By Tore Janson

 

As the prominent position of English is caused by the three factors mentioned, the attitudes to English among people outside the English-speaking countries may vary accordingly. English may be seen as a language for communication all over the world, or as a tool for the imperialist ambitions of the United States, or as a colonial heritage. All these views are justified to some extent. The different opinions tend to prevail in different parts of the world.

 

In countries outside the direct spheres of influence of the United States and Britain people often stress the advantages of using one international language in contacts with many linguistic areas. People who speak a small language as their native tongue appreciate that one other language opens up opportunities for contacts in many directions. For this reason it is becoming ever more important to learn English as a second language in most countries of the world.

 

However, this is not without problems. All languages are expressions or embodiments of a particular human culture. In this sense, no language is neutral, even if some people wish to believe so. English is a European language with a specific history, a literature, and a structuring of the world. It is also linked to several states, one of which is extremely influential all over the world. A person who learns English also assimilates important parts of English culture and is influenced by it. She or he is liable to prefer contacts with English-speaking countries, and thus continue to receive impulses from the same cultural sphere. If most people speaking a certain language are in this situation the total impact from English may become overwhelming.

 

This is what has happened in many countries during the last few decades. The direct signs of influence on a language are first a very large number of loanwords from English; such words are adapted to the sound system of the language. Secondly, nonadapted English words may intrude in the speech of many people. Thirdly, parts of sentences or even whole sentences in English may be interspersed with ordinary speech in the language.

 

Still more important,however, is the fact that English tends to be used as the language of communication in certain contexts. In multinational companies, English may be the spoken and written language in Amsterdam and Rome as well as in Chicago. At universities in many parts of the world, advanced seminars and graduate courses are regularly conducted in English, as researchers from several countries may participate, and English is almost always their only common language. This situation is beginning to provoke questions about the long-term prospects of many languages, even large ones, in face of the competition from English.

 

Some states openly resist the English influence. A notable instance is France, which does not willingly accept that English has usurped the international position that French used to have. Now, French is protected in its home country by all available means. This is fairly natural in a nation state with aspirations to power. But even small and comparatively powerless nation states, such as the Scandinavian ones,may feel that this is something of a threat. Whenever English acquires a new function, that function is taken away from the national language.

 

Countries such as India, Nigeria, and many others that used to belong to the British Empire are in a special situation. When they became independent in the decades following the Second World War all these countries had administrations and school systems that functioned in English. In most of the countries this is still the case. This means in most cases that English is the language of instruction at least in advanced education, and in some countries even in elementary school. For several reasons it has not been possible or realistic to make a change. In the first place, school systems and official administrations have considerable inertia and are not easy to change radically at any time. Secondly, there have not been any good models for alternative administrations and schools, and new ones are not easily invented. Thirdly, most of the former colonies are multilingual, and to stick to English has often been the only viable strategy to avoid divisive fights about language issues.