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Similarities between English and American English
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American English as a Variety of English For many years, English is a worldwide spoken language, which one can find on all continents, today. The tongue is used as a first language in well over 30 areas (Graddol 2000: 10) and there might be approximately 400 million speakers of the language at all (Crystal 2003: 62). Therefore, English is established as one of the global languages (Bauer 2007: 23). Considering that the peculiarities of English differ most intense, the usage of different language speakers reflects the numerous varieties of the English tongue. Varieties represent the different “characteristic of the English language as it is used in various countries around the world” in general (1). English itself fulfills the officialese in …show more content…
But there is no right form or universality of the English language. By reason of its historic cultural background and its dissemination, it arises as an individual language. In the following, this essay argues in how far American English represents a multilingual variety and takes a deeper look into the linguistic history of American English and its idiosyncrasies. At first, it is necessary to look roughly at the historical background of the modern American English language and furnish a brief recapitulation of the historical facts. The beginning of the American language started in 1492 with the discovery of the continent America by the Italian Christopher Columbus (Hickey 2015: 27). Originally, the continent was inhabited by Native Americans who spoke indigenous languages (Schneider 2008: 1). Nevertheless, the people and their native languages “were subdued and cruelly decimated by European” fellow countrymen (23). After the exploration with the aid of Columbus, the European settlers started to discover the East coast of America. States such as North Carolina, Virginia, New England and Massachusetts were colonized by mainly British compatriots. Other European countries settled
Latin was the main language for the Roman empire and was used all across the land. In document 1 it revealed that,”Latin is the basis for the languages of French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and Romanian… Even the German and English languages have derived worlds from Latin.” This evidence shows that all these widely spoken languages are all from Latin which means that if it weren’t for the creation of Latin these languages wouldn’t be the way they are and as popular as they are. Just like how Latin affected the way languages are spoken in Europe, these languages also spread to the U.S. as well with some languages gaining more speakers due to the spread. In the article,”The Most Spoken Languages In America” by Jessica Dillinger, around 230 million people speak english and out of the top twelve languages spoken in the U.S. half are romance languages. The latin language has changed how people speak and what to speak in the U.S. since about 70% of the population speak english. Also since all the Romance languages are from Latin it’s easier to learn other languages when you know one already. The way people talk and the way people try to communicate in the U.S. is, ironically the effect of the the one language that no one
United States of America, small in history but large in diversity continues to face new challenges with language as time continues to turn. In the documentary “Do You Speak American?” Robert MacNeil analyzes the English language and reveals many dialects that culturally defines us. Regional dialect is one of the many strongholds of all cultures and now it has reached its’ zenith and today it is slowly declining because it does not possess the human nature of advancement. Optimistically, it allows people to learn how to cooperate with each other. In order to advance and adopt a person has to change; I believe that the acceptance of cultural adaptations, diversity, and industrialization can prove that the decline of speech does not cause a decline of culture.
The United States is made up of multiple cultures, race, and languages. Many people come from Mexico or Asian parts of the world, like China in search for a better life. One of the struggles many people have when coming from a different country is the language, in this case English. Everyone has a unique way of communicating. In the United States, after people learn English they realize they use different Englishes without knowing, in order to communicate, whether it be with parents, professors, or your own pets.
This is not all though, in the colonies, the language became very uniform. It became so uniform that it was almost identical across all of the colonies and all of the social classes. “The linguistic uniformity of America is geographic… and social.” (Boorstin 272) This happened both out of necessity, and as a result of the lifestyle of the colonists. In the colonies people moved around a lot, this meant that both they spread their particular dialect this caused a melding of all of the varying dialects of English from England. As they moved they also had to be able to communicate with people Wherever they went. This resulted in a very stable and uniform form of English that developed in the colonies, much more uniform than anything that could be found in England at the time. This form of English picked up a surprisingly small number of words from the
King, Robert D. “Should English Be the Law?” 1996. The Presence of Others. Comp. Andrea A. Lunsford and John J. Ruszkiewicz. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2008. 90-102. Print.
To what degree do the words you use define the person you are? This is a central question in the hotly debated issue of making English the official language of the United States. If English did become the official language, the rights of people who do not speak English would be violated and the nation would be further segregated. Just as schools were segregated in our past, this again would show that segregation equals discrimination. People must understand that every citizen deserves the right to celebrate their diversity. The government need not interfere with the words that come out of people's mouths. In a country torn by prejudice and segregation, the official language should serve as a reminder that America is as diverse population where differences are embraced, not ignored.
In Robert MacNeil’s article “Do You Speak American?” MacNeil discusses how the United States English started to become more diverse through the ongoing changes in the way English is being spoken throughout the States.MacNeil includes different demographics, groups of people and dialects to depict the progress that has come about over the years. With this in mind, he wants people to view this change as a step in the right direction.He aims to persuade people who are against this shift, so they can grow to tolerate and view this growth in a more positive manner. Since this article was published after his show on PBS in USA magazine he aims to convince people who have an above average knowledge of the English language to view change as a progressive
When African Americans were brought to the British colonies as slaves, they were introduced to a foreign language they had never heard of before. Their own native language was mixed in to create a brand new dialect unique to them. This applies to any situation in which non - English speakers are introduced to it for the first time. In these situations, "languages often borrow words, sounds, constructions and so on" (ling.upenn.edu). New technology helps to spread not only English and many other languages all over the
After selecting the English language to be standard, codification -Early Modern English (1500-1800)is the second step in standardization of language, it deal with grammar and vocabulary, grammatical rules and lexicon in grammar and dictionaries. That often happen when the language written for the first time, or when it developing as standard, or after a time of great and huge changing as after the demise of colonialism , which made language planning necessary .Wikipedia
In Britain the way the speak and the way they act has something to do with their culture. They like to have a cultural emphasis of language, meaning they like to emphasize words that are adaptively important in their culture. The culture itself shows how it is different and why it is different from any other in the world. American English is much more homogenous than British English, meaning it is often harder to tell where in the USA someone is from just by hearing their accent. Linguists have identified somewhere between six and twenty-five American dialects, although the major divisions are between Northern, Midland and Southern dialects, which are roughly grouped together. In the US and in Britain we have what is known as an open communication system meaning, we can communicate with new sounds or words by combining two or more existing sounds or
It has been adopted by different sectors making it one of the most used languages in the globe. This has been attributed to its effective nature, easy learning and rich history. However, conservative groups exist who argues that there should be global language since it may cause the emergence of superior cultures. Nevertheless, it is evident that different cultures ranging from the early polish immigrants, the African American community, the advertising and media will greatly benefit from the globalization of the English language. This will prove in the end that English is indeed a global
The settlement of the British Isles by north Europeans followed by Norman French paints the backdrop to this essay which will focus on the period between the early 15th and 17th centuries, when a 'standard' English evolved. It will show that modern-day English is very different to that first introduced to the British Isles, but by identifying changes through time, its continuity can be demonstrated. Finally, it will suggest that present day English is in a position analogous to that which existed before the Norman invasion, when there were many varieties and dialects, and that this may lead to its decline as a global language, due to decreasing intelligibility.
Kachru, B. B. (1992). Teaching world Englishes. The other tongue: English across cultures, 2, 355-366.
Bailey, R. (1991). Images of english: a cultural history of the language. Ann Arbor: The
"Varieties of English: American and British." Switched On Schoolhouse. CD-ROM Rock Rapids, Michigan Alpha Omega Publications 2008.