English everywhere
Whether it's a CNN broadcast, a Hollywood film or an MTV music video, English can be found in cities, towns and villages around the world. It's spoken as a first language by more than 400 million people and as a second language by millions more. Without a doubt, English is today's language of global communication.
Learning English has become somewhat of a necessity. All airline pilots need to know it; it's usually the language of international trade; and most scientific and medical research is published in English. Doctors need to have good language skills to keep up with the latest developments. English is clearly the language of the internet because more than 80 per cent of websites are in English. So widespread is the use of English that it has been hailed as a universal language. Yet only 400 years ago, it was spoken by a small number of people in the British Isles. Just how did the language travel so far afield?
The answer lies in the economic fortunes of two English-speaking world powers: Britain and the United States. By the early 20th century, Britain controlled the biggest empire the world had ever seen. It comprised a quarter of the world's area and population with colonies stretching from Australia to Canada. British traders, missionaries and government officials settled overseas, thus spreading their language and culture around the world. Before long, people in the colonies understood the meaning of expressions such as 'How do you do?' and 'jolly good' (which is now outdated). When the sun set on the British empire, the US emerged on the world scene.
After the first world war (1939-45), the US became a superpower and a cultural giant, thus ensuring that English continued to ripple through the world. But it really made waves with the globalisation of world trade. In the 21st century, advances in transport, technology and communication made it easier for goods, ideas and people to flow in and out of nations. Suddenly, people in villages in Malaysia were watching MTV music videos and American businessmen were travelling to China to negotiate trade deals.
The need for a common language arose and English filled that need.
The power and influence of English alarms speakers of other languages. The Danes fear that their language will fall into disuse because English is the language of instruction in many universities; and the French have passed laws to protect their language from absorbing too many English words.
The cultural influence of English-speaking countries - particularly America - also causes concern abroad. Some people fear that American newspapers, magazines, music, TV programmes and films are taking over the world. This is probably an exaggeration.
