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english a global language
english a global language
English as the global language
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Globalization is an inevitable issue in the world, which brings boundaries between the countries much more close. Because of the sophisticated technology, the mobility of local culture, music, knowledge and goods has enhanced. As we want to communicate with the other races of people, we shall use one language to be a bridge. Therefore, the English becomes a globalizing language because of its clear structure and format. Does the globalizing language good or bad for us? I believe that the answer should not be one-sided. The truth is, English as a globalizing language can bring us good for Economics and local culture. However, it also triggers some negative issues. In my following essay, I will divide into three parts. Firstly, I will describe the reason of English as a lingua-franca. Secondly, the disadvantages and advantages of using English as a globalizing language. At last, my point of view is going to present. English had risen in less than 400 years; it was a language of an island in north Europe, which only had 4 million populations. How can it be used as a global language? The history of England becomes the key factor. The United Kingdom was a small island at first. However, she tried to invade the countries across the ocean in order to transform into one of the greatest Empire in world history. Then, their language had spread all over the world. Nowadays, it is used in many important domains and fields such as Science, Business and international events. It is an undeniable fact that English is the world’s most commonly taught foreign language. A second language is powerful; it is a tool of spreading cultures, religious, music, and literature to other states. It is also for colonization. For example, the Chinese mu... ... middle of paper ... ... factors, then it will further elaborate into other new set of language. Somebody considers it is the destruction of native language. But the new language is more superior than the old one. It emerges the advantages and features of English, meanwhile it remains the structures and foundations of native language. English has a special role in the globe. It offers opportunities for us to preserve our own culture while we are having globalization. Since power distribution and political system may affect the dominated globalizing position of English, other language may replace English after a couple decades. As China has more reputation nowadays, the non-native speakers try to master Putonghua in order to have more business interactions with China. It is not a dream for Putonghua to take over the status of English as a globalizing language.
The author, Bill Bryson, briefly introduces and describes the history of English. In this book, The Mother Tongue, Bryson uses an interesting way and scholarly manner to guide readers through the various linguistic and social movements in the English language, the center of the world language as well as the export of manufactured goods. He gives different kinds of instances by comparing with various languages to present how the language merged together of interacting.
This leads to the negative viewpoint of cultural globalization, that “[it] can lead to a utopian world, [and] some believe it will cause less dominant cultures to be obliterated and economically developed cultures to prosper.” (Issit 1). Although the dominance of English allows for people to speak a common language many can understand, a downside would be losing knowledge of other cultures.
I considered English as a popular language tool among a lot of cultures. As an international I gathered the view point of its popularity among many cultures. At the beginning I look at English as a tool with certain structures. But there’s more into it. English is the production and analysis of texts.
The most widespread language in the world is English. It is spoken and written more than any other language. English is a West Germanic language that was first developed in early England, in the 5th century A.D. when Germanic Anglo-Saxon tribes invaded the island. The vocabulary has been significantly influenced by other Germanic languages in the early medieval period, particularly French. In 1066, William the Conqueror of Normandy, invaded and took over the island of England and the Germanic language turned to French.
...lish is driving a wedge into the world by making its self-known to the people around the world; hence, English is trying to become the global language. With American’s economy hanging on a thread, English as a global language could be in danger of dying out and letting another language take root in its place. This is similar to how Latin died out.
There are numerous ideas of what the languege will become. Some are more logical than others, but they are all valid in the pool of possibilities.
...ural cultures is inevitable that the languages don’t bring with them components that generate many disadvantages. On the other hand, although the idea of a lingua franca is probably a good opportunity for a global communication; the real problem is when this idea becomes an obstacle for many people. Now for instance the teaching English has become a massive international business, leaded from USA and UK. But nowadays with the technology and its great progress is inevitable that research and studies cannot build a project of truly effective simultaneous translator. Google Translate for example, has shown that it is possible to obtain a pretty close translation of the original message and this can be improved, meaning that the future generations will come to see English as something like calligraphy or Latin: prestigious and traditional, but increasingly dispensable.
...l not replace English as the global language in the next century. English language has a solid foundation of population and technological field. Since everybody is learning and communicating with each other in English, is it necessary for everyone to learn a new language (Chinese) for sharing ideas? The answer is obvious. However, it is possible that English will not keep its monopoly in the next century. Rather, a small number of languages including English may form dominant roles – each with a special area of influence, for instance, Chinese’s rising will create a bilingual English-Chinese region. In other words, English may supplement or co-exist with other important languages by allowing strangers to communicate across linguistic boundaries. It may become a tool that opens windows to the world, unlocks doors to opportunities, and expands our minds to new ideas.
Moreover a major point in globalization is language which helps connect people together because most people use it in the world. In addition, over a billion people in the world now speak English. According to a report titled, “English Next" by language researcher David Graddol, "...two billion people [will] be speaking or learning English within a decade" Graddol (1997).
The spread of English where it used as a foreign and/or a second language may be compromised if it is replaced by another language such as Chinese or Spanish. For example, if China continues to gradually dominate the world economically, politically and technologically, its language could replace English as the major foreign language taught and learnt in various countries’ education systems because they b...
...rld has there been a language more widespread than that of English. No one can know what path it will continue to take. As discussed scholars have made predictions in history which were proved wrong by time ; Webster and Sweet.
and maintains the inequality that exists between languages (Dombi, 2011). With the United States spearheading modernization and globalization, the possibility of linguistic imperialism becomes more clear and more likely for the prominent powers on the world stage. Seeing that the most powerful nations have some integration of English for the sake of international communication, aboriginal languages may consequently die unless something is done to control the spread of the English
It has been adopted by different sectors making it one of the most used languages in the globe. This has been attributed to its effective nature, easy learning and rich history. However, conservative groups exist who argues that there should be global language since it may cause the emergence of superior cultures. Nevertheless, it is evident that different cultures ranging from the early polish immigrants, the African American community, the advertising and media will greatly benefit from the globalization of the English language. This will prove in the end that English is indeed a global
The development of the English language was a combination of cultural, political, social and religious events that each playing their own part shaping the modern English language spoken today as a first language by 400 million people . As Baugh and Cable convey to us in A History of the English Language; ‘It understates matters to say that political, economic, and social forces influence a language’. Although it cannot be identified exactly when the inhabitants of Britain began to speak English, there are some sources that give an insight into the nature of the forces that played a role in its foundation such as: the four medieval manuscripts;
In order to visualize the “global” as an adjective in the collocation “global language”, a study has shown the numbers of people speaking the language. According to them, there are about 6000 languages in the world and not surprisingly English is at the top of the list of most dominant. In the world there are 375 million first-language speakers, approximately the same number of second-language speakers and about 750 million foreign-language speakers (David Graddol, The Future of English? A Guide to Forecasting the Popularity of the English Language in the 21st Century. British Council, 1997). According to magazine Economist, more than one billion people speak some form of English. These numbers could make people think that English is really conquering the world which can be both positive and negative.