Why we keep on saying that English is THE international language?

Question

It's more than obvious that American is now the actual international language, any doubt?

What I understand from the answers is that American is a dialect of English...
Then English is a dialect of French which is a dialect of Latin which is a dialect of what?

Answer 1

You're one of the people who make other countries laugh at us. There are only three countries (Japan, Taiwan, The Phillipenes) that study American English. Yeah, American English, not American. Most other people study a combination of American and British English. They usually use American accent because it's easier to pronounce, but British spelling and a combination on the vocabulary with the emphasis on British. More people are native speakers of American English simply because of our population, but by far more people learn and speak British English as a second language. And what's with your claim that English would then be a dialect of French??? French is a romantic language like Italian and Spanish while English is germanic like Dutch. Now, stop making the rest of us look like arrogant d!cks

Answer 2

English is the most widespread language in the world, but not the most spoken one (Guiness book of records 1997).

American is a dialect of English. I can understand the British and the Americans but speak Australian English, thus they are all dialects.

English is not a dialect of French. English is a Germanic language which has been influenced by Norman French.

French is a Romance language. Romance language are all descendents of Latin.

Answer 3

Since American IS English, I don't really understand your point. English has many dialects - two of which are British and American English. They're the same language - just different varieties of it, that's all. As for what you said about English being a dialect of French etc, that's wrong. English and French are completely different languages and they belong to different language families (English is Germanic, along with German, Dutch and Afrikaans, while French is a Romance language like Spanish, Italian and Portuguese). The Romance languages developed from Latin. Just because English has absorbed a few French influences over time (and I assume the same can be said for French, even if it's to a lesser degree), it doesn't make them the same language.

I found this on Wikipedia which explains why English is considered to the international language:

"English is a West Germanic language originating in England, and the first language for most people of Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It is used extensively as a second language and as an official language throughout the world, especially in Commonwealth countries such as India and South Africa, as well as in many international organizations.

Modern English is sometimes described as the world lingua franca.[2] English is the prominent international language in communications, science, business, aviation, entertainment, and diplomacy and also on the Internet. It has been one of the official languages of the United Nations since its founding in 1945 and is considered by many to be on its way to become the world's first universal language.[1]

The influence of the British Empire is the primary reason for the language's initial spread far beyond the British Isles.[3] Following World War II, the increased economic and cultural influence of the United States led to English permeating many other cultures, chiefly through development of telecommunications technology.[4]

Because a working knowledge of English is required in many fields, professions, and occupations, education ministries throughout the world mandate the teaching of English, at least a basic level (see English language learning and teaching), in an effort to increase the competitiveness of their economies.

Books, magazines, and newspapers written in English are available in many countries around the world. English is also the most commonly used language in the sciences. In 1997, the Science Citation Index reported that 95% of its articles were written in English, even though only half of them came from authors in English-speaking countries."

Answer 4

American isn't a language. It's a dialect. And yes, there is doubt. British English (and Australian and New Zealand and such) is also very widespread, in part due to the better availability of visas for English teachers from those countries in many parts of the world, and due to lingering influences from the colonial period.

South Asia exhibits strong British influences. East Asia, due to proximity, mainly, leans most heavily towards Australia and New Zealand. Canadian also has a strong influence due to them having a similar visa advantage over Americans, but that sort of counts as second-hand US influence, due to our influence on the Canadian dialect. The US linguistic influence there is mainly through television.

The only region where American English is pretty much the undisputed champion is ...the Americas. Central and South Americans' English tends to be very American.

I suspect you've never left the United States.

Answer 5

because many countries speak English in the world rather than others and it is referral on the English empire that's why but the american is not a language it is a dialect and it is a part of the english language and it is not an international language

Answer 6

If you mean American English, that is a dialect of English. There is no language "American". There are, however, many American languages from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego. English, Spanish, French and Portuguese are European languages not American but they are spoken in the Americas.

Answer 7

I even have studied some languages over the years. between chinese language and eastern, chinese language in some techniques is way less complicated in some techniques is harder, Arabic and Hebrew are truly difficult, French, Swedish, German, and so on are lots much less complicated and Turkish is probable the finest language to check. the only that kicks my butt and that i'm unable to look to get even a great start up on is Bisayan (or Visayan and regionally referred to as Cebuano) Derived from Malay with impacts from chinese language, Spanish, and English, the vocabulary, pronunciation and grammar are all amorphous clouds that i'm unable to get a draw close on.

Answer 8

there isnt such language as "american" you get american slang on the english language, which some refer to as "american english" but at the end of the day, its still english.

its a very wide reaching language now, most of europe speaks it, australia, a large large chunk of america, canada.. all speak english ( with the occasional difference in local slang).

it isn't "the" international language, as not everyone speaks it, nor is it spoken in every country in the world, but you'll find that it's probably one of the most widely used languages in the world.

latin's been used for aeons, it'd be difficult to find whether latin was a derivative of something else.

funny sidenote: a couple of my friends ( who are english) went to america, got into a cab ( which was being driven by a foreigner, i think asian) and the cabbie insisted that my friends "speak real english"..they are english, they are speaking english.. what do you want them to do, put on BBC accents?

Answer 9

Yes, American English is becoming the dominant language in the world mostly in part to the influence of American culture through its television and movies. English is a generic term to the language and it encompasses both UK English and American English, not mention the English spoken in the many former British colonies (Australia, Canada, India, Nigeria, etc.)

No one calls Spanish, "Bolivian" or "Mexican". It's just Spanish.

Answer 10

well American came from English, and actually called English. they just changed some of the words like trainers-sneakers. etc.
and i also read out somewhere that english is the most easiest language to learn, and that most people in the world speak english, so they (no idea who "they" are) are starting to call it international language.