English as a Global Language

NAME: Zhaoyu Li                             STUDENT NO.5926107

Discussion
Nowadays, English has played a important role in the world. It is acceptable that English is a global language. From my point of view, the reasons are historical dominance and present demand.

First of all, the establishment of a language as an international language mainly relies on the political dominance, especially for the military power and financial power. In the 18 century, the industrial revolution sped up Britain’s industrial development, and Britain became the industrial centre of the world. Then in the past two centuries, America emerged as a superpower country. Therefore English is the carrier of wealth and power.

Secondly, English is widespread largely due to the fact that it is used so heavily in television, film and music. Hollywood's global spread has contributed to the international popularity of English. It is also the predominant language on the internet. Pages in other languages even tend to have an English translation. The British Empire and the dominant nature of American popular culture have contributed to the spread of English across the planet.

Thirdly, English is the official language in many countries such as Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South Africa. Also, the United Nations and many other international organizations, including the International Olympic Committee, use English as an official language (Crystal,1997). This situation makes English more influential than any other languages in the world.

Last but not least, with the global immigration, English is treated as an international accessible and influential language. People can understand it on television which is spoken by politicians across the world. Wherever you travel, you can communicate with other local citizens by English. Therefore, it is useful to speak the global language (Kukurs 2013).

In conclusion, English, as the global language, is the result of historical dominance and...