English Language emerging as a Global Force

English language emerging as a global force

English Language emerging as a Global Force

Reyimbergenova Zukhra

Webster University, UM group

Globalization is the process of integration of different people coming from different cultures, religions, countries, organizations. People are connected by communication and English became a lingua franca that connects people worldwide. English is known to be an easy practical language and students have started learning it as a second or foreign language.

According to statistics, more than 350 million people speak English as a first language, while 430 million people accept it as their second language. And it is amazing to know that there are more non-natives than natives. So, what made this language so popular, for what reasons people are learning this language, and how can it affect cultural identity will be discussed below:

A famous linguist, David Crystal, mentions that “Power of people who speak a certain language, makes this language powerful and global”. This “power” was mostly based on political and military factors and they were the main causes of the expansion of the British Empire. Afterward, these factors changed their form to scientific, industrial, financial ones and further increased the power of the language. Although the British Empire shrank, and its colonies became independent, the native language of Britons did not lose its value. English remained as a dominant language in which many formal documents were written.

Because politicians and most notable people traveled across the world, English reach every corner of the world. And after some time, English was supposed to be an elite language. Most of the world's famous universities and colleges required fluency in English, and there was a belief that English is the language of educated people. And this influenced more and more people to learn it to be in a group of educated ones.

Because of its adaptability, usefulness, and approachability English became popular among people. What makes this language flexible is because it borrows vocabulary from other languages, especially Latin, Greek, or French. Do you know one of these languages? If yes, you can easily say “hello” to English.

Additionally, English opens doors in academic life, because most of the lectures, research are conducted in this language. And the world's most famous journals, magazines, and newspapers are written in English. To have the ability to search deeper and to have access to prestigious research papers and books, students are advised to learn English.

It is worth mentioning that today's business requires proficiency in English. To cooperate with foreign countries and enhance your chances to become successful, you need to know how to communicate with foreign partners. And English is a common language of traders. Furthermore, one of the most required skills to find a better job is to be fluent in English.

We are living in a digital era and we use special robots and machines in every field. English is the language of the IT world as well. And it can be another reason why people should learn English if they want to keep up with current developments.

Globalization of English and its effects on cultural identity.

Alfarhan (2016) mentions that globalization of the English language can be seen in many aspects, for instance, as a factor for economic success or a new class of inequality, and a lingua franca of the world.

As Alfarhan (2016) mentions English has been a great power behind the development of new business institutions and schools. Research shows that English influenced the development of the economic sector as people became able to deal with modern technology (Johnson,2009). English remains a dominant language of communication with the development of technology. By being proficient in English, one can cope with the modern age of digitalization, for example, to cope with computers or driving.

One more reason why English remains a dominant language is that it enables people to interact with each other regardless of various lingual borders. For example, many organizations strive to expand their business throughout the world, and they need a common language to communicate with foreign partners (Poggensee, 2016). Many people do not learn a language for the sake of interest, they believe a new language can enable them to get a new job. Although in education, the main purpose of learning a language is to communicate well, people learn it for purpose of gaining a better position in society. Especially people in third world countries like Asia or Africa seek to learn English.

English has influenced even conservative cultures like the Chinese. Chinese culture is known to be important and protected by the government at any cost. At first, China did not allow English to be taught at schools. However, because of their frequent contacts with other countries China had to accept the English language. Nowadays, English is taught at schools for internalization purposes. For example, the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games forced Chinese people to improve their English skills. Taxi drivers, officials, hotel staff, and other people who wanted to benefit from this event had to learn English despite they did not want to.

Learning English as a second language means one has to learn certain cultural practices of a new language as well. This may push one to drop his/her culture while learning or if they do not drop, there may still exist confusion of two different cultures. Therefore, second language learners often find it difficult to cope with that confusion. However, Hatoss (2003) claims that people do not leave their culture if they learn a new language of another culture. He brought the example of the Hungarian tribe in Australia and how they have maintained their culture and traditions. But at some points, Hatoss was ignored because the way Hungarians are protecting their culture does not exist in all countries of the world. Hungarians have established cultural institutions like the Hungarian Association of Australia which maintain Hungarian culture and ensures that the next generation will receive the culture without any changes from outside. However, as Johnson (2008) clarifies people try to be modern and they are usually ready to do things to seem more modern including leaving their native culture. Nowadays, everyone wants to acquaint themselves with modern technological devices that are usually related to English. That is why English as a second language can influence the loss of cultural identity. One more example can be that dominant English language used in schools and students only speak the native language at home within the family. As long as students spend most of their time at school with classmates, the dominant language which is English influences them to reject the native language plus its culture.

Some scientists argue that the spread of the English language instead contributed to the development of world cultures and people became more and more informed about other cultures surrounding them. However, some argue that despite its positive influence, the existence of lingua franca remains a danger to the development of natural language. As still there is a thread that the mixture of multiple cultures may eradicate the natural culture. Additionally, Wyatt (2009) cites that culture and language are non-separatable features of a nation. Because we share our culture through our national language. And a translation of a language to another language may result in the loss of the meaning of a word. Therefore, no other language can explain your culture better than your national language. So, if one resists their language because of a second language, that means he/she abandoned their culture as well. And we can infer that without a language one cannot claim to have a culture.

In conclusion, I would say that we can continue the debate that has views opposing each other. But I think the spread of the English language and its becoming lingua franca has more benefits than its harm. We cannot infer that having one common language worldwide is bad just because it may threaten our cultural diversity. And the same case for globalization, which is believed to be harmful. Now it is time to collaborate and solve our global issues, and how can we exchange ideas if we have not an international language? We cannot live in tribes within borders by not accepting other languages or cultures inside the country. I think every human being should be conscious enough to respect other cultures and to protect his/her own culture at the same time.
References

1.Alfarhan Ibrahim. (2016). English as a Global Language and the Effects on Culture and Identity. American Research Journal of English and Literature (ARJEL), ISSN (online)- 2378-9026, Volume 2016.

2. Hatoss, A. (2003). Identity formation, cross-cultural attitudes, and language maintenance in the Hungarian Diaspora of Queensland. Cultural Citizenship: Challenges of Globalization. Decan University, Melbourne, 71-77. Retrieved from https://eprints.usq.edu.au/1158/1/Hatoss_Deakin_paper.pdf

3. Dr. Mohammed. (2020).English Language and Globalization. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/338541029_English_Language_and_Globalization

4. https://hbr.org/2012/05/global-business-speaks-english