English Language FAQ

The discussions on how to save the euro were, bizarrely conducted in English, though there were not a Briton in sight .   The Sunday Times 14/02/10 Listen! More on this & related topics below. (English language level: Upper Intermediate CEF (B2) According to David Graddol's extensive survey for the British Council, the number of non-native or second language speakers of English now outnumbers those of primary or native speakers. At the same time there is an ever increasing need for speakers of different languages to communicate with each other: international tourism is growing, but the proportion of encounters involving a native English speaker is declining (1.9). There were around 763 million international travellers in 2004, but nearly 75% of visits involved visitors from a non-English-speaking country travelling to a non-English-speaking destination. This demonstrates the ... growing role for global English. (free)  Interview with Robert McCrum: The rise of Gl

The King James Bible 1611 The publication of the a translation of The Bible into English authorised by King James. Leading linguist David Crystal describes its impact: I think the King James Bible did something that nobody else had done ... and that is increase the idiomatic range of the language.   The Bible has had an enormous influence on the evolution of the English language. It not only expanded vocabulary but introduced new ways of  expressing complex ideas. Until recently most educated English-speaking people had at least some knowledge of  the Bible. Many words, phrases and idioms have entered the language. The translation with the greatest influence on modern English is the what is the translation authorized by King James in 1611 . This became the version used in Anglican (protestant) churches in England. It is widely admired for the beauty of its language. More on the role of The Bible in the evolution of English here : Audio interview with David Crystal about the KJB

Not according to millions of student of English as a foreign language! But English does have some 'user friendly features as an OUP lexicographer explains in this short extract from a BBC interview Easy English (ESL)

Because I accidentally restricted access! Have corrected - comments welcome!

There does not seem to be an agreed term as you can see from the number of Google references here: yankophile 945 americanophile 716 americophile 233 americaphile 150 usaphile 14 usphile 1 Contrast this with the situation for lovers of French, English, Chinese or Japanese culture anglophile 102,000, francophile 84,700, japanophile 20,400, sinophile 3450 Why is this? Snobbery, perhaps - a 'new' culture looked down on by traditional ones? Or is it just linguistically awkward - americaphile really isn't a pretty word. You might want to check out:  (audio) discussion about the relationship between British and American English here . Time Magazine piece on The Next American Century The New American Century Alistair Cooke's America

The Test of English as a Foreign Language. TOEFL  is the standardised test used by American universities and many employers to test the language level of non-native speakers of English.  Nik Peachey guides you through a typical reading activity or you can try a free practice test here , English as a foreign - or second or other - language has many obscure acronyms.

Or  has there 'never been a time when English was not thought to be going to hell in a handcart'?  Complaints about English are (a) as old as the hills, (b) based on no linguistic logic, and (c) ultimately futile, since no one can stop language from varying and changing.   In The Language Wars , Henry Hitchings argues there has never been a time when English was not thought to be going to hell in a handcart. He cites what sounds like a contemporary essay on "the growing illiteracy of American boys" and invites us to guess when it was written. The answer turns out to be, in 1896 – and the boys whose illiteracy so alarmed the essay's author were not hillbillies or slum children, but Harvard undergraduates.  Source But aren't young people today reading far less?  Is the Internet destroying our 'book culture'? Adam Gopnik summarises the different approaches to this question: Never-Better : The internet is opening up a new information democracy. Everyone