Only the English language is alive

Discussion in 'Western Europe' started by Interaktive, Jan 31, 2023.

  1. Interaktive

    Interaktive Well-Known Member

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    Only the English language is alive
    Finns and Dutch know English well.
    therefore, they are richer than the Swedes, the British and the French
    I think that rich Dutch people know English no worse than Dutch
    do you agree
     
  2. Lil Mike

    Lil Mike Well-Known Member

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    I might agree if I understood what you meant. And yes, I'm quite aware of the irony since your thread is about language!

    Are you arguing that countries in which English as a second language is more common are richer? In which case, how did the British miss the mark?
     
  3. Interaktive

    Interaktive Well-Known Member

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    look at GDP per capita
     
  4. Pixie

    Pixie Well-Known Member

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    Spanish as a first language is the language used by the greatest number of people in the world.
     
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  5. Polydectes

    Polydectes Well-Known Member

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    The reason why English is taking over because everybody does commerce with the US and UK. Not everybody does commerce with Mexico, Spain or Argentina.
     
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  6. Interaktive

    Interaktive Well-Known Member

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    everyone wants to earn dollars and pounds
     
  7. Pixie

    Pixie Well-Known Member

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    It will be yuans soon.
    I see the crypto currencies of the commercially insane are crumbling via the use of better AI which distorts the reality of one's existence.
    It won't be long before the only reality will be what to think by vested interests that promise the best with clauses attached.
    Seriously fascinating subject for those younger than me to solve.
    The only truth is that you will never know it.
     
  8. Lindis

    Lindis Banned

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    Really "only"?
     
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  9. Interaktive

    Interaktive Well-Known Member

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    USA, Great Britain, Canada, India are the main exporters and importers
    they are english speaking
     
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  10. The Scotsman

    The Scotsman Well-Known Member

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    ...Australia, New Zealand South Africa, Nigeria, Kenya...in fact most of the southern African countries.....
     
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  11. Interaktive

    Interaktive Well-Known Member

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    in the 19th century, France and the French language dominated
    in the 22nd century there will be another language
    many languages will die
     
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  12. The Scotsman

    The Scotsman Well-Known Member

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    French is still pretty prevalent up in northern Africa I guess...remnants of the empire...:)
     
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  13. Interaktive

    Interaktive Well-Known Member

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    Yes
     
  14. undertheradar

    undertheradar Newly Registered

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    Sure about that? What about the 1.6 billion Chinese?
     
  15. Pixie

    Pixie Well-Known Member

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    They don't all speak the same language.
     
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  16. Melb_muser

    Melb_muser Well-Known Member Donor

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    English language appeal might lie in the fact that it is composed of a conglomerate of almost all the other Western languages.

    Additionally: the British empire was the largest (including unification of India); USA and Canada are a hugely influential block (Philippines and to a lesser extent Japan and South Korea, Hawaii). Final nail in the linguistic coffin are that Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong and Singapore play a role in consolidating the emphatic geographic globalization of English in Asia and the Pacific. There is probably even more I've left out but that'll do.
     
  17. Melb_muser

    Melb_muser Well-Known Member Donor

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    Agree in the sense that while teaching german and french and italian have waxed and waxed, english is still a strong second language taught around the world.
     
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  18. Interaktive

    Interaktive Well-Known Member

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    German is the official language in many countries
     
  19. conservaliberal

    conservaliberal Well-Known Member

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    These are the most spoken languages in the world
    English – 1,121 million speakers. ...
    Mandarin Chinese – 1,107 million speakers. ...
    Hindi – 698 million speakers. ...
    Spanish – 512 million speakers. ...
    French – 284 million speakers. ...
    Arabic – 273 million speakers. ...
    Bengali – 265 million inhabitants. ...
    Russian – 258 million speakers.

    Source: https://lingua.edu/the-20-most-spoken-languages-in-the-world-in-2022/
     
  20. Interaktive

    Interaktive Well-Known Member

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    all countries that know English well are rich
    the exception is the Netherlands
    they know english better, but they are poorer than northern europe
     
  21. Melb_muser

    Melb_muser Well-Known Member Donor

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    15% less GDP/capita than Germany.

    Dutch is possibly the closest language to English.
     
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  22. undertheradar

    undertheradar Newly Registered

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  23. Steady Pie

    Steady Pie Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    English is not a mix of the other languages, it shares a common root with them. It is no different in this regard than French, German, Italian, etc.
     
  24. Melb_muser

    Melb_muser Well-Known Member Donor

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    Actually, if you look at the history and structure of English language it is indeed a 'mixture' - moreso than the languages that you mentioned; and, additionally, sharing various common root(s) with these languages.

    This is a great series on topic if you're interested.

     
    Last edited: May 18, 2023
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  25. Interaktive

    Interaktive Well-Known Member

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    judging by the European Union, the German and French languages are still alive
    in Belgium, the Netherlands, Denmark, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine
    Ukrainians already learn German, not Russian
    and Crimean Tatar in Kiev is definitely dying, or Gagauz
     

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