The Future of English and Mother Tongue

Paper Summary:

A personal opinion paper which addresses the following questions - Does globalization of English form a serious threat? Do languages other than English face a slow death? This essays argues the eminent future of English and mother tongue.

From the Paper:

"It appears that English is to become the main language in Europe, and perhaps the world. This topic has been discussed extensively and widely and there has been massive scientific research in recent years. I came upon the article "The Great English Divide" merely by chance, and the discussion caught my particular interest, as I am a Dutch-speaking Belgian, living in multi-lingual South Africa and currently studying towards a degree in English. I surfed the Internet, and found hundreds of articles discussing this same subject. The articles of my choice are only a few examples. Professor David Crystal has nominated a book to the subject "English as a global language" , where he researched these three questions: What makes a world language? Why is English the leading candidate? Will it continue to hold that position? David Crystal has written a number of books on the topic itself. My main interest is how this globalisation of the English Language will influence English as a language. Is the idea of globalisation of English not just a triumphalist notion? Will the increase of the use of English in non-English speaking countries change English vocabulary and grammar? Will the use of 'Fusion English' increase? Paradoxically, could it mean that the population of Europe will become monolingual and could therefore mother languages become extinct?"

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