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icomefromalanddownunder wrote:Oh, it goes way beyond differences in pronounciation
An Aussie colleague stayed with relatives of another colleague in Sheffield.
One evening, Chris' uncle told David, who had already declared that he was retiring to his room due to jetlag, that he was going to the pub and asked whether David wanted 'out'. ' No thanks', replied David 'I'm going to bed'.
'Aye Lad, but do you want out?'
'NO. ...............thank you'.
Differences in sentence structure, the that/which 'debate'.
I'm not sure what I speak any more - occasional bits of Strine, the odd phrase picked up from my Battersea-bred Grandmother, Kiwi - very rarely, unless I'm speaking to someone who originated beneath The Long White Cloud.
Caroline
I think the word is "owt" meaning 'anything', like a glass of water or a hot water bottle.
Did he not say "Does tha' want owt?"
I must admit it had me confused until I said it out loud with emphasis on 'want'
"If a man speaks, and there isn't a woman to hear him, is he still wrong?"
Personally, I can agree with most of what has already been said! It's true that English is the number one world language- and many people learn it as their second too.
In the same way that Latin still survives throughout the world today, perhaps we'll see English do the same (well, maybe not us exactly- our ancestors perhaps!!!)... Who knows, make English the E.U. language and we'll see many communication problems throughout the world vanish!
However, I would have to agree in reality that it would be a real shame to lose other languages and cultures. Where would patriotism be then?! - there would be no point in travelling the world and making stupid gestures to people who don't speak the same language as you!!! It's all part of the fun..
Anyways- good luck Mark! You've got more cons than pros to work with, but I hope you do good.
99yorkpj wrote:Personally, I can agree with most of what has already been said! It's true that English is the number one world language- and many people learn it as their second too.
In the same way that Latin still survives throughout the world today, perhaps we'll see English do the same (well, maybe not us exactly- our ancestors perhaps!!!)... Who knows, make English the E.U. language and we'll see many communication problems throughout the world vanish!
However, I would have to agree in reality that it would be a real shame to lose other languages and cultures. Where would patriotism be then?! - there would be no point in travelling the world and making stupid gestures to people who don't speak the same language as you!!! It's all part of the fun..
Anyways- good luck Mark! You've got more cons than pros to work with, but I hope you do good.
Have you been taking English lessons from Amy?
"If a man speaks, and there isn't a woman to hear him, is he still wrong?"
99yorkpj wrote:Personally, I can agree with most of what has already been said! It's true that English is the number one world language- and many people learn it as their second too.
In the same way that Latin still survives throughout the world today, perhaps we'll see English do the same (well, maybe not us exactly- our ancestors perhaps!!!)... Who knows, make English the E.U. language and we'll see many communication problems throughout the world vanish!
However, I would have to agree in reality that it would be a real shame to lose other languages and cultures. Where would patriotism be then?! - there would be no point in travelling the world and making stupid gestures to people who don't speak the same language as you!!! It's all part of the fun..
Anyways- good luck Mark! You've got more cons than pros to work with, but I hope you do good.
I'm not biased here because my wife is Czech.
She speaks German as her second language, then English, then Spanish and she still remembers some of the Russian she was taught during the communist era. She might be a bit miffed if all that hard work was in vain. However, it would get me out of the need to further my Czech.
One positive of English being adopted would be we wouldn't have to hear Brits either talking loudly or slowly to make themselves understood.
englishangel wrote: Have you been taking English lessons from Amy?
No just good ole isle-o-wight-ish! Sometimes its good to make your own phrases up... just like "i hope you do good". I do good meself sometimes!!! (except when it comes to me spellin, which sometimes goes down the drain- especially wiv a few drinks insida me...!!) haha
If everyone in Europe was to speak English, all signs etc to be in English, at least everyone would know what they were eating in French/Spanish/ Italian/etc restaurant! (although the various dishes may lose something in translation!!)
I`m still mourning the loss of the franc, the Deutschmark etc!
The best way to forget your troubles is to wear tight shoes.
oop ere norf o' Doncastrer the signs look like English but the street signs (like Kirk Gate which typically is mis-spelt) and words in the dictionary are Scandinavian. The people sound like they are moaning all the time and for the most part are incomprehensible.
I go with the decision in Indiana back in the 1920's or 30's to change the name of their language because their version of English is not English. Likewise Portuguese - the Europeans don't speak the Imperial Portuguese any longer whilst in Brazil there are innumerable dialests, one of which sounds pretty close to Hoch Deutsch.
Go to Gibraltar and try to say in Spanish that "I feel hot" - I did that once and the entire city knew in 30 minutes (for Euterpe's benefit she was attractive - and knew it!).
I went into a shop in one European country and asked the price of something - it was "sjo" kroner. Fine except that from 50 miles away the word sjo didn't exist - it was "syve". Even between fjords and mountains, old and young, there is such a language gap that most of the population speak the English of Oxbridge (and try to find that word in the dictionary).
I see that some school has just had a good report from Ofstead; they have to speak 50 different languages in the one school - what a waste of time.
English is possibly the most definitive language; with 500,000 "normal" words and 300,000 technical words it beats French (500,000 words in all) and AFAIK, every othetr language. Properly spoken it is hard to write unclear sentences - just try Portuguese where it is hard not if not impossible to be ambiguous.
Given that even the natives of other countries can't speak their own languages anything other than English should be banned and have a 50 year gaol sentence for use of anything other than English English.
What happens if a politician drowns in a river? That is pollution.
What happens if all of them drown? That is solution!!!
Good to see so many responses! I can see that the harder challenge for us will be arguing convincingly that a common language is an absolute necessity - once we've cleared that hurdle, to present English as the forerunner to be that language ought be less difficult!
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