An alternate name for the world language?

The passage below comes from an Australian website called The Conversation. It deals with the emergence of English as a global language and the disappearance of other languages.

Renaming English: does the world language need a new name?

English is rapidly becoming a lingua franca in international communication for commerce and trade, education, science, international relations and tourism. It is the fastest growing language in the world, with more people speaking English than never before. School children in India and China are learning English at a staggering rate as their countries emphasize the importance of English as a ticket to participating in the global economy. So why then do we continue to link this evolving internationalizing language with a small island in Europe that once upon a time controlled the world?

Perhaps it is about time we got rid of the "English" and start calling it something else - international, standard or common language?

It is important to understand that there is not one English language: there are many. In fact, in Australia we don't even speak and write English. We actually use Standard Australian English, which is not the same English that you might find in the United Kingdom, the United States, India or China. There are countless blends, pidgins, creoles and mixed English languages. At the same time that English is becoming the language of internationalization, it is also becoming localized in different parts of the world as multiple world Englishes flourish.

A sociocultural perspective on language considers the impacts of regional dialects, national standards and conventions, slang, different pronunciations and the use of communication technologies such as mobile telephones, texting and email. Our use of English depends on the contexts, audiences and purposes we are using it for. The rise of English comes with several concerns, including questions of cultural hegemony and postcolonial criticisms. While it is easy to shrug off such criticisms with the argument that English is necessary for social mobility, economic prosperity and education, there remain many unanswered questions around the social and cultural impacts of English as a global language.

There is a real tragedy in the loss of language diversity as English takes over, placing other languages at risk of extinction. This has been acknowledged and efforts are being made to preserve the indigenous languages in places such as Papua New Guinea, Brazil and Australia. However, is this enough? Are we destroying more than language through the rise of English as the international standard?

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Authors Note

The following extract talks about the need for English to be replaced with an alternative name so that it can be applied universally. This is largely because of the name "English" in which people would automatically relate it to England or countries from the West, which foreshadows the signs of oppression and imperialism. This passage will dissect the theories and ideas that are seen to be discussed in this website and also to look at some of the detrimental issues the English language has brought to its speakers and the community around them.

In the very beginning of the passage taken from the Australian Website The Conversation, English is seen to rapidly become a lingua franca in international communication for commerce and trade, education, science, international relations and tourism. Lingua Franca is a Latin term in which it translate to a 'common language' that is understandable those who share different native tongues or possibly from those who originated from different regions of the globe. It is the fastest growing language that history ahs ever witness. With 356 million speakers using English as their first or native language and 730 million people as their second or foreign language, it has far surpassed its Latin which was once spoken by 90 million people during the Roman Empires. English is seen to play a crucial role in the development of technology and scientific studies. English dominance in the field of science began during the golden era, the Industrial Revolution, where its movement pushed for a civilization that focused on the development of art, architecture, politics and science. New agriculture methods like the crop rotation schemes have begun at that time, accompanied by inventions like the incandescent light bulb, steam engines, spinning Jennies and also development of medicines to counter the high infant mortality rates in England.

How far did the Industrial Revolution play in promising English dominance over the other languages?

As English is seen to be one of the most prestigious languages one could acquire in our era today, there is an increasing demand for it in countries such as India and China. Many Chinese citizens have linked the need for English with the Founder of the Alibaba group Jack Ma, who was once an English teacher before he became a business magnate and also one of the world's most celebrated billionaire. Global firms like Apple Inc. Nike, Google and Wall Street is based in the United States of America. Clearly, if one wishes for a job opportunity which enables them to participate in the global economy, English would have to be mastered before anything else that follows. Now even though the English language has had its humble beginnings from a small island in Europe, is seen to have stole the spotlight from all the other 7000 languages that are spoken in the world today. Today, a suggestion for the term English to be replaced by an alternative is seen to be put forward - names like International, standard or common language as seen in line 8. This might be because nature of the English language is formed through a series of borrowing, or specifically loan words from other countries. Shampoo from India, 'give and take' from the Vikings, ballet from the French and ketchup from China.

It would be unfair for English to 'hijack' useful terms from others and expressly declaring it theirs. The English language is seen to be a contribution of mankind all over the world. So the prefix 'Eng' in English as its resemblance to England should be replaced.

Line 9 onwards talks about the varieted-use of 'Englishes' that are found across the world. This Australian website then argues of the difference of their use of Standard Australian English as compared to the Standard Queen's English where they intend to draw a clear distinction of the differences of their English and those of other Englishes. They ought to depart from the fact that they are covertly prestigious in nature as compared to the Queen's English (which is known to be overly prestige where it sets a benchmark for others to follow). Today, Australians have boldly declaring that times have changed and that their Australian English is another form of language, thus departing from the restrictive linguistic chains their forefathers had bound upon them. This displays signs of divergence where the Australian speakers intend to diverge from their original Standard English speaking groups for the need to establish their own personal identity.

Between the 18th to the 19th century, the slave trade between the powerful European countries and Africa gave rise to a new form of English. This English is known as pidgin where it is an immediate blend of their local dialects and English in fear of punishment from their masters. Subsequently, the descendants of the slaves then acquire this new form of pidgin language as their native language thus forming a creole language. This then gave rise to a greater variety of English around the world. During the rise of the internet in the late 1990s, computer-mediated discourse have gained popularity amongst teenagers especially. The rise of the informal use of the English language has led to the birth known as Patois which, is the language used by the teenagers which are deemed to be the least prestigious in all. It is usually taken that such speech forms are meant to exclude parents or outsiders from partaking in their conversations.

Although English is usually celebrated for its use and receives high recognition around the world, there are many negative influences that it has brought into the lives of many. Questions regarding cultural hegemony and postcolonial criticisms are amongst the few that arise. English is seen to play a devastating role in language diversity across the globe, placing them at the brink of extinction. New Zealand officials have forbidden the use of local Maori languages and to use English as the main language due to the perception that their native language would possibly slow down their country's development and growth rate. Another case can be seen in the language of Cornish where it ceased to be spoken as a native language in the late 19th century as a result of the growing influence of English. However, there are some steps that can be taken to prevent such language deaths. In line 27, we can acknowledge the fact that efforts are being made to preserve indigenous languages in places such as Papua New Guinea, Brazil and Australia. Both Maori and Cornish are now recovering due revitalization efforts to prompt people to speak their native languages. Maori today is taken to be one of the official languages of New Zealand due to substantial government efforts to preserve their native identity.