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Russian is spoken as a first- or second-language by 255 million or so people which is interesting... There are roughly as many Russian speakers as there are Arabic speakers. We should discuss what's holding back Moscow from becoming a global city.
I wouldn't call a difference of nearly 250 million roughly.
I wouldn't call a difference of nearly 250 million roughly.
I was referring to the totals that include people for whom those languages are second languages, in addition to the native-speakers. The numbers and the explanations are found at the link I provided. 230 - 255 M Arabic speakers, 255 M Russian speakers.
Russian is spoken as a first- or second-language by 255 million or so people which is interesting... There are roughly as many Russian speakers as there are Arabic speakers. We should discuss what's holding back Moscow from becoming a global city.
Geographical and political isolation, I'd say.
Moscow is landlocked and a long way from any other large, important European cities. Paris has London, Brussels, and Amsterdam within a couple hours train ride.
As for Russian, it's confined to the Eurasian areas of the former Russian and Soviet Empires. It covers a huge area but Russia is really the only highly influential country where it's spoken. The Arabic speaking world has several important countries such as Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the U.A.E. and Arabic serves as an international liturgical language in a sense that Russian doesn't.
And there's the political isolation that results from a history of Russia trying to encroach upon its neighbors' territory. Countries like Poland, Ukraine, Finland, and Georgia have been fighting against Russification(and Sovietization) for centuries as well as the obvious territorial disputes. It hasn't done much to rid itself of that old imperialist image lately.
Lastly, outside of citizens of the CIS countries, Moscow doesn't have an overwhelming amount of expats outside of the diplomatic and business communities. You definitely do not see a lot of African or Latin American people here.
Don't get me wrong. Moscow is a great city and I enjoy it, but it is definitely and overwhelmingly Russian.
Moscow is landlocked and a long way from any other large, important European cities. Paris has London, Brussels, and Amsterdam within a couple hours train ride.
As for Russian, it's confined to the Eurasian areas of the former Russian and Soviet Empires. It covers a huge area but Russia is really the only highly influential country where it's spoken. The Arabic speaking world has several important countries such as Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the U.A.E. and Arabic serves as an international liturgical language in a sense that Russian doesn't.
And there's the political isolation that results from a history of Russia trying to encroach upon its neighbors' territory. Countries like Poland, Ukraine, Finland, and Georgia have been fighting against Russification(and Sovietization) for centuries as well as the obvious territorial disputes. It hasn't done much to rid itself of that old imperialist image lately.
Lastly, outside of citizens of the CIS countries, Moscow doesn't have an overwhelming amount of expats outside of the diplomatic and business communities. You definitely do not see a lot of African or Latin American people here.
Don't get me wrong. Moscow is a great city and I enjoy it, but it is definitely and overwhelmingly Russian.
Most of what you said could also apply to Tokyo, which is most definitely a global city: A largely homogenous ethnic population; a great distance from other national capitals; essentially unilingual.
Political isolation applies more to Russia since WW2 however. This started to change after the collapse of the Communist regime, but Putin has seemingly gone out of his way to reverse course and make Moscow more isolated now than it has been in decades.
I was referring to the totals that include people for whom those languages are second languages, in addition to the native-speakers. The numbers and the explanations are found at the link I provided. 230 - 255 M Arabic speakers, 255 M Russian speakers.
Me too. Almost 500 million people in the world can speak Arabic.
Most of what you said could also apply to Tokyo, which is most definitely a global city: A largely homogenous ethnic population; a great distance from other national capitals; essentially unilingual.
Political isolation applies more to Russia since WW2 however. This started to change after the collapse of the Communist regime, but Putin has seemingly gone out of his way to reverse course and make Moscow more isolated now than it has been in decades.
There are some key differences with Tokyo though. For starters it's on the Pacific ocean and located on the edge of the most populous continent between the two largest economies on earth. It's also the capital of the country with the 3rd largest economy(and until recently the 2nd) which is over twice as large(and 4x in some rankings) as under performing Russia. It's unprecedented how Japan went from practically destroyed after WWII to the 2nd largest economy in 20 years. And it's exports are heavy on high tech and consumer goods while Russia largely exports fossil fuels and commodities.
Tokyo is closer to Seoul, Beijing, Shanghai, and Taipei than Moscow is to Berlin and Hong Kong is a little further away.
I would never count Tokyo as a global city. In my opinion a global city should have an outstanding culturally diversity. But Tokyo is quite the opposite. A global city should have many visiting guests from all over the world. It should have an airport with many international guests. Japan is for me a very isolated country. It was in the past a very important export country, but that has changed. It doesn't participate in trade like other countries.
Maybe I have such a view, because Japan is so far away I would describe Japan more like a monastery island
I would never count Tokyo as a global city. In my opinion a global city should have an outstanding culturally diversity. But Tokyo is quite the opposite. A global city should have many visiting guests from all over the world. It should have an airport with many international guests. Japan is for me a very isolated country. It was in the past a very important export country, but that has changed. It doesn't participate in trade like other countries.
Maybe I have such a view, because Japan is so far away I would describe Japan more like a monastery island
It surprises me that Singapore, to give one example, is never mentioned as a "global" city... despite its economy, diversity, and prosperity. Beijing and Shanghai both have huge economies now that rival Tokyo's, led by exports, they're never mentioned either... due to perceived insularity perhaps? But they don't differ much from Tokyo on that count.
A "cosmopolitan" culture that includes a lot of international residents seems to be one popular way of characterizing a truly international city. Measuring that quality is difficult, though. There's more to it than counting the number of expatriates residing in a foreign city.
Most of what you said could also apply to Tokyo, which is most definitely a global city: A largely homogenous ethnic population; a great distance from other national capitals; essentially unilingual.
Political isolation applies more to Russia since WW2 however. This started to change after the collapse of the Communist regime, but Putin has seemingly gone out of his way to reverse course and make Moscow more isolated now than it has been in decades.
And it's precisely the reason why Tokyo, while having everything to become a super city is "only" a major city compared to Singapore, HK or Seoul even.
It's simply "too" Japanese, a bit like Seoul which is "too" Korean.
On the other hand, Singapore or Hong Kong are much more cosmopolitan.
When you work for a multinational company, you always have an office in Tokyo or Seoul because they are certainly important, but also because of the local market which requires such specific approach. However, your Asian headquarters are always in Singapore or HK.
If you're familiar with Japan or don't have any misconception about the country and its culture, it's probably the #1 Asian city and its economic impact is strong enough to overcome any political isolation, should there be any.
Singapore's global influence is minimal compared with Tokyo or Japan.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ottawa2011
It surprises me that Singapore, to give one example, is never mentioned as a "global" city... despite its economy, diversity, and prosperity. Beijing and Shanghai both have huge economies now that rival Tokyo's, led by exports, they're never mentioned either... due to perceived insularity perhaps? But they don't differ much from Tokyo on that count.
A "cosmopolitan" culture that includes a lot of international residents seems to be one popular way of characterizing a truly international city. Measuring that quality is difficult, though. There's more to it than counting the number of expatriates residing in a foreign city.
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I would describe Japan more like a monastery island 
