Global English?
The Financial Times has comprehensive article on the global use of the English language. I recommend all localization-industry chanters of “EJAL” (English is Just Another Language) read it immediately.
The article tells us that:
The reason millions are learning it is simple: it is the language of international business and therefore the key to prosperity. It is not just that Microsoft, Google and Vodafone conduct their business in English; it is the language in which Chinese speak to Brazilians and Germans to Indonesians.
What’s interesting is that the linguistic dynamics between the notion of native and non-native speakers are clearly changing too.
This paragraph from the article grabbed my attention:
“When native speakers work in an international organisation, some report their language changing. Mr Crystal has written: “On several occasions, I have encountered English-as-a-first-language politicians, diplomats and civil servants working in Brussels commenting on how they have felt their own English being pulled in the direction of these foreign-language patterns . . . These people are not ‘talking down’ to their colleagues or consciously adopting simpler expressions, for the English of their interlocutors may be as fluent as their own. It is a natural process of accommodation, which in due course could lead to new standardised forms.””
My own experience with working in an international organization mirrors this behavior. In a meeting where you have 5 people from 5 different countries all speaking English as a secondary language, the native speaker does have to adjust in order to “fit in” and participate effectively in the discussions. This adjustment in language happens either with intent or just by natural tendencies to pick up inflections and revised grammar forms. I have observed this behavior with myself, my colleagues, and even with my spouse, and friends during travels.
I have also observed the reverse pattern. For example, a German professor changing his English style to different audiences using variations of slang when speaking to surfers and motocrossers, and then reverting to British English in a business conversation. When I made a comment about this change in behavior, he laughed and said that he hadn’t really noticed. This skill reflected again that it wasn’t the language that was the focus, but rather the attention to the audience and ability to adjust to such with the intent to reach the most effective communication channel.
As a brief observation, I grew up in a neighborhood that was mostly composed of families from other countries (Korea, Mexico, Germany) or states (Texas, New Hamshire, Mississippi, Minnesota) that had varied versions of English. The result was our neighborhood created its own mixed version of English with insertions from the different languages and regional colloquilisms. In that environment, you don’t intentionally go out of your way to create a variation or change the language, your intent is simply to understand and be understood.
We already have recognized varieties of English (such as British English, American English, Indian English). These more formal forms obviously are already influencing the overall English form in a direct manner. It is likely that the above-described behavior is more likely to have subtle influences, not direct impact, because they tend to be situational and regionalized.
Posted by on 12/27 at 11:30 AM
Next entry: MTV Arabia Localization
Previous entry: And This One Time, At Mashup Camp Dublin ...