The debate goes on.. Thank you for this interesting on-the-ground article.

Stephen's observations about the exhibitions of desire to learn English among Chinese people are spot on. This can be seen in many countries where English is not the first language, particularly in poorer countries. English is seen there as part of the key to success, wealth and recognition, regardless of whether the acquisition of English would have much practical benefit to the individual. It is not uncommon in countries such as Thailand to see Thais wearing T-shirts bearing a slogan or message in English that the owner of the shirt probably does not understand. I speculate that the owner is seeking to associate with a language that symbolises a degree of success and learning that the owner probably does not actually possess. In this way, the desire to know the English language is a manifestation of western cultural imperialism.

But what about Esperanto, the great dream of an international language? Although nearly invisible still, its adherants are growing worldwide and it is not inconceivable that one day it will rank highly among the world's major languages.

In reality English is itself evolving into a kind of 'Esperanto'. As more people learn English as a second language the intricacies are lost as a more globalised and simplified form of the language becomes widespread. Hopefully the 'Old English' will survive.

Thanks to the posters so far. Sajo, like you I am anxious to ensure that my mother-tongue does not lose its richness. A number of people who pay attention to language have also noted the phenomenon you mention in which English seems to be pared down to the bone. But I disagree that this is making it a "kind of Esperanto". I think Esperanto can be much more powerful than this skeleton English.

In this respect both you and PK may be interested in my next article.

I´ve read the interesting article by Stephen Crabbe. Nobody can deny the need of an international language in the modern world. English, like French and Spanish cannot play that role, because they have many irregularities, words with several meanings, idioms, etc. Many years are necessary to learn them.

On the other hand, Esperanto is easy-to-learn, flexible and efficient in practice.

A couple of observations.

English should be judged not by the actual numbers of those who speak it, but the fact that it is spoken in so many places, by so many different races. Either as a first or a second language.

I would love to see English evolve into a SIMPLE form using logical spelling

u for 'you' maybe 'uu' for plural :)
Thort for 'thought'
bort for bought
hite for 'height'
laaf for "laugh"
2gether for 'together'. (saves one character)
gr8 for 'great' (saves 2 characters)
1sided for 'one sided'
3fold for 'threefold'

etc etc....

I suppose I'll be crucified by the purists, but never mind.

I hope more of us will make the effort to speak at least one other language. I speak Malay, Indonesian and a tribal language of Sarawak, and am building up a smattering of Manderin bit by bit and I know my life has been enriched beyond measure by the process.

Of all the Spiritual gifts mentioned in 1Corinthians the one I often wish I had is the gift of 'Tongues' :) unfortunately, thus far its been the hard and rocky road of study study study.

I recommend a text which is a good guide to practical language learning called LAMP (Language Acquisition Made Practical)
Failing that, we can use the method we all used as babies :)

Boaz, you may not have noticed, but I believe that your wish for a simplified English to become current appear to be coming true in the form of phone text-message English. Some newspapers are even inviting, and publishing verbatim, text messages to the editor. This language includes pictorial words as well as words with phonetic spelling. Of course purists hate it, but linguistic purists are often luddites fighting a losing battle. English is a living language evolving according to the needs of its users. The purists will have to satisfy themselves with Chaucer.

Esperanto ought to have become the world's lingua franca, and might have except for the foolish French government at one stage, and millions of other foolish people around the world.
The Chinese during their Communist phase spent huge amounts of effort getting people to learn Esperanto. So did other Communist nations. Chinese Esperantists printed an excellent informative and non-propaganda journal called El Popola Cxinio. The sad part is that the Communism caused some Westerners and others to reject Esperanto.
The weaknesses of English, so well described by the article, are not present in Esperanto. Its vocabulary is keeping up with world progress. I'm only a learner still, because I put effort into other causes too, but it is much easier to learn than other languages. Lernu Esperantan, mi petas!

BOAZ_David it's great that you're learning other languages.

However I know you love being corrected ;-) so here you go:
"Mandarin" not "Manderin".

I very much enjoyed reading the article on the use of English language around the world.

I feel compelled to note, however, my experience of the use of English lanuage spelling in China. I have not seen that it is overwealmingly American. I live and work in Beijing, and I see a pretty even split between the English and American. I had expected this (or more American) since the American influence on the east coast is greater. As one travels further south, towards Hong Kong, I expect English spelling to be more prevalent, and, in my limited experience, this is true too.

I also question the use of history to predict the future use of language. Doing so cannot take into account the much increased ease of communication. The internet is still dominated by the English language, though how much that will continue to be the case is very uncertain - very few Chinese web sites, for example, have any English language on them at all. I'm sure this increase in ease of communication will have a much bigger effect that any perceived global power, even though that may have been the drive of dominant language in the past.

My tuppence worth anyway...

Max.

I´ve read all the interesting comments posted in On Line Opinion. Let me tell my personal experience with languages. I learnt Esperanto when I was a teenager. Then I could easily learn French and English, while for other students those tongues were a real nightmare.

Afterwards, being a doctor, I´ve travelled worldwide for professional reasons or as a tourist. Everywhere I could discuss with the esperantists, on an equal footing, about different subjects.

I think that Esperanto is the best solution for the problem of a lingua franca. I think, too, that people have to judge that language by themselves, and nor according to the prejudices of the mass media.

Course of Esperanto by Internet:

http://www.institutoesperanto.com.ar

I have taught English professionally for over twenty years in the United States and in Israel. It has given me a living. I have spent 36 years seeking hope for a just world where bilingualism is a component. Esperanto is that logical hope for a bilingual world that I strive for in my free time. Esperanto speakers hold a high respect for the idealism of its founder, L.L. Zamenhof. The goal of English is to provide advantage for its native speakers and an elite in several countries. Sincerely Neil A. Blonstein

Has anybody read "Popularity of English proves Achilles heel "[Reuters, 27.02.06]?
It says: " The dominance of English as the world's top language - until recently an advantage to Britain and the United States - is beginning to undermine the competitiveness of both nations, a major research report says. The British Council report says monolingual English graduates "face a bleak economic future" as multilingual competitors flood into the workforce from all corners of the globe. [. . . ] These new polyglots, and the companies that employ them, have significant competitive advantages over their monoglot rivals, including a vital understanding of different cultures in a world faced with rapid globalisation. "The competitive advantage of speaking English is ebbing away," said the author of the report, linguistic consultant David Graddol. "Once everyone speaks English, advantage can only be maintained by having something else - other skills, such as speaking several languages. [. . .]
"We know from trade associations that small and medium-sized British firms are losing a lot of business because they can't even answer calls from abroad on the switchboard," Graddol said.
Interesting, isn't it?