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Why is the English language important in the business world (and other fields)?

INTERNATIONALISM
Coined in 1995 in Time s Cycle and Military Strategy: Once again the opposite poles of isolationism and Wilsonian internationalism appeared as alternatives that split the liberal and conservative camps. Noun. Political, economic, cooperation among nations. and cultural

What makes the English language important?

Three MAIN POINTS


has RICH VOCABULARY

WIDELY USED

provides OPPORTUNITY

The English language has a rich vocabulary.

171 476 words in current use 47 156 obsolete words

Old English Englisc < Engle the Angles < Angul angle Old French langage < Vulgar Latin linguaticum < Latin lingua tongue

The English language has a rich vocabulary.


Old English rice wealthy < Proto-Germanic rikijaz < Celtic source akin to Gaulish rix < Old Irish ri king

Medieval Latin vocabularium a list of words < Latin vocabulum word, name < vocare to name, call
Source: Online Etymology Dictionary

How wide is wide?


WIDELY USED

Countries where English is an OFFICIAL LANGUAGE


SOVEREIGN STATES as a de jure language as a de facto language NON-SOVEREIGN ENTITIES TOTAL

52 6 26 84

Source: Wikipedia.org

COUNTRIES where English is spoken


CORE COUNTRIES
(Full legal or official status)

8 24 82 115

OUTER CORE COUNTRIES


(Some legal status; influential minority language; e.g. English in India)

FRINGE
(No legal status; influential in trade, tourism; e.g. English in Japan)

TOTAL

Source: Top Languages: The World s 10 Most Influential Languages by George Weber, December 1997

Number of PEOPLE speaking a certain language


LANGUAGE Mandarin English Spanish Hindi/Urdu Arabic Bengali Portuguese Russian Japanese German French NATIVE SPEAKERS 1.1 billion 330 million 300 million 250 million 200 million 185 million 160 million 160 million 125 million 100 million 75 million SECONDARY SPEAKERS 20 million 150 million 20 million N/A 21 million N/A 28 million 125 million 8 million 9 million 190 million TOTAL 1.12 billion 480 million 320 million 250 million 221 million 185 million 188 million 285 million 133 million 109 million 265 million RANK 1 2 3 6 7 9 8 4 10 11 5

Source: Top Languages: The World s 10 Most Influential Languages by George Weber, December 1997

Why isnt Mandarin the language of business then?


LANGUAGE Mandarin English NATIVE SPEAKERS 1.1 billion 330 million SECONDARY SPEAKERS 20 million 150 million TOTAL 1.12 billion 480 million RANK 1 2

Because Mandarin is largely China. confined in China.

@NJ Soliven
Internationalism requires a common language as means of communication. That being said, the obvious choice for a common language is indeed English since most countries, regardless of the location, know how to speak it.

Language of International Competitions

Nat l Geographic World Championship

Eurovision

SIFE World Cup

Language of Media and Communication

@Alps Aguado
In the business world, globalization is becoming the major trend so it is important that business people from different countries understand each other. Think of it like a currency. You can't use Philippine Peso to buy something in Europe because they don't understand it .

The English language provides opportunities.

BETTER LIFE

~2 billion people learn English: Africans, Indians, Malaysians, Filipinos, Japanese, et cetera.

At most 13 Years of learning English

~3 years preparatory

6 years elementary

4 years high school

We spend most of our time learning English to enter prestigious universities to have better opportunities in getting highpaying jobs.

Whether you want to work domestically or in abroad, sufficient knowledge in English is required.

@Jay Walker

English represents hope for a better future.

Three MAIN POINTS


has RICH VOCABULARY

WIDELY USED

provides OPPORTUNITY

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