GLOBAL LANGUAGE

Global language

Global language

Introduction

Imagine if all the tribes and nations of the world spoke the same language! It would be able to travel to distant lands totally confident that language barriers would not.( Tourtellot 76) Friends and strangers would be in the detail to understand each other. Perhaps a global common language could even function as a bridge promoting peace? Or, secondly, would the presence of a world language only to prevent the national languages to flourish, and sometimes even lead to their extinction?

A world language is not a new phenomenon. Throughout the history of languages like Latin and Greek have been the position of lingua franca, these languages are spoken in addition to their natural areas. Latin, for example, received a unique position within the expansion of the Roman Empire, which covered large parts of Europe and parts of Africa where it was at its peak Greek, on the other hand, had its golden age at the time of Alexander the Great to the 1400th century. The position of English as a world language, which is gaining influence more and more, literally every minute, is now a much-discussed topic among linguists. Some argue that the rapid expansion of the English language should be stopped, because the language is gaining influence at the expense of other languages. Others argue that the need for a common language is inevitable because of globalization and the rapid development of technology, which facilitates communication and travel as never before. Thus, they argue, the expansion of the English language should be encouraged.

There are undoubtedly some benefits with a language known and spoken by everyone, but there are also dangers. This essay aims to present and discuss some of the key pros and cons of English as global language. It will give you a better idea of the negative consequences of the disappearance of languages, and understanding the positive aspects of a world unified by a common language worldwide.

There are a number of drawbacks associated with a world language. One of the most common arguments against the English as a global lingua franca, is that other languages and minority languages in particular, are at risk of moving language. This could eventually lead to the extinction of languages.( Davi 45) The process of transfer of language has been a relatively long common history. Under various conquests, the population in general captured moved to the language of their conquerors. In some cases, the change of language over the death of language (Trudgill 2000: 191). Although language extinction is not a new phenomenon, the number of endangered languages today is higher than ever. It is generally accepted that there are about 6,000 languages in the world (Trudgill 2000: 191). However, this number is decreasing all the time. According to Peter Trudgill, Professor of English linguistics, languages are disappearing without being replaced at an increasing pace since the last catastrophic years of the twentieth century (Trudgill 2000: 191).

Another important argument against the expansion of English is ...