between early/mid 20th century english and late 20th and early 21st century english and hip hop is a big part of that.

[InsaneApache]

You should include a section on Hip-Hop culture's impact on english as well. Countless phrases and words were created in English because of it. For example: "whats up" "Bling", "i'll hit you up" instead of "i'll call you" etc.

There is a big difference between early/mid 20th century english and late 20th and early 21st century english and hip hop is a big part of that.

Good lord.

[AlexanderSextus]

Like it or not, everyone uses words in english that have roots in hip hop. Ever say "yo" to someone instead of hello?

[Samurai Waki]

Actually, I doubt that IA ever has

[AlexanderSextus]

Lol... I mean, hell even people in england use hip-hop influenced lingo. Dialects are a part of the evolution of a language and "Ebonics" is a dialect.

[HopAlongBunny]

You may want to mention the various indigenous populations that had English beat into them, and their native tongues beat out of them.

[AlexanderSextus]

Various Accents that have since evolved in english like a yorkshire accent, Boston accent, Southern US accent, jamaican accent.

[AlexanderSextus]

You may want to mention the various indigenous populations that had English beat into them, and their native tongues beat out of them.

Exactly...jamaica has patoix which is basically English mixed with whatever the slaves spoke in jamaica.

they have funny words like "bumba clot"

[Fwapper]

they have funny words like "bumba clot"

I think you've picked about the most offensive word in the language :P Fits through the filter nicely though, I guess Tosa isn't so up to speed with that lingo...

(Roughly translated it means 'arsewipe' or perhaps just 'tampon' but it carries the emotional weight of a certain four letter word beginning with c... :P)

[miotas]

Like it or not, everyone uses words in english that have roots in hip hop. Ever say "yo" to someone instead of hello?

"Yo" and "I'll hit you up" sound like something a drug dealer would say.

[AlexanderSextus]

I think you've picked about the most offensive word in the language

whoa, didnt know that, they do say it alot tho....

[Beskar]

One thing I love about English is the neutrality of many terms such as gender. Why are other languages obsessed with their female chairs and male tables? They are gender-less objects and English is great due to the fact it doesn't have this.

[rasoforos]

a) Imperialism

b) It is stupidly simple compared to other (European) languages.

Seriously, English probably has 5% of the grammar of Greek. It is very easy to learn and you do not have to spend too much time learning to be able to understand it.

[pevergreen]

Crikey! You sheilas don't have a bloomin clue what youse is on about.

I really need to find this yearbook.

[Beskar]

Also English has the most words in it and most descriptive language in the world.

Why not just everyone speak it? If you are reading this, you know it anyway. :P

[InsaneApache]

Lol... I mean, hell even people in england use hip-hop influenced lingo. Dialects are a part of the evolution of a language and "Ebonics" is a dialect.

My good man, I would no longer think of addressing a fellow with the term 'Yo!' as a greeting, than I would think of addressing him by punching him in the solar plexus. Some things are just not on old boy. Chin, chin.

[AlexanderSextus]

My good man, I would no longer think of addressing a fellow with the term 'Yo!' as a greeting, than I would think of addressing him by punching him in the solar plexus. Some things are just not on old boy. Chin, chin.

Wot the 'ell are you on about, blud? You wouldnt say that to me rudeboys in brixton, blud.

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

[rasoforos]

Also English has the most words 'stole' millions of words from other languages because it did not have equivalent words in it and most descriptive language in the world.

from wiki:

Since most words of Greek origin are specialized technical and scientific coinages, the type frequency is considerably higher than the token frequency. And the type frequency in a large word list will be larger than that in a small word list. In a typical English dictionary of 80,000 words, which corresponds very roughly to the vocabulary of an educated English speaker, about 5% of the words are borrowed from Greek directly, and about 25% indirectly.

(Considering that your average greek verb has about 150 conjugated forms and goes up to 337 I highly doubt that the English language have the most words. Even if we do not take forms into account, I highly doubt that the greek loan words include more than 25% of the greek language)

In any case if you add the Latin, French etc etc I doubt there is much english left in there...


An example of 'English' by the way:

Spoiler Alert, click show to read: 

``Kyrie,

It is Zeus' anathema on our epoch for the dynamism of our economies and the heresy of our economic methods and policies that we should agonise between the Scylla of numismatic plethora and the Charybdis of economic anaemia.

It is not my idiosyncrasy to be ironic or sarcastic but my diagnosis would be that politicians are rather cryptoplethorists. Although they emphatically stigmatize numismatic plethora, energize it through their tactics and practices.

Our policies have to be based more on economic and less on political criteria.

Our gnomon has to be a metron between political, strategic and philanthropic scopes. Political magic has always been antieconomic.

In an epoch characterised by monopolies, oligopolies, menopsonies, monopolistic antagonism and polymorphous inelasticities, our policies have to be more orthological. But this should not be metamorphosed into plethorophobia which is endemic among academic economists.

Numismatic symmetry should not antagonize economic acme.

A greater harmonization between the practices of the economic and numismatic archons is basic.

Parallel to this, we have to synchronize and harmonize more and more our economic and numismatic policies panethnically.

These scopes are more practical now, when the prognostics of the political and economic barometer are halcyonic.

The history of our didymous organisations in this sphere has been didactic and their gnostic practices will always be a tonic to the polyonymous and idiomorphous ethnical economics. The genesis of the programmed organisations will dynamize these policies. I sympathise, therefore, with the aposties and the hierarchy of our organisations in their zeal to programme orthodox economic and numismatic policies, although I have some logomachy with them.

I apologize for having tyrannized you with my hellenic phraseology.

In my epilogue, I emphasize my eulogy to the philoxenous autochthons of this cosmopolitan metropolis and my encomium to you, Kyrie, and the stenographers.''

The first to find what this is without using the net wins a cookie

[InsaneApache]

Catastrophe.