I've always taken it for granted that English is one of the world's most diverse and expressive languages. But I've recently discovered that proving it is virtually impossible. This is not just because of the scale of the research that would be required, but also because, while counting the number of words is one thing, calculating their ability to express different ideas and concepts is quite another.
So it's apparently just possible that English is overrated in this respect. But I still love the way in which historical quirks of spelling, writing and usage have resulted in a richer language.
Take, for example, the way that many words beginning with gu, borrowed from French, came to be written with a 'w' in English. So, we have the word 'warranty'. And yet, we've retained 'guarantee' and even, in legal circles, 'guaranty'. One word, spelt in three different ways, has become three words, with three ever so slightly different meanings. Similarly, we have words from different sources, which have essentially the same meaning, running in parallel, before the meanings start to diverge ever so slightly (e.g. 'get' and 'obtain'). And it's that nuance of meaning – the abundance of not-quite-synonyms that really makes the language come alive. It also helps speakers of that language to understand different ideas (a concept is much easier to understand if you have a word for it in your own language!).
Now that English has effectively become an international language, it looks as though this process will continue for many years to come. I hope so.
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English for Beginners: HOMEWORK – Lesson 10
2 years ago
3 comments:
Hello Alex
Please do not overestimate the position of English.
I live in London and if anyone says to me “everyone speaks English” my answer is “Listen and look around you”. If people in London do not speak English then the whole question of a global language is completely open.
I think that the promulgation of English as the world’s “lingua franca” is impractical and linguistically undemocratic. I say this as a native English speaker!
Impractical because communication should be for all and not only for an educational or political elite. That is how English is used internationally at the moment.
Undemocratic because minority languages are under attack worldwide due to the encroachment of majority ethnic languages. Even Mandarin Chinese is attempting to dominate as well. The long-term solution must be found and a non-national language, which places all ethnic languages on an equal footing is essential. As a native English speaker, my vote is for Esperanto :)
Your readers may be interested in seeing http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=_YHALnLV9XU Professor Piron was a former translator with the United Nations
A glimpse of the global language,Esperanto, can be seen at http://www.lernu.net
I had a girl (Russian I think) walk up to me once in the Library and asked me how to pronounce DO. Then she asked how to pronounce DEW and then DUE. When I informed her they were all pronounced the same, she shook her head and said, "English is very confusing." Never thought about it much until that day. Now I think about it all the time. I love language.
I think English is the closest thing to a democratic lingua franca we're likely to get. The reasons for it may be nothing to be proud of (especially Britain's sinister colonial past), but the flexibility and sponge-like qualities of English are, I think, something to be celebrated; as is, incidentally, diversity in language in general. Brian, I know what you mean about London. I was at a tram stop in Croydon recently and heard at least five languages being spoken. But English is still everywhere, and the relatively easy grammar makes it fairly simple to learn. EXCEPT for the spelling, which is both phonetic and non-phonetic at the same time! :-)
Venus, I love your story, not least because the Russian girl would have got a slightly different answer had she walked into a library here in England :-). Now that is confusing.
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