
English as `lingua terra’
The world has become a village - a global village. It did not happen
overnight; the world has been shrinking for many millennia.
So, in this global village you can get in touch with anybody living
in any part of the world in a fraction of a second. The technology
available is well-known even to a child and it needs no elaboration.
However, one question remains to be answered.
The question is in what language we are going to communicate with
people in other countries. According to a recent survey more people
speak Mandarin Chinese than any other language.
Does it mean that Mandarin Chinese is on its way to become the global
language? This is very unlikely because those who speak Mandarin Chinese
live mainly in China.
The next language widely spoken in the world is English. It is so
widespread that you can find a person who speaks English in almost all
parts of the world. The language was spread with the expansion of the
British Empire. Although the empire per se has crumbled down, the
British exercise some influence over countries where English is used.
English is spoken by the people who belong to 32 or more different
nations in the world. Even in countries where English is not the native
tongue, the language has appealed to millions of people who seek to
drink deep at the foundation of knowledge.
Despite emerging nationalism, people are beginning to realise the
value of English in matters of science, technology, business, and
international politics.
Most of the research done in Germany, France or Japan are available
in English. At this rate English would have become the lingua terra or
the language of the world if not for the nationalistic reactions against
it.
Fear is mounting among Germans that their language is being eroded by
waves of English. It is believed that seven out of ten Germans speak
some English. However, there is a persisting trend of resentment against
English terms being used in business and technology.
In fact, German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative party has
taken steps to enthrone the German language at least constitutionally.
Many German companies are now trying to use marketing slogans in their
mother tongue instead of using English.
Most of the English slogans used by the German commercial community
have been very popular. For instance, the perfume maker Douglas’s “Come
in and find out” was a catchy slogan.
While the Germans are shying away from English, a large number of
German words have been absorbed by the English language. Meanwhile,
certain organisations such as the German Language Association are
campaigning to protect their language.
The situation in Spain is almost similar. A controversial educational
scheme that forced schools in Spain’s Valencia region to teach
compulsory citizenship classes in the English medium has been dropped
after a wave of protests from teachers and parents. Some Spanish
educationists have claimed that teaching subjects in English is simply
“absurd.”
The situation in Sri Lanka is somewhat tragic. Even after the British
rulers left our shores the medium of teaching remained English until S.
W. R. D. Bandaranaike made drastic changes with his `Sinhala only’
policy. The post-1956 era saw the emergence of a generation of scholars
who were monolingual. They had studied either in the Sinhala or Tamil
medium. It took a few more decades for the authorities to realise the
futility of relegating the English language to the limbo of forgotten
things.
Today Sri Lankans are clamouring for more and more English. However,
there is an acute shortage of qualified teachers pseudo English tutors
come to the surface. Like the sophists in ancient Greece they promise to
teach the language in a week or a few months and collect exorbitant
fees. They brazenly advertise their qualifications: BA (UG) or Diploma
in English (UK). There are many diploma mills in the country. They sell
their diplomas for a fee. Meanwhile, BA (UG) is a dubious title because
`UG’ stand for `undergraduate’!
It is high time Sri Lanka followed the Indian model. India uses
English as an official language to prevent the domination by any other
Indian language. Therefore, if English is given its due place in our
educational system, we may reap a lot of benefits. Most of our
mono-lingual graduates are half-baked products. As a result, the few
bilingual graduates are in great demand.
Some scholars who felt the need for a global language once tried to
promote an artificial language called Esperanto in 1887. It was, no
doubt, an easy-to-learn language. However, like all artificial products
it lacked vitality. Therefore, Esperanto will not stand a chance of
becoming `lingua terra.’
Another attempt to forge a global language was made in the
Mediterranean world in the medieval times. Scholars developed a new
language called `lingua franca’ (Language of the Franks) which was a
hotchpotch of Italian, French, Spanish, Greek and Arabic. Meanwhile, an
innovation called “pidgin English” arose in eastern Asia. However,
Esperanto, lingua franca, and pidgin English have not been accepted as
lingua terra by the international community.
Today the international community is turning to English and considers
it as the future lingua terra. Such a global language will obviate the
supremacy accorded to one particular national language in a country.
English has the remarkable quality of borrowing words from other
languages. For instance, more than half of the words in the present day
English come from other languages.
Through a trial-and-error process both India and Sri Lanka have
realised the futility of translating medical, legal and technological
terms into their own languages. Medical students now learn Latin and
Greek terms while following their courses in national languages. Law
students are quite familiar with `lex aquilia, de jure, habeas corpus’
and `animus injuriandi.’ If we try to translate these terms into Sinhala
or Tamil they will not convey the same meaning and impact.
Enthroning English as lingua terra is likely to be opposed by two
powerful groups.
One group consists of those who hate English because they had never
made a genuine attempt to learn this fascinating language. The second
group consists of language fanatics who are hell-bent on enthroning
their own mother tongue.
Birds and other animals communicate using their own language. They
spread love through their language not understood by human beings. If
man understood animal language, he would not kill any animal and eat its
flesh!
Meanwhile, man is using language to divide mankind and sow hatred in
society. Whatever that may be, English has no close competitor to be
lingua terra - the global language. |