History of the English language expansion in the world
Contents
Introduction
I. The History of the
expansion of the English language
1.1 A brief history of the
English language
1.2 Origins of English as
global language
1.3 The role of English
today
II. The varieties of
English and importance of their introduction to the pupils
2.1 The difference between
British and American English
2.2 Approbation and its
interpretation
Conclusion
References
Application 1
Introduction
more and more disputes are caused by the enormous spread of
the English language throughout the world. Some scholars claim that it has
already become the first global language. And this statement isn’t far from
truth. In this era of consolidation and trying to unify various aspects of life,
it will not be long before English can be made as a single language of the
world like the single currency and the union of various nations. The level of
sentimental attachment or genuine liking for English falls far short of the
level of necessity-based desire to learn it. In many countries, local
authorities are engaged in language planning to foster the positive image of
the national language for many functions for all people, and simultaneously to
foster the spread of English in its function - a difficult set of co-occurring
goals. Thus, all these countries are gradually becoming bilingual. spread of
English around the world can be visualized as three concentric circles
representing different ways in which the language has been acquired and is currently
used. It is called Kachru’s model of New Englishes. The Inner Circle refers to
the traditional historical and sociolinguistic bases of English in the areas
where it is the primary language (native or first language; UK, Ireland,
Canada, the USA, Australia, New Zealand). The Outer Circle comprises regions
colonized by Britain; the spread of English in non-native settings, where the
language has become part of the country's chief institutions, and plays an
important "second language" role in a multilingual setting (India,
Singapore, Malawi). The Expanding Circle involves nations which recognize the
importance of English as an international language, but they do not have the
history of colonization, nor does English have any special status in their
language policy. In these areas, English is primarily a foreign language. term
"new Englishes" is used for the varieties which have developed in the
Outer Circle, have been transplanted and, therefore, can also be called
"diaspora varieties". In a historical and linguistic sense, these
varieties are not new. They are called "new" because it is only
recently that they have been linguistically, and literaturewise, recognized and
institutionalized, although they have a long history of acculturation in geographical,
cultural and linguistic contexts different from the English of the Inner
Circle. need to investigate the nature as well as the history of these
varieties of the English language and the reason of their development
predetermines the actuality of the given course paper. also has determined the
aim of work: to investigate the history of the English language expansion in
the world.accordance with the given aim, the following objectives were put
forward:
- To consider the history of the English language itself;
- To find out the historical reasons and ways of
spreading English;
To analyze the role of English as the global
language today;
To compare British and American English in order to
find the most common differences;
To prove that it is important to introduce the
difference between British and American English to the pupils.subject of this
course paper is the history of the English language expansion in the
world.object of this course paper is the varieties of the English language,
their place and role in modern world and importance of their introduction to
the students.hypothesis of the work: by teaching the varieties of English and
the culture of the English speaking countries can affect positively the
educational process in general, while:
1) The lessons are becoming more vivid, as the pupils do not
just learn some phrases and grammatical structure, but try to understand the
culture of the English speaking countries.
2) They are realizing the importance of learning
English, as they know the role of English today.
) It widens the horizon of the pupils, their awareness
in the history of the world. of investigation:
Thorough theoretical analysis of the pedagogical literature,
connected with the topic of the investigation;
Interviewing students that took part in model-lessons.work
consists of two parts: theoretical and practical. In the first part we tried to
investigate the history of the English language history of its expansion and
its role in modern world. As for practical part, it contains some examples of
the major differences between British English and American English, approbation
and its interpretation.
I. The History of the expansion of the English
language
1.1 A brief history of the English language
of the history of the expansion of the English language in
the world, it won’t be needless to mention the general historical outfit of the
language itself.is a member of the Indo-European family of languages. This
broad family includes most of the European languages spoken today. The
Indo-European family includes several major branches: Latin and the modern
Romance languages (French etc.); the Germanic languages (English, German,
Swedish etc.); the Indo-Iranian languages (Hindi, Urdu, Sanskrit etc.); the Slavic
languages (Russian, Polish, Czech etc.); the Baltic languages of Latvian and
Lithuanian; the Celtic languages (Welsh, Irish Gaelic etc.); Greek.'s never
easy to pinpoint exactly when a specific language began, but in the case of
English general opinion is the history of the English language really started
with the arrival of three Germanic tribes who invaded Britain during the 5th
century AD. These tribes, the Angles, the Saxons and the Jutes, crossed the
North Sea from what today is Denmark and northern Germany. At that time the
inhabitants of Britain spoke a Celtic language. But most of the Celtic speakers
were pushed west and north by the invaders - mainly into what is now Wales,
Scotland and Ireland. The Angles came from Englaland and their language was
called Englisc - from which the words England and English are derived. [1, p.
32]the history of the English language development is divided into three
periods:
1) Old English (450-1100 AD)
The invading Germanic tribes spoke similar languages, which
in Britain developed into what we now call Old English. Old English did not
sound or look like English today. Native English speakers now would have great
difficulty understanding Old English. Nevertheless, about half of the most
commonly used words in Modern English have Old English roots. The words be,
strong and water, for example, derive from Old English. Old English, whose best
known surviving example is the poem Beowulf, lasted until about 1100.
2) Middle English (1100-1500)
The beginning of this period is closely connected with the
Norman Conquest. In 1066 William the Conqueror, the Duke of Normandy (part of
modern France), invaded and conquered England. The new conquerors (called the
Normans) brought with them a kind of French, which became the language of the
Royal Court, and the ruling and business classes. For a period there was a kind
of linguistic class division, where the lower classes spoke English and the
upper classes spoke French. centuries after the Norman Conquest witnessed
enormous changes in the English language. In the course of the Middle English
period, the fairly rich inflectional system of Old English broke down. Old
English showed a tendency to find native equivalents for foreign words and
phrases, whereas Middle English acquired the habit that modern English retains
today of readily accommodating foreign words. One only has to flick through the
etymologies of any English dictionary to get an impression of the huge number
of words entering English from French and Latin during the later medieval
period. This trend was set to continue into the early modern period with the
explosion of interest in the writings of the ancient world, although in the
14th century English became dominant in Britain again. most famous example of
Middle English is Chaucer's Canterbury Tales.
3) Modern English
Early Modern English (1500-1800)modern period saw a fairly steady process of
standardization in English south of the Scottish border. The written and spoken
language of London continued to evolve and gradually began to have a greater
influence in the country at large. "London standard" began to
dominate, especially through the new technology of printing invented by William
Caxton in 1476, that the other regional varieties of the language began to be
seen as different in kind. As "the London standard" became used more
widely, especially in more formal contexts and particularly amongst the more
elevated members of society, the other regional varieties came to be
stigmatized, as lacking social prestige and indicating a lack of education. the
same period a series of changes also occurred in English pronunciation (though
not uniformly in all dialects), which go under the collective name of the
"Great Vowel Shift". These were purely linguistic sound changes which
occur in every language in every period of history. The changes in
pronunciation weren't the result of specific social or historical factors, but
social and historical factors would have helped to spread the results of the
changes. As a result the so-called pure vowel sounds which still characterise
many continental languages were lost to English. The phonetic pairings of most
long and short vowel sounds were also lost, which gave rise to many of the
oddities of English pronunciation, and which now obscure the relationships
between many English words and their foreign counterparts. remarkable event of
this period is the publishing of the first English dictionary Table
Alphabeticall in 1604. [8, p. 24]Modern English (1800-Present)principal
distinction between early- and late-modern English is vocabulary.
Pronunciation, grammar, and spelling are largely the same, but Late-Modern
English has many more words. These words are the result of two historical
factors. The first is the Industrial Revolution and the rise of the
technological society. This necessitated new words for things and ideas that
had not previously existed. second was the British Empire. At its height,
Britain ruled one quarter of the earth's surface. The complex processes of
exploration, colonization and overseas trade that characterized Britain's
external relations for several centuries became agents for change in the
English language. This wasn't simply through the acquisition of loanwords
deriving from languages from every corner of the world, which in many cases
only entered English via the languages of other trading and imperial nations
such as Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands, but through the gradual
development of new varieties of English, each with their own nuances of
vocabulary and grammar and their own distinct pronunciations. More recently
still, English has become a "lingua franca", a global language,
regularly used and understood by many nations for whom English is not their
first language.
1.2 Origins of English as global language
first significant step in the progress of English towards its
status as a global language took place at the end of the sixteenth century. At
that time, the number of mother-tongue English speakers in the world is thought
to have been between 5 and 7 million, almost all of them living in the British
Isles. “Between the end of the reign of Elizabeth I (1603) and the beginning of
the reign of Elizabeth II (1952), this figure increased almost fiftyfold, to
some 250 million, the vast majority living outside the British Isles... And the
first fresh dimension being added to the history of the language is North
America.” [4, p.55]first expedition from England to the New World was
commissioned by Walter Raleigh in 1584, and proved to be a failure. A group of
explorers landed near Roanoke Island, in what is now North Carolina, and
established a small settlement. Conflict with the native people followed, and
it proved necessary for a ship to return to England for help and supplies. By
the time these arrived, in 1590, none of the original group of settlers could
be found.first permanent English settlement dates from 1607, when an expedition
arrived in Chesapeake Bay. The colonists called their settlement Jamestown
(after James I) and the area Virginia (after the ‘Virgin Queen’, Elizabeth).
Further settlements quickly followed along the coast, and also on the nearby
islands, such as Bermuda. Then, in November 1620, the first group of Puritans,
thirty-five members of the English Separatist Church, arrived on the Mayflower
in the company of sixty-seven other settlers. Prevented by storms from reaching
Virginia, they landed at Cape Cod Bay, and established a settlement at what is
now Plymouth, Massachusetts. It was a successful settlement, and by 1640 about
25,000 immigrants had come to the area.two settlements - one in Virginia, to
the south, the other to the north, in present-day New England - had different
linguistic backgrounds. the seventeenth century, new shiploads of immigrants
brought an increasing variety of linguistic backgrounds into the country.
Pennsylvania, for example, came to be settled mainly by Quakers whose origins
were mostly in the Midlands and the north of England. People speaking very
different kinds of English thus found themselves living alongside each other.
As a result, the sharp divisions between regional dialects gradually began to
blur. , in the eighteenth century, there was a vast wave of immigration from
northern Ireland. The Irish had been migrating to America from around 1600, but
the main movements took place during the 1720s, when around 50,000 Irish and
Scots-Irish immigrants arrived. By the time independence was declared (1776),
it is thought that one in seven of the colonial population was Scots-Irish.
Many stayed along the coast, especially in the area of Philadelphia, but most
moved inland through the mountains in search of land. They were seen as
frontier people, with an accent which at the time was described as ‘broad’. The
opening up of the south and west was largely due to the pioneering spirit of
this group of settlers.the time of the first census, in 1790, the population of
the country was around 4 million, most of whom lived along the Atlantic coast.
A century later, after the opening up of the west, the population numbered over
50 million, spread throughout the continent. The accent which emerged can now
be heard all over the so-called Sunbelt (from Virginia to southern California),
and is the accent most commonly associated with present-day American speech.was
not only England which influenced the directions that the English language was
to take in America, and later the USA. The Spanish had occupied large parts of
the west and south-west. The French were present in the northern territories,
around the St Lawrence River, and throughout the middle regions (French
Louisiana) as far as the Gulf of Mexico. The Dutch were in New York (originally
New Amsterdam) and the surrounding area. Large numbers of Germans began to
arrive at the end of the seventeenth century, settling mainly in Pennsylvania
and its hinterland. In addition, there were increasing numbers of Africans
entering the south, as a result of the slave trade, and this dramatically
increased in the eighteenth century: a population of little more than 2,500
black slaves in 1700 had become about 100,000 by 1775, far out-numbering the
southern whites.nineteenth century saw a massive increase in American
immigration, as people fled the results of revolution, poverty, and famine in
Europe. Large numbers of Irish came following the potato famine in Ireland in
the 1840s. Germans and Italians came, escaping the consequences of the failed
1848 revolutions. And, as the century wore on, there were increasing numbers of
Central European Jews, especially fleeing from the pogroms of the 1880s. In the
first two decades of the twentieth century, immigrants were entering the USA at
an average of three-quarters of a million a year. In 1900, the population was
just over 75million. This total had doubled by 1950.one or two generations of
arrival, most of these immigrant families had come to speak English, through a
natural process of assimilation. Grandparents and grandchildren found
themselves living in very different linguistic worlds. The result was a massive
growth in mother-tongue use of English.to the 1990 census, the number of people
(over five years of age) who spoke only English at home had grown to over 198
million - 86 per cent of the population. This figure increased to 215million in
the 2000 census (though representing a fall to 82 per cent of the population).
This is almost four times as many mother-tongue speakers as any other nation.
[3, p. 61], the English language was making progress further north. The first
English-language contact with Canada was as early as 1497, when John Cabot is
thought to have reached Newfoundland; but English migration along the Atlantic
coast did not develop until a century later, when the farming, fishing, and fur
trading industries attracted English-speaking settlers. There was ongoing
conflict with the French, whose presence dated from the explorations of Jacques
Cartier in the 1520s; but this came to an end when the French claims were
gradually surrendered during the eighteenth century, following their defeat in
Queen Anne’s War (1702-13) and the French and Indian War (1754-63). During the
1750s thousands of French settlers were deported from Acadia (modern Nova
Scotia), and were replaced by settlers from New England. The numbers were then
further increased by many coming directly from England, Ireland, and Scotland.next
major development followed the US Declaration of Independence in 1776. Loyalist
supporters of Britain (the ‘United Empire Loyalists’) found themselves unable
to stay in the new United States, and most left for Canada, settling first in
what is now Nova Scotia, then moving to New Brunswick and further inland. They
were soon followed by many thousands (the so-called ‘late Loyalists’) who were
attracted by the cheapness of land, especially in the area known as Upper
Canada (above Montreal and north of the Great Lakes). Within fifty years, the
population of this province had reached 100,000. Over 31 million were estimated
in 2001, with two-thirds claiming English as a native or home language. of its
origins, Canadian English has a great deal in common with the rest of the
English spoken in North America, and those who live outside Canada often find
it difficult to hear the difference. Many British people identify a Canadian
accent as American; many Americans identify it as British. Canadians themselves
insist on not being identified with either group, and certainly the variety
does display a number of unique features. In addition, the presence of French
as a co-official language, chiefly spoken in Quebec, produces a sociolinguistic
situation not found in other English-speaking countries. [2, p. 78]the early
years of American settlement, the English language was also spreading in the
south. A highly distinctive kind of speech was emerging in the islands of the
West Indies and the southern part of the mainland, spoken by the incoming black
population. This was a consequence of the importation of African slaves to work
on the sugar plantations, a practice started by the Spanish as early as
1517.the early seventeenth century, ships from Europe travelled to the West
African coast, where they exchanged cheap goods for black slaves. The slaves
were shipped in barbarous conditions to the Caribbean islands and the American
coast, where they were in turn exchanged for such commodities as sugar, rum,
and molasses. The ships then returned to England, completing an ‘Atlantic
triangle’ of journeys, and the process began again. The first twenty African
slaves arrived in Virginia on a Dutch ship in 1619. By the time of the American
Revolution (1776) their numbers had grown to half a million, and there were
over 4 million by the time slavery was abolished, at the end of the US Civil
War (1865).policy of the slave-traders was to bring people of different
language backgrounds together in the ships, to make it difficult for groups to
plot rebellion. The result was the growth of several pidgin forms of
communication, and in particular a pidgin between the slaves and the sailors,
many of whom spoke English. arrived in the Caribbean, this pidgin English
continued to act as a means of communication between the black population and
the new landowners, and among the blacks themselves. Then, when their children
were born, the pidgin gradually began to be used as a mother tongue, producing
the first black creole speech in the region.is this creole English which
rapidly came to be used throughout the southern plantations, and in many of the
coastal towns and islands. At the same time, standard British English was
becoming a prestige variety throughout the area, because of the emerging
political influence of Britain. Creole forms of French, Spanish and Portuguese
were also developing in and around the Caribbean, and some of these interacted
with both the creole and the standard varieties of English. The Caribbean
islands, and parts of the adjacent Central and South American mainland, thus
came to develop a remarkably diverse range of varieties of English, reflecting
their individual political and cultural histories. [3, p. 71]the end of the
eighteenth century, the continuing process of British world exploration
established the English language in the southern hemisphere. was visited by
James Cook in 1770, and within twenty years Britain had established its first
penal colony at Sydney, thus relieving the pressure on the overcrowded prisons
in England. About 130,000 prisoners were transported during the fifty years
after the arrival of the ‘first fleet’ in 1788. ‘Free’ settlers, as they were
called, also began to enter the country from the very beginning, but they did
not achieve substantial numbers until the mid-nineteenth century. From then on,
immigration rapidly increased. By 1850, the population of Australia was about
400,000, and by 1900 nearly 4 million. British Isles provided the main source
of settlers, and thus the main influence on the language. Many of the convicts
came from London and Ireland (especially following the 1798 Irish rebellion),
and features of the Cockney accent of London and the brogue of Irish English
can be traced in the speech patterns heard in Australia today. On the other
hand, the variety contains many expressions which have originated in Australia
(including a number from Aboriginal languages), and in recent years the
influence of American English and of a growing number of immigrant groups has
been noticeable, so that the country now has a very mixed linguistic character.
[11]New Zealand the story of English started later and moved more slowly.
Captain Cook charted the islands in 1769-70, and European whalers and traders
began to settle there in the 1790s, expanding the developments already taking
place in Australia. Christian missionary work began among the Maori from about
1814. However, the official colony was not established until 1840, following
the Treaty of Waitangi between Maori chiefs and the British Crown. There was
then a rapid increase in European immigration - from around 2,000 in 1840 to
25,000 by 1850, and to three-quarters of a million by 1900. As early as the
turn of the century visitors to the country were making comments on the
emergence of a New Zealand accent.strands of New Zealand’s social history in
the present century have had especial linguistic consequences. Firstly, in
comparison with Australia, there has been a stronger sense of the historical
relationship with Britain, and a greater sympathy for British values and
institutions. Many people speak with an accent which displays clear British
influence. Secondly, there has been a growing sense of national identity, and
in particular an emphasis on the differences between New Zealand and Australia.
This has drawn attention to differences in the accents of the two countries,
and motivated the use of distinctive New Zealand vocabulary. Thirdly, there has
been a fresh concern to take account of the rights and needs of the Maori
people, who now form over 10 per cent of the population. This has resulted in
an increased use of Maori words in New Zealand English.Dutch colonists arrived
in South Africa as early as 1652, British involvement in the region dates only
from 1795, during the Napoleonic Wars. British control was established in 1806,
and a policy of settlement began in earnest in 1820, when some 5,000 British
were given land in the eastern Cape. English was made the official language of
the region in 1822, and there was an attempt to anglicize the large
Afrikaans-speaking population. English became the language of law, education,
and most other aspects of public life. Further British settlements followed in
the 1840s and 1850s, especially in Natal, and there was a massive influx of
Europeans following the development of the gold and diamond areas in the
Witwatersrand in the 1870s. Nearly half a million immigrants, many of them
English-speaking, arrived in the country during the last quarter of the
nineteenth century.English language history of the region thus has many
strands. There was initially a certain amount of regional dialect variation
among the different groups of British settlers, with the speech of the London
area prominent in the Cape, and Midlands and northern British speech strongly
represented in Natal; but in due course a more homogeneous accent emerged - an
accent that shares many similarities with the accents of Australia, which was
also being settled during this period.the same time, English was being used as
a second language by the Afrikaans speakers, and many of the Dutch colonists
took this variety with them on the Great Trek of 1836, as they moved north to
escape British rule. An African variety of English also developed, spoken by
the black population, who had learned the language mainly in mission schools,
and which was influenced in different ways by the various language backgrounds
of the speakers. In addition, was also adopted by the many immigrants from
India, who were brought to the country from around 1860.has always been a minority
language in South Africa, and is currently spoken as a first language only by
about 3.7 million in a 2002 population of over 43.5million. Afrikaans, which
was given official status in 1925, was the first language of the majority of
whites, including most of those in power, and acted as an important symbol of
identity for those of Afrikaner background. It was also the first language of
most of the coloured population. English was used by the remaining whites (of
British background) and by increasing numbers of the (70 per cent majority)
black population. There is thus a linguistic side to the political divisions
which marked South African apartheid society: Afrikaans came to be perceived by
the black majority as the language of authority and repression; English was
perceived by the Afrikaner government as the language of protest and
self-determination. Many blacks saw English as a means of achieving an
international voice, and uniting themselves with other black communities.1993
Constitution names eleven languages as official, including English and
Afrikaans, in an effort to enhance the status of the country’s indigenous
languages. The consequences of such an ambitious multilingual policy remain to
be seen, but the difficulties of administering an eleven-language formula are
immense and it is likely that English will continue to be an important lingua
franca. Enthusiasm for the language continues to grow among the black
population: in 1993, for example, a series of government surveys among black
parents demonstrated an overwhelming choice of English as the preferred
language in which children should receive their education. And in the South
African Parliament in 1994 the language continued to dominate the proceedings,
with 87 per cent of all speeches being made in English. [7, p. 46]Asia holds
about a fifth of the world’s population. Several varieties of English have
emerged throughout the subcontinent, and they are sometimes collectively
referred to as South Asian English. These varieties are less than 200 years
old, but they are already among the most distinctive varieties in the
English-speaking world.origins of South Asian English lie in Britain. The first
regular British contact with the subcontinent came in 1600 with the formation
of the British East India Company - a group of London merchants who were
granted a trading monopoly in the area by Queen Elizabeth I. The Company
established its first trading station at Surat in 1612, and by the end of the
century others were in existence at Madras, Bombay and Calcutta. During the
eighteenth century, it overcame competition from other European nations,
especially France. As the power of the Mughal emperors declined, the Company’s
influence grew, and in 1765it took over the revenue management of Bengal.
Following a period of financial indiscipline among Company servants, the 1784
India Act established a Board of Control responsible to the British Parliament,
and in 1858, after the Indian Mutiny, the Company was abolished and its powers
handed over to the Crown.the period of British sovereignty, from1765until
independence in 1947, English gradually became the medium of administration and
education throughout the subcontinent. The language question attracted special
attention during the early nineteenth century, when colonial administrators
debated the kind of educational policy which should be introduced. A recognized
turning-point was Lord William Bentinck’s acceptance of a Minute written by
Thomas Macaulay in 1835, which proposed the introduction of an English educational
system in India. When the universities of Bombay, Calcutta and Madras were
established in 1857, English became the primary medium of instruction, thereby
guaranteeing its status and steady growth during the next century.India, the
bitter conflict between the supporters of English, Hindi, and regional
languages led in the 1960s to a ‘three language formula’, in which English was
introduced as the chief alternative to the local state language. It now has the
status of an ‘associate’ official language, with Hindi the official language.
It is also recognized as the official language of four states (Manipur,
Meghalaya, Nagaland, Tripura) and eight Union territories.has, as a
consequence, retained its standing within Indian society, continuing to be used
within the legal system, government administration, secondary and higher
education, the armed forces, the media, business, and tourism. It is a strong
unifying force.Pakistan it is an associated official language. It has no
official status in the other countries of South Asia, but throughout the region
it is universally used as the medium of international communication.
Increasingly it is being perceived by young South Asians as the language of
cultural modernity. [15]English began to visit West Africa from the end of the
fifteenth century, and soon after we find sporadic references to the use of the
language as a lingua franca in some coastal settlements. By the beginning of
the nineteenth century, the increase in commerce and anti-slave-trade
activities had brought English to the whole West African coast. With hundreds
of local languages to contend with, a particular feature of the region was the
rise of several English-based pidgins and creoles, used alongside the standard
varieties of colonial officials, missionaries, soldiers, and traders.varieties
developed especially in five countries, each of which now gives English
official status:Leone - The settlement became a Crown Colony in 1808, and was
then used as a base for anti-slave-trading squadrons, whose operations
eventually brought some 60,000 ‘recaptives’ to the country. The chief form of
communication was an English-based creole, Krio, and this rapidly spread along
theWest African coast.(formerly Gold Coast) - Following a successful British
expedition against the Ashanti to protect trading interests, the southern Gold
Coast was declared a Crown Colony in 1874. Ghanaindependence in 1957. Its
population was nearly 19 million in 2002, about 1.5million of whom use English
as a second language.- A period of conflict with France was followed in 1816 by
the establishment of Bathurst (modern Banjul) as a British base for anti-slaver
activities. The capital became a Crown Colony in 1843, the country an
independent member of the Commonwealth in 1965and a republic in 1970. It had a
population of 1.4 million in 2002. Krio is widely used as a lingua franca.-
After a period of early nineteenth-century British exploration of the interior,
a British colony was founded at Lagos in 1861. It is one of the most
multilingual countries in Africa, with some 500 languages identified in the
mid-1990s. Its population in 2002 was over 126 million. About half use pidgin
or creole English as a second language.- This region was divided between France
and Britain in 1919. After some uncertainty, the two areas merged as a single
country in 1972, with both French and English remaining as official
languages.was also one American influence in the region:- Africa’s oldest
republic was founded in 1822 through the activities of the American Colonization
Society, which wished to establish a homeland for former slaves. Within fifty
years it received some 13,000 black Americans, as well as some 6,000 slaves
recaptured at sea. The settlement became a republic in 1847, and adopted a
constitution based on that of the USA. It managed to retain its independence
despite pressure from European countries during the nineteenth century
‘scramble for Africa’. Its population in 2002 was some 3.2 million, most of
whom use pidgin English as a second language.English ships had visited East
Africa from the end of the sixteenth century, systematic interest began only in
the 1850s, with the expeditions to the interior of such British explorers as
Richard Burton, David Livingstone and John Speke. The Imperial British East
Africa Company was founded in 1888, and soon afterwards a system of colonial
protectorates became established, while other European nations (Germany,
France, and Italy) vied with Britain for territorial control.modern states
(Botswana, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia,
Zimbabwe), each with a history of association with Britain, gave English
official status when they gained independence, and British English has thus
played a major role in the development of these states, being widely used in
government, the courts, schools, the media, and other public domains. It has
also been adopted elsewhere in the region as a medium of international
communication, such as in Rwanda, Ethiopia and Somalia.kinds of English which
developed in East Africa were very different from those found in West Africa.
Large numbers of British emigrants settled in the area, producing a class of
expatriates and African-born whites (farmers, doctors, university lecturers,
etc.) which never emerged in the environmentally less hospitable West African
territories. A British model was introduced early on into schools, reinforcing
the exposure to British English brought by the many missionary groups around
the turn of the century. The result was a range of mother-tongue English
varieties which have more in common with what is heard in South Africa or
Australia than in Nigeria or Ghana. [12]territories in and to the west of the
South Pacific display an interesting mixture of American and British English.
The main American presence emerged after the Spanish-American War of 1898, from
which the USA received the island of Guam (and Puerto Rico in the Caribbean)
and sovereignty over the Philippines. Hawaii was annexed at that time also,
after a period of increasing US influence. In the 1940s, the US invasion of
Japanese-held Pacific islands was followed after World War II by several areas
being made the responsibility of the USA as United Nations Trust Territories.
The Philippines became independent in 1946, but the influence of American
English remains strong. And as this country has by far the largest population
of the English speaking states in the region (about 80 million in 2002), it
makes a significant contribution to world totals.influence began through the
voyages of English sailors at the end of the eighteenth century, notably the
journeys of Captain Cook in the 1770s. The London Missionary Society sent its
workers to the islands of the South Pacific fifty years later. In South-east
Asia, the development of a British colonial empire grew from the work of
Stamford Raffles, an administrator in the British East India. Centres were
established in several locations, notably Penang (1786), Singapore (1819) and
Malacca (1824). Within a few months, the population of Singapore had grown to
over 5,000, and by the time the Federated Malay States were brought together as
a Crown Colony (1867), English had come to be established throughout the region
as the medium of law and administration, and was being increasingly used in
other contexts. A famous example is the English-language daily newspaper, The
Straits Times, which began publication in 1845.inevitably and rapidly became
the language of power in the British territories of South-east Asia. Hong Kong
island was ceded to Britain in 1842 by the Treaty of Nanking, at the end of the
first Opium War, and Kowloon was added to it in 1860; the New Territories,
which form the largest part of the colony, were leased from China in 1898 for
ninety-nine years. Towards the end of the nineteenth century, several
territories in the region became British protectorates, the administration of
some being later taken over by Australia and New Zealand. Territories with
English as part of their heritage, which have become independent in recent
decades, include American Samoa, Palau (Belau), Fiji, Kiribati, Marshall
Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, North Mariana Islands, Samoa, Tonga,
Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.introduction of a British educational system exposed
learners to a standard British English model very early on. Englishmedium
schools began in Penang (now Malaysia’s leading port) in 1816, with senior
teaching staff routinely brought in from Britain. Although at the outset these
schools were attended by only a tiny percentage of the population, numbers
increased during the nineteenth century as waves of Chinese and Indian
immigrants entered the area. English rapidly became the language of
professional advancement and the chief literary language. Soon after the turn
of the century, higher education through the medium of English was also
introduced. The language thus became a prestige lingua franca among those who
had received an English education and who had thereby entered professional
society. [2, p. 123]
1.3 The role of English today
English is becoming the first world’s universal language. It
is the mother tongue of 500 million of people in 12 countries of the world. It
is, of course, less than about 900 million of people speaking Mandarin. But
English is thought to be second language of 600 million of people. About 200
million of people know the English language to some extent. It has official and
semi-official status in 62 countries of the world. No doubts that English is
much more geographically spread and more universal than Chinese. And the rate
of the development of its use is incredible. , today about 1,5 billion of
people that speak English. It is the most taught language, but what is more
wonderful, it doesn’t replace all the other languages but complement them. [10,
p. 17]are some interesting facts about English:
- 300 million of Chinese people (it is more than the
population of the USA) learn the English language.
- In Hong-Kong pupils of 9 out of 10 secondary schools
learn English.
In France pupils of all the state secondary schools
have to learn English of German for 4 years. However, not less than 85% chooses
English.
In Japan all the pupils should learn English for 6
years up to the graduation from the secondary schools.
In Norway, Sweden and Denmark the study of English
is obligatory one.
In Netherlands there are more people knowing the
English language than in any other European country except Great Britain.
- Since Portugal became the member of the European Union,
the demand for English outranked the demand for French.
- In Tokyo there are 1300 English speaking schools,
and about 100 schools are established every year.English language predominates
in the spheres of transport and mass media. English is the language of the
travels. All the International airlines use English as the language of
communication. Five largest television networks - CBS, NBC, ABC, BBC and CBC
(Canadian Broadcasting Company) - broadcast in English for the audience of
about 500 million of people. It is also the language of satellite television.is
the language if Information Era. More than 80% of computer information is
stored in English. 85% of all the telephone conversations are held in English,
as well as three fourths of the world’s mails, e-mails, faxes and telegrams.
Software manuals and the software itself are often available in English only.
Earlier German was the language of the science, but today about 85% of
scientific works are published in English first. English is the language of the
medicine, electronics and space technologies. The Internet is inconceivable
without the English Language. is the language of international business also.
Producer country is usually labeled in English on all the kind of goods: “Made
in China”, “Made in Germany”, etc. This language was chosen as the language of
communication by many multinational companies. “Toyota” provides the English
language courses for the working-staff. “All the candidates for the post in
“Tetra Pak” and IBM should know English quite well… And all these facts are
just the top of the iceberg.” [6, p. 22]has replaced French in the sphere of
diplomacy. It is the official language of Oxfam, UNESCO, NATO and UN. last,
English is the language of the world’s youth culture. Throughout the world young
people sing the lyrics of The Beatles, U-2, Michael Jackson and Madonna,
sometimes not even knowing what these words mean. “Break dance”,
“bodybuilding”, “computer hacking” and many other words are included in the
youth slang.
english language dialect pupil
II. The varieties of English and importance of their
introduction to the pupils
.1 The difference between British and American English
It goes without saying that American English (variously
abbreviated AmE, AE, AmEng and USEng) is the most wide-spread variation of the
English language. Approximately two-thirds of native speakers of English live
in the United States and consequently speak American English. However British
English (BrE) was a kind of base, original source of American English. Generally,
it is agreed that no one version is "correct" however, there are
certainly preferences in use. And now we will try to point out the principal
differences between these two varieties of English. [5, p. 65]
- English and American English Spelling
Here is the table demonstrating the principal differences in
spelling between English and American English:
1
|
BrE
|
AmE
|
Final -l is
always doubled after one vowel in stressed and unstressed syllables in
English but usually only in stressed syllables in American English
|
rebel >
rebelled
|
rebel >
rebelled
|
|
travel >
travelled
|
travel >
traveled
|
Some words end
in -tre in English and -ter in American English
|
centre
|
center
|
|
theatre
|
theater
|
Some words end
in -ogue in English and -og in American English
|
analogue
|
analog
|
|
catalogue
|
catalog
|
Some words end
in -our in English and -or in American English
|
colour
|
color
|
|
labour
|
labor
|
realise, realize
|
realize
|
|
harmonise,
harmonize
|
harmonize
|
- Differences in grammar
The British use the present perfect to talk about a past
action which has an effect on the present moment. In American English both
simple past and present perfect are possible in such situations.have lost
my pen. Can you borrow me yours? (BrE) lost my pen. OR I have lost my
pen. (AmE) differences include the use of already, just and yet. The British
use the present perfect with these adverbs of indefinite time. In American
English simple past and present perfect are both possible.has just gone
home. (BrE) just went home. OR He has just gone home. (AmE) have
already seen this movie. (BrE) have already seen this movie. OR I already
saw this movie. (AmE) hasn't come yet. (BrE) hasn't come yet.
OR She didn't come yet. (AmE)British normally use “have got” to
show possession. In American English “have” (in the structure do you
have) and “have got” are both possible.
Have you got a car? (BrE)
Do you have a car? OR Have you got a car?
(AmE)British English it is fairly common to use shall with the first person to
talk about the future. Americans rarely use shall.shall/will never
forget this favour. (BrE) will never forget this favor. (AmE) offers the
British use shall. Americans use should.
Shall I help you with the homework? (BrE)
Should I help you with the homework? (AmE)British English
needn't and don't need to are both possible. Americans normally use don't need
to.needn't reserve seats. OR You don't need to reserve seats.
(BrE) don't need to reserve seats. (AmE) American English it is
particularly common to use subjunctive after words like essential, vital,
important, suggest, insist, demand, recommend, ask, advice etc. (Subjunctive is
a special kind of present tense which has no -s in the third person singular.
It is commonly used in that clauses after words which express the idea that
something is important or desirable.) In British English the subjunctive is
formal and unusual. British people normally use should + Infinitive or ordinary
present and past tenses.is essential that every child get an opportunity
to learn. (AmE) is essential that every child gets an opportunity to
learn. (BrE) is important that he be told. (AmE) is important that he should
be told. (BrE) suggested that I see a doctor. (AmE) suggested that I
should see a doctor. (BrE) nouns like jury, team, family, government
etc., can take both singular and plural verbs in British English. In American
English they normally take a singular verb.committee meets/meet
tomorrow. (BrE) committee meets tomorrow. (AmE) team is/are going
to lose. (BrE) team is going to lose. (AmE)American English it is common
to use like instead of as if/ as though. This is not correct in British
English.talks as if he knew everything. (BrE) talks like/as if he
knew everything. (AmE) American English it is also common to use were instead
of was in unreal comparisons.talks as if he was rich. (BrE) talks as if
he were rich. (AmE)normally use he/she, him/her, his/her to refer back
to one. In British English one is used throughout the sentence.must love one's
country. (BrE) must love his/her country. (AmE)American English mid
position adverbs are placed before auxiliary verbs and other verbs. In British
English they are placed after auxiliary verbs and before other verbs.has
probably arrived now. (BrE) probably has arrived now. (AmE) am seldom late for
work. (BrE) seldom am late for work. (AmE)
- Difference in vocabulary
Probably the major differences between British and American
English lies in the choice of vocabulary. Some words mean different things in
the two varieties for example:: (American English - angry, bad humored, British
English - not generous, tight fisted): (American English - trousers, British
English - underwear)are many more examples (too many for us to list here). Many
vocabulary items are also used in one form and not in the other. One of the
best examples of this is the terminology used for automobiles.English -
hoodEnglish - bonnetEnglish - trunkEnglish - bootEnglish - truckEnglish - lorry
- Equivalent idioms
A number of English idioms that have essentially the same
meaning show lexical differences between the British and the American version,
for example:
2
British English
|
American English
|
not touch
something with a bargepole
|
not touch
something with a ten-foot pole
|
sweep under the
carpet
|
sweep under the
rug
|
touch wood
|
knock on wood
|
throw a spanner
(in the works)
|
throw a (monkey)
wrench (in the works)
|
skeleton in the
cupboard
|
skeleton in the
closet
|
blow one's
trumpet
|
blow (or toot)
one's horn
|
a drop in the
ocean
|
a drop in the
bucket
|
storm in a
teacup
|
tempest in a
teapot
|
flogging a dead
horse
|
beating a dead
horse
|
if the cap fits
(wear it)
|
if the shoe fits
(wear it)
|
|
if the hat fits
(wear it)
|
see the wood for
the trees
|
see the forest
for the trees
|
lie of the land
|
lay of the land
|
- General differences in usage
We usually write abbreviations without full stops in modern
British English. Full stops (US ‘periods’) are normal in American English.(US
Mr.) = Mister(US Dr.) = Doctor(US Ltd.) = Limited (company) (US kg.) =
kilogramare also differences in expressions with prepositions and
particles:from/than (US)from/to (GB) something (out) (US) something (GB)
something over/again (US) something again (GB) on X street (US) in X street
(GB) a team (US) a team (GB) through/to Friday (US) to Friday (GB)American
English, it is common to leave out on before the days of the week.am seeing her
Sunday morning. (US) people say at the weekend; Americans say on the
weekend.did you do at the weekend? (GB) did you do on the
weekend? (US)American English, in can be used, like for, to talk about periods
up to the present. (British English only for).haven’t seen her in years.
(US)a noun with a determiner (e.g. the, this, my), both and both of are both
possible in British English. In American English, both of is usual.
Both (of) my parents like riding. (GB)
Both of my parents like riding. (US)a noun with a determiner
(e.g. the, this, my), all and all of are both possible in British English.
American English usually has all of.has eaten all (of) the cake. (GB)
has eaten all of the cake. (US) [13]course, we haven’t noticed all the
differences between British English and American English. But the most common
were enlisted. As it is important not to mix these varieties in your speech,
all these differences should be explained at school and other educational
institutions. The next part of our work will be devoted to the plans of the
model lessons the topic of which is the difference between British English and
American English.
2.2 Approbation and its interpretation
part of the work consists of the scenarios of two model
lessons of the English language that were conducted with the pupils of the
seventh grade and the interpretation of their results. The aim of the
approbation is to prove the importance of the introduction of the differences
between British English and American English to the pupils. of the first lesson
is “Discover American English”.’ level of the English language proficiency is intermediate.of
the lesson:
Draw a comparison of British and American English
Present some of the differences in vocabulary,
grammar, spelling and pronunciation of these two varieties of English.of the
lesson:
. Warming up - Discussion: asks the class:there big
differences in the way people speak your language?there some words that are
only used in certain places?differences in pronunciation are there?
. English across the Atlantic.
. 1 Words you knowasks the class:you know any words from
American English?you tell the difference between British and American
English?do British and American English sound different?brainstorms as many
words as pupils know to be different in American and British English. Then
teacher provides the list of words to be translated and learnt by heart:
3
UK English
|
US English
|
rucksack
|
backpak
|
queue
|
line
|
petrol
|
gas
|
Block of flats
|
Apartment
building
|
trousers
|
pants
|
dustbin
|
trashcan
|
shop
|
store
|
chemist
|
lift
|
elevator
|
tap
|
faucet
|
cooker
|
stove
|
cinema
|
Movie theatre
|
underground
|
subway
|
pavement
|
sidewalk
|
jam
|
jelly
|
biscuits
|
cookies
|
sweets
|
candy
|
teacher explains some other differences:English uses ‘-or’,
where UK English uses ‘-our’. - colour; Neighbor - neighbour.English uses
‘-er’, where UK English uses ‘-re’. - centre; Theater - theatreEnglish and
British English sometimes use different prepositions. : It’s twenty of six.
It’s five after nine. : It’s twenty to six. It’s five past nine. English
doesn’t use the Present perfect as much as British English. : I think I broke
my leg. : I think I’ve broken my leg.
‘r’ is often not pronounced in British English. It is always
pronounced in American English. : car /ka:r/ hard /ha:rd/: car /ka:/ hard
/ha:d/
.2. British or American?asks pupils to listen to the
typescript, where six people are speaking, and then decide if they are British
or American?:
1) Well, I don’t think British and American English are so
different. (UK)
2) They sound different, but most of the words are the
same. There aren’t any real communication problems. (USA)
) I was talking on the phone to someone over there and
he said he would give me a ring later. I thought, is he mad? A ring? What for?
Anyway, he meant he was going to call me later! (USA)
) The accent’s different, that’s all really. Oh, and some
words. (UK)
) I was in London once and asked somebody where the
nearest drugstore was. They didn’t know what I was talking about! They say
chemist or something. (USA)
) They say cookies, we say biscuits. They say jelly
and we say jam. It’s just words like that. (UK)
. Find the differences:read the sentences and then guess
where each person comes from Britain or America.
1) Can you tell me where the nearest chemist is? (Britain)
2) Do you have a trashcan here? (United States)
) Is there a subway near here? (United States)
) I live in a block of flats. (Britain)
) It’s quarter of three. (United States)
) Take the lift. It’s quicker the walking. (Britain)
Pupils are to match British English and American English
equivalents.
. Holiday a) fall
2. Biscuits b) stove
. Cinema c) candy
. Underground d) mailbox
. Sweets e) backpack
. Autumn f) faucet
. Postbox g) vacation
. Cooker h) subway
. Rucksack i) movie theater
. Tap j) cookies
Right answers are: 1-g; 2-j; 3-i; 4-h; 5-c; 6-a; 7-d; 8-b;
9-e; 10-f.
4. Separated by the same language?: What does the headline
mean? Discuss what means this quotation by George Bernard Shaw historically and
today. Do you know any historical events that may have shaped differences
between Americans and British people? What about British and American TV
programmes and movies? Or newspapers and magazines? You may look at some web
pages for major British and American papers and see if you can see any
differences.may be asked to prepare for this discussion for the next lesson.sums
up the lesson, announces its result and assigns the tasks to be done at home.of
the second lesson is “Travelling to Australia”’ level of the English language
proficiency is pre-intermediate.of the lesson:objectives:
- To develop the communicative and speaking skills;
- To develop the abilities to analyze and compare data
from different sources (Russian and foreign ones).
Educational objectives:
To promote of the idea of respect to the language and
culture of the native speakers;
- To widen the horizons of the students;
To teach students to complete the tasks
individually.
Pedagogic objectives:
To develop positive motivation for the further English
language learning.
Course of the lesson:
1. Introduction:: Hello, children! The topic of our today’s
lesson is “Travelling to Australia”. It is a great chance to know much about
another English speaking country. Try not to miss it and be active during the
lesson.
. Discussion:
Teacher: So, answer my questions, please. Who discovered
Australia? 1: Captain James Cook discovered Australia in 1770. He was sent to
discover the huge land that many people believed was south of the equator. He
landed south of present day Sydney in New South Wales. He claimed this part of
the land for the King of England.: Very good, thank you. Please explain the
meaning of the sentence: huge areas of land are so dry that they are
uninhabited.2: Australia is situated south of Asia, between the Pacific and the
Indian Oceans. Australia is the world's driest continent. Huge areas of land
are so dry that they are uninhabited. There are rainforests in the north,
snowfields in the south-east, deserts in the center and fertile croplands in
the south and south-west.: All right! And what is an island-state?3: The state
of Tasmania is separated from the continent of Australia. It is an
island-state.: And what do you know about capital cities of Australia?4:
Adelaide is the capital of South Australia.5: Perth is the capital of the state
of Western Australia and one of the best climates in Australia.6: Brisbane is
the capital of Queensland. Tropical climate makes it a year-round vacation
place.: Good for you! Thank you children! And now let's guess the crossword
about Australia.
3. Crossword:your memory. Do the crossword puzzle. (see
Application 1)
Dialogue:: I see that you know the main and most important
facts about Australia. It's great. Let's do following task. Make the dialogue.
You meet your Australian friend. You are interested in Australia. Think of a
conversation between you. The following questions will help you. Translate them
into English and answer the questions:
1. Есть ли различия между британским и австралийским английским?
. Кто такие аборигены?
. Какие у тебя впечатления об Австралии?
. Любят ли австралийцы природу?
. Много ли людей других национальностей живут в Австралии?of a dialogue:
Hi! I am Tom!
Hello! My name is Olga.
Nice to meet you, Olga.
Nice to meet you, too. Welcome to Australia.
You speak English so well. How long have you been studying
English?
As of the end of this year I will have been studying English
for three years. I hope to improve my English while I am here.
You will also have the opportunity to learn the English
dialect.
Is Australian English very different from British English?
No, it's not very different. Some of our words come from the
Aborigines, such as "boomerang" and "kangaroo".
Who are the Aborigines?
The Aborigines are the Australian natives that had been
living here for thousands and thousands of years before the first Europeans
came to Australia. What are your first impressions of Australia?
I am very impressed by the number of different plants and
birds that live right in the city. It seems like Australians really love
nature.
Yes, we do. We try to protect our nature and animals.
I also noticed that people from many different countries live
here.
About a quarter of Australian citizens were born overseas and
migrated to Australia.
. Listening:: Australia is a very big country with many
beautiful cities. Your task now is to listen to the geographical description of
Australia and to fill any missing information on the map.is the sixth largest
country and the smallest continent in the world. It is surrounded by three
countries, Indonesia and New Guinea to the north and New Zealand to the
south-east.has six states and two territories. One of the states, Tasmania, is
actually an island and is located south of the main continent. The capital of
Tasmania is Hobart. Western Australia is Australia's largest state. Its capital
is Perth.is the largest city in Australia and is the capital of the state New
South Wales. Sydney is located just north of Canberra, the capital of
Australia.has the largest coral reef in the world. 1500 different kind of fish
live there. It's called the Great Barrier Reef. It is situated on the northeast
coast of Australia, off the coast of Queensland.
. Problem Task:: The next task is a Problem Task. Are there
any differences between the English of Great Britain, American and Australian
English? What are the Australian and British equivalents of the underlined
words?
. My child likes candy.
. There is an elevator in the house.
. He has invited me to the movies.
. Is there a subway in your town?
. I spent my vacation at the seaside.
. Quiz:: Our lesson is coming to the end; we have the last
task to perform. It will be quiz:
. What is the capital of Australia? ) Sydney;) Melbourne; )
Canberra.
. When did
Europeans settle in Australia?) 1488;) 1788;) 1492;) 1901.
. Which is/ are
popular Australian animal(s)?
a) Koala;) Kangaroo;)
Emu;
d) All above.
. Which two
animals can you see on the Australian coat of arms?) Kangaroo and Dingo;) Koala
and Parrot;) Kangaroo and Emu.
. Which city is
Australia's oldest and largest?) Sydney;) Melbourne;) Canberra.
. Who are the
Australian natives?) Eskimos;) Aborigines;) Indians.
. Who discovered
Australia?) Christopher Columbus;) Captain Cook;) Lewis and Clark.
. Australia is not
a (an):) Country;) Island; ) City; ) Continent.
. What is the
official language in Australia?) French;) German;) English.checks the answers,
sums up the lesson, announces its result and assigns the tasks to be done at
home.getting acquainted with the conducted lessons, we have to make some
conclusions. aim of the approbation was to prove the importance of the
introduction of the differences between British English and American English to
pupils. In accordance with the aim we tried to define the changes in the
interest in the English language learning. In order to find it out we’ve
conducted questionnaire survey and interview with students that took part in
the lessons.was proved that such approach to the structure of a language class
activity creates positive circumstances for active and individual development
of a student’s personality. Using such approach to the education we eliminate
distinctive barriers of educational process that decrease motivation of the
students and make them frustrated or even rude. Students have become the centre
of cognitive activity. Reading and listening exercises were not a monotonous
routine anymore, but interesting tasks that allow students to express their own
ideas, but not the thoughts of the teacher or author of the exercise-book.
Expression of their thoughts has become more important for the students than
demonstration of the knowledge of the English language. Moreover, the use of
language material corresponds to the objective of individual speech intention.
, students’ interest in learning has increased also. They were eager to take
active participation in the course of the lesson. They stopped missing the
lessons of the English language. for the pedagogic changes, students has become
interested in the history and culture of the United Kingdom of Great Britain
and Northern Ireland in particular and all the English-speaking countries in
general. We can consider that the aim of widening the students’ horizon was
achieved. can hope that these positive changes won’t be neglected and the
teaching staff will appeal to the same approach of the conduction of the
language lessons. Moreover, resting on the growth of interest, we can predict
significant improvement of the learning skills.
Conclusion
is a member of the Indo-European family of languages. It has
a very rich history. The English language really started with the arrival of
three Germanic tribes who invaded Britain during the 5th century AD. In
general, its history is divided into three periods: Old English (450-1100 AD),
Middle English (1100-1500), and Modern English (1500-present days). will be
true to say that the history of the English language expansion began
approximately in the Era of Modern English. It was closely connected mainly
with the complex processes of exploration, colonization and overseas trade of
the British Empire. first significant step in the progress of English towards
its status as a global language took place at the end of the sixteenth century.
And the first fresh dimension being added to the history of the language is
North America. The first permanent English settlement dates from 1607, when an
expedition arrived in Chesapeake Bay. The colonists called their settlement
Jamestown (after James I) and the area Virginia (after the ‘Virgin Queen’,
Elizabeth). Perhaps, nobody could imagine that time that already in 2000 English
undergone many influences and changes would be spoken in America by 215million,
though representing a fall to 82 per cent of the population. This is almost
four times as many mother-tongue speakers as any other nation.first
English-language contact with Canada was as early as 1497, when John Cabot is
thought to have reached Newfoundland; but English migration along the Atlantic
coast did not develop until a century later, when the farming, fishing, and fur
trading industries attracted English-speaking settlers. The next major
development followed the US Declaration of Independence in 1776. Loyalist
supporters of Britain (the ‘United Empire Loyalists’) found themselves unable
to stay in the new United States, and most left for Canada, settling first in
what is now Nova Scotia, then moving to New Brunswick and further inland.
Within fifty years, the population of this province had reached 100,000. Over
31 million were estimated in 2001, with two-thirds claiming English as a native
or home language.was visited by James Cook in 1770, and within twenty years
Britain had established its first penal colony at Sydney, thus relieving the
pressure on the overcrowded prisons in England. About 130,000 prisoners were
transported during the fifty years after the arrival of the ‘first fleet’ in
1788. ‘From then on, immigration rapidly increased. By 1850, the population of
Australia was about 400,000, and by 1900 nearly 4 million. New Zealand the
story of English started later and moved more slowly. Captain Cook charted the
islands in 1769-70, and European whalers and traders began to settle there in
the 1790s, expanding the developments already taking place in Australia.
Christian missionary work began among the Maori from about 1814. However, the
official colony was not established until 1840, following the Treaty of
Waitangi between Maori chiefs and the British Crown. There was then a rapid
increase in European immigration - from around 2,000 in 1840 to 25,000 by 1850,
and to three-quarters of a million by 1900.in all, English is widely spread
throughout Africa and Asia. It is becoming the first world’s universal
language. It is the mother tongue of 500 million of people in 12 countries of
the world. English is thought to be second language of 600 million of people.
About 200 million of people know the English language to some extent. It has
official and semi-official status in 62 countries of the world.English language
predominates in the spheres of transport and mass media. English is the
language of the travels. All the International airlines use English as the
language of communication. Five largest television networks - CBS, NBC, ABC,
BBC and CBC (Canadian Broadcasting Company) - broadcast in English for the
audience of about 500 million of people. It is also the language of satellite
television.is the language if Information Era. More than 80% of computer
information is stored in English. 85% of all the telephone conversations are
held in English, as well as three fourths of the world’s mails, e-mails, faxes
and telegrams. Software manuals and the software itself are often available in
English only. Earlier German was the language of the science, but today about
85% of scientific works are published in English first. English is the language
of the medicine, electronics and space technologies. The Internet is
inconceivable without the English Language. is the official language of Oxfam,
UNESCO, NATO and UN.approbation given in the work proves the importance of the
introduction the differences between British English and American English to
the pupils. And in result students has become interested in the history and
culture of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in
particular and all the English-speaking countries in general. Thus, students’
interest in learning has increased also. They were eager to take active
participation in the course of the lesson. They stopped missing the lessons of
the English language.
References
1. Baugh, Cable, A History of the English Language
Fifth Edition, 50.
2. Cheshire, Jenny (1991). English Around The
World: Sociolinguistic Perspectives. Cambridge University Press. ISBN
0521395658.
. Crystal, David (1997). English as a Global
Language. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0-521-53032-6.
. Crystal, David (2004). The Stories of
English. Allen Lane. ISBN 0713997524.
. English language. Columbia University Press.
2005. Retrieved 2007-03-26.
. Global English: gift or curse? Retrieved
2005-04-04.
. Global Expansion of English: The South
African Case”. Retrieved 2007-07-25
. Joseph M. Willams, “Origins of the English
Language ". Amazon.com. Retrieved 2010-04-21.
. Plotkin, Vulf (2006). The Language System of
English. BrownWalker Press. ISBN 1-58112-993-9.
. The triumph of English. The Economist. 2001-12-20.
Retrieved 2007-03-26.
Application 1
Across
. Tropical climate. Population 70.000. Capital of
Northern. Territory.
2. Tropical climate makes this city a year-round
vacations place.
. An industrial city. Population about I million.
. Australia’s oldest and largest city.
1. Capital of Australian island - state of Tasmania. Cold
winters.
2. Capital of Australia.
. The second largest city of Australia. Hosted 1956
Olympics.
. It has one of the best climates in Australia.
Capital of Western Australia.