Evil English?

The word on the street is that English is spreading around the world in the disguise of globalization, brutally killing minority languages. The massacre has been widely reported (except for in the U.S.; the media here seems to have a tendency to distort the truth . . .) and is harshly condemned by survivors. One of them, French, has created laws in its self-defense to ban English in ads and to forbid the use of dangerous English contaminations such as the word “e-mail” in official documents. On the other side of the North Atlantic, the news has spread quickly among college students. “This is great”—responded an anonymous student—“now we officially have no reason to learn a foreign language!”

This bleak picture is often painted by anti-Americanizationists (if that’s a word) who claim that in this era of globalization, English is the culprit in the death of minority languages and in the supposed loss of cultural diversity. Indeed, it has replaced French as the major lingua franca—there’s no wonder the French are so upset since after all the concept itself has their name! Although Mandarin Chinese has the largest number of native speakers, English is number one in the world as a second, third or fourth foreign language. The reason is simple. A language becomes so widespread because of the political power of its people, including military power and financial and cultural influence. English is the language of the notorious American pop culture, which explains a part of the resistance against it. Along with the culture and values it brings, English is seen by many as a major threat to diversity. The impact of the language is even greater as the lingua franca of the international economy—40 percent of the world’s total GDP comes from predominantly English-speaking countries. Some analysts claim this is dividing the world’s population into haves and have-nots, since non-English-speaking people are excluded from information and job opportunities.

The positive side

Fortunately, other analysts say that the situation is not that bad at all. Multilingualism still matters. Regional lingua francas, such as Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Russian, Spanish and Swahili are for example far more important than English in many areas, not to mention all the varieties of pidgins and creoles. These languages will become even bigger in the future as their population increases and migration continues. This will result in a multiliterate population around the world and a more diverse society.

But why should we care about all of this? The fact is that for most people language is very important as a form of belonging. Our lullabies, love songs, prayers, what’s-ups and see-you-laters, poetry and slang are significant pieces of our culture and help shape our ethnic and national identity. This explains why the French are so touchy about their language. And in situations where linguistic groups are clashing, English often serves as a safe, neutral lingua franca. In Belgium, for example, French and Flemish speakers sometimes refuse to speak each other’s language and use English instead. In the same way, the former French colonies in Africa have embraced English as the official language instead of French which reminds them of their oppressors. Personally, I wouldn’t want to be caught dead speaking Danish—Iceland used to be under (horrible) Danish rule—even though I’m practically fluent in it after having been forced to learn it for seven years! When I go to Copenhagen, I speak English.

Massacre or peace offering?

But back to the “massacre.” I don’t think the situation is that ugly. Small and vulnerable languages are of course bound to give in to the pressure of powerful languages. But that’s nothing new. We have many historical examples—think of the power of Latin, Ancient Greek, Sanskrit and Aramaic (and look what happened to them—maybe sooner or later English will face its own death?!). Is it too rosy to say that the spread of English could work as a peace offering, easing communication and information flow between areas that need it? (Having said this, I realize that I am such a bad, Western hypocrite . . . I wouldn’t be surprised if Bin Laden disagrees with me!)

As for your foreign language requirement: I don’t blame you if you don’t feel you need to learn a foreign language. But I highly recommend it—it’s a lot of fun! Plus, it might help you in snobby dinner parties and such. Final note: if you like languages, you will love linguistics. This is a perfect opportunity to advertise the Linguistics Party 2004 which will be held to celebrate EPAG’s decision not to cut the Linguistics Department. Everybody is welcome —come enjoy good food and learn more about the department on Monday, April 19 in Old Main fourth floor lounge, 5 – 6 p.m. I hope to see you there!