English is the third most spoken first language in the world, but is also used by many as a second language. But how has English become so widespread that we can call it a world language?

The spread of English

English is spoken all around the world. In countries like the UK, Ireland, the US, Australia, New Zealand, Singapore, India and South Africa, English is an official language. Also, many of the islands in the Caribbean and the Pacific use English.

There are actually as many as 402 million people who speak English as their first language, while there are between 350 million and a billion who use English as a second language – as we do in Norway.

What other languages do you think are considered world languages?

Lingua franca

Lingua franca is a general term for communication between people who do not have the same mother tongue, and therefore use a different third language to communicate.

Imagine that you are a native speaker of Norwegian and have to talk to someone whose native language is German. If neither of you speak the other language, what do you do? Well, you can use a language that you can both understand when you talk to each other. In many cases, this will probably mean that you will use English, since many children start learning this language as early as in first grade.

Mennesker på en åpen plass hvor alle er koblet sammen i hverandre.
Mennesker på en åpen plass hvor alle er koblet sammen i hverandre.

Old English

In the 4th and 5th centuries, Old English was spoken in England. At that time the language was called Englisc. This language came with Anglo-Saxon settlers. The Anglo-Saxons came from present-day Germany, the Netherlands, and southern Denmark.

Around the year 800, many Vikings came to England, and the language got many loanwords from Norse.

But what kind of language was Old English? It belongs to the Germanic branch – which also applies to for example Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, German and Dutch. Therefore, Old English has many points of similarity with Old Norse (Norse). This means that Old English is also quite similar to the Icelandic language of today.

Here you can see parts of the poem Beowulf written in Old English and a translation into modern English:

Whew! Wé Gárdena in górdagum þéodcyninga þrym gefrúnon·hú ðá æþelingas ellen fremedon. Oft Scyld Scéfing sceaþena þréatum monegum maégþum meodosetla oftéah egsode Eorle syððan aérest wearð féasceaft funden hé þæs frófre gebád wéox under wolcnum weorðmyndum þah oð þæt him aéghwylc þara ymbsittendra fer hronráde hýran scolde, gomban gyldan· þæt wæs gód cyning.

Listen! We of the Spear-Danes in the days of yore, of those clan-kings heard of their glory, how those nobles performed courageous deeds. Often Scyld, Scef’s son, from enemy hosts from many peoples seized mead-benches; and terrorized the fearful Heruli after first he was found helpless and destitute, he then knew reward for that: he waxed under the clouds, throve in honours, until to him each of the bordering tribes beyond the whale-road had to submit, and yield tribute: that was a good king!

What do you think it would be like if it was Old English you learned at school today?

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Illustrasjon av vikingskip ute på havet
Illustrasjon av vikingskip ute på havet

Middle English

In the 11th century, England was invaded by the Normans, and the Battle of Hastings in 1066 led to many disturbances – also for the language. William the Conqueror won the battle and became the king of England. Since England then became subject to French rulers, French became the official language of the nobility and the priesthood.

Can you imagine the confusion it created when those who ruled the country used a different language than its people?

The mixing of Old English and French led to Middle English.

One of the interesting things to note is that the British Royal House still has a French motto: Dieu et mon droit (God and my right). Another thing is that in everyday language, you used English expressions, while when you had to be more serious you used French. For example the animals on English farms are called pigs, sheep and oxen, while the same animals have become pork, mutton and beef (respectively porc, mouton and boeuf in French) when they appear on the dinner table.

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Bayeux-teppet eller dronning Mathildes tapet er et 70 meter langt og 0,5 meter bredt brodert veggteppe i lin fra omkring år 1070. Det fremstiller normannerhertugen Vilhelm Erobrerens invasjon av England og slaget ved Hastings i 1066.
Bayeux-teppet eller dronning Mathildes tapet er et 70 meter langt og 0,5 meter bredt brodert veggteppe i lin fra omkring år 1070. Det fremstiller normannerhertugen Vilhelm Erobrerens invasjon av England og slaget ved Hastings i 1066.

Modern English

Modern English came around the year 1500. At this time, written texts began to become more common, and more people learned to read. It was at this time that William Shakespeare lived and published his works.

Writing a language is not always easy. How should the different words be spelled? Many people first spelled the words as they sounded or as closely as possible, and there were no rules for spelling. For example, there are up to ten different ways to pronounce the letter combination -ough.

Can you think of any examples of different pronunciations of words with -ough in them?

The Great Vowel Shift

One important change in the transition from Middle English to Modern English is called the Great Vowel Shift. From the 15th century to the 18th century, the long vowel sound changed, and many words gradually got a new pronunciation.

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Papir bakgrunn med William Shakespeares signatur
Papir bakgrunn med William Shakespeares signatur

The British Empire

In its prime time, Great Britain colonized a quarter of the world’s land areas.

The English founded the first colonies in America in 1607. This led to English eventually becoming an important language of communication in North America.

Later, trade was started with India and Africa, and English found its way into these areas as well. Many new borrowed words entered the language, such as shampoo and pajamas – both of which come from India.

South Asia and Australia also adopted English as a language because of trade activities.

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Read more about the British Empire here
Kart med oversikt over Det britiske imperiet
Kart med oversikt over Det britiske imperiet

How far back in time could you go and still understand English?

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Papirbakgrunn

The post-war period

German and French were widely used in Europe until the First World War. It was only after this war that English became more commonly used in Europe.

In the US there was an upswing in the economy after the Second World War. This led to more trade, and English became an important language in finance, trade and negotiations.

English in entertainment and technology

English grew as an important language in entertainment. American films, music, magazines and popular culture were spread to large parts of the world. This also contributed to English becoming more widely known and used, also in new areas where the language had not previously been spoken.

With technological development, including the Internet, English has taken an even stronger position as a world language. Now we can communicate across countries in ways that were not previously possible.

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Global English

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Papirbakgrunn

When do you use English?

In Norway, most children and young people use English when they watch YouTube, play games and watch films or series, while they use Norwegian when they read the news.

When do you use English in your everyday life?



En mobil med svart skjerm. Ikoner rundt en tekst der det står 'English'. Ikonene skal illustrere hvor man kan lære og bruke engelsk.
En mobil med svart skjerm. Ikoner rundt en tekst der det står 'English'. Ikonene skal illustrere hvor man kan lære og bruke engelsk.

Sources:

Media Rights:

    1. Getty Images
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    6. Getty Images / Yifan Chen – YouTube
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    8. Getty Images / Yestervid– YouTube
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    10. Getty Images / OpenLearn from The Open University – YouTube
    11. Getty Images