Spread of English in the world

Actually for English you want to go with the OED (Oxford English Dictionary) this will give you meaning and usage. According to the OED America is frequently used as the name of the USA.

I assume it has a Spanish name, what is that name? What does your last sentence (Besides, British will understand this. Call soccer with its real name: football) have to do with anything? It is a pointless, inane, and irrelevant sentence that has no place in this post let alone this thread, you're better than that.


P.S. Please see my above post about the OED and how it defines America. The OED as I said above gives not only definitions but usages. Under "America" usage meanings the OED states: the name of the United States of America.

Edited by King John - 03-Dec-2007 at 00:29

Ok so the original question was, had English mostly become a world language because of America?

Credit for the spread of English is deserved by both the USA and UK. The British Empire did much of the spade work in creating an English language segment of the world. Much of the Commonwealth now possess permanent English speaking communities which endure from one generation to the next. This is very much a British achievement.

It was during the inter-war period that British power and influence began its quiet but real decline, to be realised with proper decolonisation post-WWII. And it was during this same period that the USA truly began to shine so bright culturally that she did so enough for the outside world to see her as well. She was at the forefront of media production, which she continued with ever greater enthusiasm up to our own day.

It was after WWII that the USA found herself with the ability and the willingness to project both her cultural and military power as widely as possible. In doing so, she helped elevate English to a level which no other language had before enjoyed. With a majority of top 100 corporations being American (with the second most being British) after WWII, and with vast media production to boot, people around the world found learning English to open doors to highly attractive opportunities.

I think that the British Empire most firmly cemented sustainable English speaking communities around the world, which will endure for generations. America was more effective at spreading English globally, but their ability to sustain that depends on the economic and cultural advantages that come with knowing English. America made English a global language like no other nation in history before had done, though that spread will probably be less sustainable in the long term compared to English being used in the Commonwealth. It is a fine achievement nonetheless, and a testament to the cultural and economic vitality of the USA in the 20th century.


Edited by Constantine XI - 12-Mar-2008 at 19:39

The Russian Emperial family actually also spoke perfect German and French, the last two were the most popular languages of Romanovs. It's very natural seems the members of the Tsar's family were supposed to have the perfect education which included studying of all the major European languages, besides the international language of the time i.e. French.

So...

Edited by Cryptic - 13-Mar-2008 at 14:39

I thing the question is wrong.
The British empire existed as a world's empire before the U.S.A. to became something mere than a regional leader in Northern America. And the British spreads their language in a whole (actually about 20% before I WW, and about 25% before II WW) of the World, but in Europe and the lands which was not English colonies it was not so popular. much more fas a French which was the language of the aristocracy and  bourgeoisie. The French was fashionable. The people which knows French passed for culture people, which is funny, because for example the German culture is not less great than French one. Just a snobbery. anyway, the Indians (from India) and the other Asian and African people under British rule get to learn English more than a century before U.S.A. to rise as a major power. From the other point of view the people in Europa and Japan, as the Latin America also had have no idea to learn English before the American domination after the World Wars. That's why when You ask so, You've got to to define more accurately "where". England have its contribution, America also. Well, but yet, should American speak English if there was not England?
Me personally, became to learn English, because everybody knows it. I never have any idea to travel to U.K. or U.S.A., but if I wont to travel somewhere else I should speak a lot of languages it there was not the English...

english spread all the world because United State. United State is a weathy country and  they make movie for everyone watch theri influence spread all over the world and many people want to go to United State to study and every one known english, we play their game and chat with each other by english,... we known english because United State.

The primary cause for the spread of the English Language is the British Empire.  The primary cause for the spread of the English Language since the end of World War II to regions outside of the British Empire/Commonwealth is American TV, movies and (what gets laughingly called) music.

Before WWII, most people didn't know English except from those that were under the British empire. English became truly international during Cold War. Just an example from my country, despite being somewhat a British puppet for a century, the intellectuals and rich (the commoners did not speak foreign languages at all) spoke french rather than British.

Nowadays, you won't find a Greek under 30 that doesn't know at least basic English