General/Off-topic |
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WHO OWNS ENGLISH?
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1. |
20 Feb 2008 Wed 05:57 pm |
1-Where was the English language born?
2-Who owns English?
3-England ?
4-USA ?
5-Global language?
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2. |
20 Feb 2008 Wed 06:02 pm |
Nobody "owns" a language. It originated from as far back as Saxon England and grew from the Germanic language they used.
Over 300 million people speak English in the world and over 300 million people speak it as a second language.
However, (I have not googled to check this) I think Spanish is still the most spoken language in the world.
I was wrong
It is
1: Mandarin
2: English
3. Hindi
4. Spanish
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3. |
20 Feb 2008 Wed 06:05 pm |
Languages are not born (unless they are artificial). They evolve. If you're interested in scientific study, here's
info on the Indo-European Group of languages.
As for who owns it...if you mean which country has it as an official language, then google it. If you mean own in the sense of possess...consult a philosophical forum
Here's the same website but about English in particular
http://www.krysstal.com/english.html
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4. |
20 Feb 2008 Wed 06:14 pm |
The English language is a global language and a scientific language and the world language.
Maybe it is not the Queen's English now?
But who rules English?
The Mandarin Chinese is the second world language.
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5. |
20 Feb 2008 Wed 06:16 pm |
Quoting yilgun-7: The English language is a global language and a scientific language and the world language.
Maybe it is not the Queen's English now?
But who rules English?
The Mandarin Chinese is the second world language.
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You asked where it originated - England. However, I think there would be many people who would strongly object to you calling it a world language
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6. |
20 Feb 2008 Wed 06:22 pm |
A language is like an organism.It is born /created by people.And it is grown up.But who rules it?The center?
And who rules a Language?A scientific center?
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7. |
20 Feb 2008 Wed 06:26 pm |
Nobody rules a language. That is why we have variations all over the world in dialect and spelling. Even USA English is different to UK English.
The British "bible" of the English Language is the Oxford English Dictionary. However, it only reflects current trends and adds words that evolve.
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8. |
20 Feb 2008 Wed 06:27 pm |
English has gained its popularity as at some point in time it became the official language of business. Some people do fear that its increasing popularity will result in English taking over other languages. However, I believe it's impossible. Language is part of culture so replacing a nations language with English only for the sake of facilitating communication seems unlikely. It's a bit different for Ireland but that's another story. That's why even if a territory adopts a language, it undergoes a change (like it was the case with English in the US).
Another thing that makes English an attractive language to learn is the fact that it is considerably easy.
I believe there's a great benefit in speaking a second language of such a global range.
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9. |
20 Feb 2008 Wed 06:30 pm |
Quoting yilgun-7: The center?
And who rules a Language?A scientific center?
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I'm sure there must be a body deciding what is correct and what is incorrect in English. I know that we have a National Board of Polish and I know Turkey has one as well...as for English...anyone?
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10. |
20 Feb 2008 Wed 06:31 pm |
Quoting Daydreamer:
Another thing that makes English an attractive language to learn is the fact that it is considerably easy. |
I dispute this entirely! There is absolutely no logic at all to the English language. It breaks it's own rules frequently. I would hate to have to learn it as a second language.
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