Then English is bound to be replaced by one language or another by one time or another!
Does English risk being replaced?
with the robust, rapid development of the information tech, english as a dominating language been been undergoing corrosion because more languages have been gaining an increasingly firm footing and more vigor on the internet. Isn't this an indicator of the declining tendency of english?
"with the robust, rapid development of the information tech, english as a dominating language been been undergoing corrosion because more languages have been gaining an increasingly firm footing and more vigor on the internet. Isn't this an indicator of the declining tendency of english?"
Not really. Another language would have to supplant English in its lingua franca role for it to really decline and become just a language that only native speakers speak once again.
Not really. Another language would have to supplant English in its lingua franca role for it to really decline and become just a language that only native speakers speak once again.
>> Not really. Another language would have to supplant English in its lingua franca role for it to really decline and become just a language that only native speakers speak once again. <<
Exactly. A German communicating with a Spanish person would still use English most likely.
>> more languages have been gaining an increasingly firm footing and more vigor on the internet. <<
They're gaining more "vigor" for their own *native* speakers, which is not at all helping them become an international lingua franca.
Exactly. A German communicating with a Spanish person would still use English most likely.
>> more languages have been gaining an increasingly firm footing and more vigor on the internet. <<
They're gaining more "vigor" for their own *native* speakers, which is not at all helping them become an international lingua franca.
They're gaining more "vigor" for their own *native* speakers, which is not at all helping them become an international lingua franca.
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But doesn't undercut the role of englsih?
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But doesn't undercut the role of englsih?
>> But doesn't undercut the role of englsih? <<
No, why would it? That would be like saying that since the Latin language is gaining ground in Vatican City, the importance of English is diminishing.
No, why would it? That would be like saying that since the Latin language is gaining ground in Vatican City, the importance of English is diminishing.
The matter here, though, is that English has already been spread far and wide, both with respect to native speakers and with respect to non-native speakers, and unless another language manages to both displace English in its currently established role amongst its non-native speakers and to overcome the influence of its widely spread (and generally wealthy overall) native speakers, it is unlikely to replace English. Even if American power globally significantly diminishes in the coming decades, the two factors above are enough to sustain English's position as a lingua franca.
If anything, what would be needed to replace English is not only for a non-English-speaking country to gain hegemonic power globally, replacing the US in such a role, but also for such a new superpower to manage to widely spread both native speakers of a single language and to so strongly promote the use of that language as a lingua franca amongst non-native speakers so as to replace the widely established role of English as a lingua franca. And even if some other superpower rises to replace the US, the few likely candidates seem unlikely to achieve the above anytime in the near future, meaning that even in the event of the US dropping off the map politically and economically, the position of English globally is unlikely to change much.
Consequently, if there is anything that is going to diminish the role of English as a global lingua franca, it is simply dialect divergence within itself, which is likely to parallel that of Latin, Classical Arabic, Middle Chinese, Classical Nahuatl, or Middle High German in the long term. However, even in that event, it is likely that a single standard literary variety, if not a standard formal spoken variety (c.f. Modern Standard Arabic), will still be maintained even amongst Anglic dialect speakers who would not be able to understand each others' everyday speech as well as amongst those who had used English as a lingua franca previously. Consequently, the idea of English, or a literary/formal lingua franca for its successor dialects/languages, falling from the role of a lingua franca is not certain even if English unequivocably breaks up as an everyday spoken language.
If anything, what would be needed to replace English is not only for a non-English-speaking country to gain hegemonic power globally, replacing the US in such a role, but also for such a new superpower to manage to widely spread both native speakers of a single language and to so strongly promote the use of that language as a lingua franca amongst non-native speakers so as to replace the widely established role of English as a lingua franca. And even if some other superpower rises to replace the US, the few likely candidates seem unlikely to achieve the above anytime in the near future, meaning that even in the event of the US dropping off the map politically and economically, the position of English globally is unlikely to change much.
Consequently, if there is anything that is going to diminish the role of English as a global lingua franca, it is simply dialect divergence within itself, which is likely to parallel that of Latin, Classical Arabic, Middle Chinese, Classical Nahuatl, or Middle High German in the long term. However, even in that event, it is likely that a single standard literary variety, if not a standard formal spoken variety (c.f. Modern Standard Arabic), will still be maintained even amongst Anglic dialect speakers who would not be able to understand each others' everyday speech as well as amongst those who had used English as a lingua franca previously. Consequently, the idea of English, or a literary/formal lingua franca for its successor dialects/languages, falling from the role of a lingua franca is not certain even if English unequivocably breaks up as an everyday spoken language.
Throw Old Norse in there with examples of languages spread out over a wide area which have broken up (as in not having clear crossintelligiblity as wholes - the example of Middle High German does not correspond to multiple clearly nameable languages for most today but it definitely is not crossintelligible across the whole of its successor dialects today) due to dialect divergence.
***A German communicating with a Spanish person would still use English most likely***
Nine times out of ten they would I reckon.
I've heard it myself among the tourists here in the UK....not necessarily a German and a Spaniard in my experience, but when discussing anything the tourists from different nationalities are visiting or looking at in this city, for instance, the Language they almost always use is English.
I don't think it's so much because here they are in a country where the official Language is English anyway but more because English naturally falls into place as the universal means of communication among such international groups.
A good example of this is that annual songfest organised through Eurovision......loads of participating countries from all over Europe (and some, inexplicably, from way outside of Europe's borders, such as Israel) all speaking an array of different Languages but using English as the main means of communicating their results and comments direct to the host country's presenters who, incidentally, also use English throughout the proceedings. Of course there are always dissenters as,unsurprisingly, the only countries who do NOT use English are.......France and Monaco, and, I'm not too sure of this - wee Belgium, the cross roads of Europe. A wee bit of a maverick is Belgium....I don't think they use English, but may use Flemish as an alternative to French.
Most of the world's airlines and air traffic controllers have to use English, wherever they are on the globe.
So English is the international fallback in linguistic terms. It's been that way for a long time now and likely to remain so for the forseeable future, unless there is some cataclysmic shift in world language communication.
Right now it's difficult to see which Language in the future could replace English as Lingua Franca of Mother Earth, even if China becomes the word's No 1 Economic, and possibly military, Power of the near future, which seems highly likely.
Another contender for this title is India of course, but English is already established there as the main Language of communication, as all those sweet people who cold call us on the telephone, or who answer when we dial call centres, demonstrate with varying defrees of clarity. Even so many people down in England find them easier to understand than the call centres' staff when many of them were based in Glasgow prior to the mass transfer to the sub Continent.
Nine times out of ten they would I reckon.
I've heard it myself among the tourists here in the UK....not necessarily a German and a Spaniard in my experience, but when discussing anything the tourists from different nationalities are visiting or looking at in this city, for instance, the Language they almost always use is English.
I don't think it's so much because here they are in a country where the official Language is English anyway but more because English naturally falls into place as the universal means of communication among such international groups.
A good example of this is that annual songfest organised through Eurovision......loads of participating countries from all over Europe (and some, inexplicably, from way outside of Europe's borders, such as Israel) all speaking an array of different Languages but using English as the main means of communicating their results and comments direct to the host country's presenters who, incidentally, also use English throughout the proceedings. Of course there are always dissenters as,unsurprisingly, the only countries who do NOT use English are.......France and Monaco, and, I'm not too sure of this - wee Belgium, the cross roads of Europe. A wee bit of a maverick is Belgium....I don't think they use English, but may use Flemish as an alternative to French.
Most of the world's airlines and air traffic controllers have to use English, wherever they are on the globe.
So English is the international fallback in linguistic terms. It's been that way for a long time now and likely to remain so for the forseeable future, unless there is some cataclysmic shift in world language communication.
Right now it's difficult to see which Language in the future could replace English as Lingua Franca of Mother Earth, even if China becomes the word's No 1 Economic, and possibly military, Power of the near future, which seems highly likely.
Another contender for this title is India of course, but English is already established there as the main Language of communication, as all those sweet people who cold call us on the telephone, or who answer when we dial call centres, demonstrate with varying defrees of clarity. Even so many people down in England find them easier to understand than the call centres' staff when many of them were based in Glasgow prior to the mass transfer to the sub Continent.
defrees = degrees
I wish there was an edit/modify button in this Forum......
I wish there was an edit/modify button in this Forum......
Oh , come on, Damian... Are we so stupid people for not to understand your typos.
I suppose that the importance of the English language is connected to the status of the USA as a superpower.
I think, sooner ou later, English will become a language like what French stood for in the past. Its importance will decline.
For me, new superpower = new dominant language.
I don´t think English is such an easy language (I am a Brazilian Portuguese native speaker and I really prefer Latin languages like Spanish, French or Italian). But I cannot imagine learning Mandarin Chinese. This would be a nightmare!
I think, sooner ou later, English will become a language like what French stood for in the past. Its importance will decline.
For me, new superpower = new dominant language.
I don´t think English is such an easy language (I am a Brazilian Portuguese native speaker and I really prefer Latin languages like Spanish, French or Italian). But I cannot imagine learning Mandarin Chinese. This would be a nightmare!
By the way, about rock and roll.
This has been the best American invention ever.
Tks USA.
This has been the best American invention ever.
Tks USA.
"By the way, about rock and roll.
This has been the best American invention ever.
Tks USA."
Yeah!!! ROCK! ROCK! ROCK!
Your Welcome ;)
This has been the best American invention ever.
Tks USA."
Yeah!!! ROCK! ROCK! ROCK!
Your Welcome ;)
"Well you have to remember that the climate in California is very hot year-round."
Yeah, tell that to the thermometer outside that reads 32 degrees, then tell me that it's very hot here in California year-round. Geez, we do have winters! California isn't just L.A. and Hollywood--It's a pretty damn big state, just so you know!
Yeah, tell that to the thermometer outside that reads 32 degrees, then tell me that it's very hot here in California year-round. Geez, we do have winters! California isn't just L.A. and Hollywood--It's a pretty damn big state, just so you know!