Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm afraid that your ethnocentricity is showing...
-- Nighteyes (a native English-speaker who also speaks Choctaw, German and a little Spanish)
BTW, French is next. I have stood side-by-side with French soldiers, for whom I hold the utmost regard. Now I want to learn how to speak with them in their own language.
Last edited by Nighteyes; 01-30-2015 at 05:15 PM..
Historically speaking, and as far as I know, English became the de facto international language when the aviation/airline industry selected it as the common language to be used to communicate/control arrivals, departures, and enroute matters.
Correct. English as an international language evolved over time. That was the turning point.
The reason Americans don't learn other languages, is because we don't NEED to - we ALREADY speak English!
Quote:
Originally Posted by Nighteyes
Colonel Domo,
I'm afraid that your ethnocentricity is showing...
For just about everyone else, learning a second language means learning English. Which means, while it was inelegantly put, Colonel Domo is correct. Americans don't need to learn a second language because we already speak English.
However, all of this is an interesting debate. The British Empire spread the language widely but thinly across the globe, mostly among the local governing and trading elites. Modern technology as developed and marketed by the United States: film, music, aviation, computers, internet; caused English to really penetrate deeply into the broader population.
If you're really curious, see if your local library has "The Story of English" by Robert McCrum, William Cran, and Robert MacNeil. It's an absolutely fascinating book. Better yet, there is an 8 part series called The Story of English that goes with the book. I'd get that first, if you can. The series dates to the mid 1980s, so it may be hard to find. But if you can get the series, you'll be able to hear all the different accents, including people on Tangier's Island who still speak their own dialect, Gullah, pidgin, and there's even a language on "street English", which is actually rap. There's a whole section on William Shakespeare and you won't believe all the sayings he invented that are now part of our language.
Anyone who hasn't seen this series is really missing out. I encourage everyone to watch it.
I would say it was when the internet came along, it drove the dominance of the English language and further prevented Americans from learning a second language.
I'll disagree about the internet causing that, but you'd partially mentioned a contributing factor to English's importance at present.
The language of computing and technology is English. It isn't a choice. If you want to be a professional in the field, you are working at least partially in English, even if you're in Japan. Virtually every widely used programming language is English-based. The same with almost any other level of technology you can think of, English is a necessity.
The world needed one international language when globalization began. The question is, why English?
For starters, English was the most commonly used language after the British empire was established, and especially after the US became a commercial power itself. Countries that wanted to trade with the US and the British Empire had to have English speakers. French and Spanish were widely used, but not nearly as much as English simply because more countries adopted English either by nature or by force.
After English was established as the most commonly used language worldwide, globalization pushed it to become THE international language. English continued to enjoy its special status because the UK and the USA continue to be economic centers of the world. If one day China takes over, the international language may as well be Chinese.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
