I wrote this for my rhetoric class, History of the English Language. It was a great class, but the teacher was retiring at the end of the semester. So on the final paper I decided to write about my travels around the world and my experiences with English in non-English countries. It was no where near what she had asked us to do for the final paper, but I figured what the hell. I got an A- in the class. So give this a read if you give a fuck, let me know if its interesting or not.
English Around the
Globe from a Student Perspective
Preface
I know this essay
is supposed to be contain information from peer reviewed sources and notable
books, but I want to write my experiences with global English. I didn’t want to write another boring
paper on the history of the British Empire and its spread of English. I wanted to write something
entertaining, but also something with personal observation of English around
the globe. This is my first
semester at USF, and after summer session I will be moving back to Los Angeles. I am only telling you this because I
know you are retiring and assume you will not tell anyone at the school. So, this paper may not be what was
assigned and may not be the well researched paper you have asked for, but I
think it expresses a deeper interest in the English Language than an essay on
David Crystal’s English as a Global
Language (which I did check out and read, well most of it). I hope you
enjoy this essay and enjoy your retirement.
English around the Globe
Who does English
belong to? Historically English
originated as a mix of Celtic, Norman French, Germanic languages, Viking
Norwegian, and biblical Latin (along with many other influences). English has been spread across the
globe through a variety of ways. The King James Bible spread the words of the
bible to the majority of the population and the missionaries circling the globe
used English to teach Christianity. Then the British Empire, in which ‘the sun
never set,’ spread the English language to its colonies. Today English is spoken
worldwide. If it is not the
official language of a country or area, it is commonly used for business or
communication between two societies with that do not speak the same language. Today English is a global language, and
in the process of becoming the global language. There are more non-native speakers of English today than
native speakers. English does not
belong to the United Kingdom, the United States, or any other country with
English as its official language.
The globalization of English has help shape the world economy and gave
different cultures the ability to communicate and do business.
There are so many
different types of English that I think it cannot really be referred to as a
language, but more as a language category. As Chinese has its different types of language, so does
English. Every type of English from every region whether it be Africa,
Australia, America, India, or any other place where English spoken is
different, and could be considered its own language, under the category of English
Languages.
But then different
English’s isn’t confined to just regional or cultural groups, different types
can be created in mixed forms. For
example I currently work in a kitchen in which everyone speaks Russian. I am used to speaking Spanish in the
kitchen, and know absolutely no Russian.
I find myself speaking in broken English or hearing repeated terms or
words in Russian, which I then repeat when needed. The Russian speakers in the kitchen also used a mix of
English and Russian, and often ask me how to say things in English. At my first job at a restaurant I
worked at a five star Thai bistro, where nobody spoke Thai. The entire kitchen staff spoke a
mixture of English, Spanish, and a kind of kitchen English that I feel is
universal in working kitchens.
Kitchen English is
a unique language in itself. It is
much more abrupt, and to honest, rude.
In the kitchen there is no time to say ‘please give me that pot’ or ‘thanks
for cleaning that up for me.’ Hopefully, if it is a popular restaurant, things
will moving to fast for these kinds of formalities. Then there are all the kitchen terms that many people would
probably never understand: hotel pan, hotel tray, sachet, charcuterie, bard,
fillet, filet, and many more. Many
of these are borrowed from French obviously (I attended a French culinary
school, where English was spoken).
Growing up cooking at home I cooked in a mixed language of English and
Polish. Words like ‘świnia,’ ‘gaowmbek,’ ‘babcia,’ and ‘nóż’ became common usage for me
in the kitchen with my mother and sisters.
Global
English is more than different English’s spoken in different places in
different ways. After culinary
school I did a semester abroad at the University of London, where I learned
about English culture and history.
The language itself was never really spoken of; there was some mention
of Celtic and Anglo-Saxon, but no mention of French, Latin, or Germanic
influences. After my semester in
London, I traveled to over 20 other countries over the next ten months. This gave me a much wider and
interesting view of English as a global language. My first stop was Spain, where only tourist speaks English. The locals may know the language, and
may know it better than some native speakers, but they do not speak it unless a
tourist is asking them something.
In my observations, English is looked down on in Spain due to their
pride in their own language (which is a beautiful language). On the other hand, when I tried to
speak my Southern California Spanish in Spain, I was looked at with wide eyes
as if I were speaking Klingon or something (Yes, a Star Trek reference in my
final paper). But then not all countries I visited had this reaction, after
three weeks in Spain I moved across the Mediterranean to Egypt, where my cousin
was working on her Masters in Refugee Studies.
Egypt
in July is not a good travel spot.
Beside the lack of tourist (Except me and my Father), there was no nice
thing about the one hundred thirty two degree heat. It was hard to blend in being a six foot four white guy in
Egypt, especially while speaking English.
In Egypt whenever walking through a bazaar or down a street, if you are
heard speaking English by the locals you are instantly covered by people trying
to sell things. The majority of
the items are massed produced, poorly made trinkets to bring home to relatives;
a cow with ‘I heart Egypt’ on it, a
T-shirt with the same slogan, and the ever-present ‘Hard Rock Cafe Cairo’
souvenirs. All printed in
English. Egypt is one (or was
until recently) one of the most popular tourist destinations in the world, and
the majority of tourist are from non-English speaking countries like Russia,
China, Japan, and other parts of Europe.
Why no souvenirs printed in Chinese or Russian? Why is it that when the Russian women
who butt cheeks were hanging out of her shorts (very disrespectful in a Muslim
country) is speaking English to the women she is trying to buy her skimpy tank
top from? Neither of these people
speaks English as her native language, but here they are in Northern Africa
speaking a language from a little island in north Western Europe. I too spoke English when trying to
barter for things. I have found that
the word ‘beer’ works anywhere.
Markets in Egypt do not sell beer because it is a Muslim country, and
the only place to get alcohol is from tourist hotels or tourist restaurants. In these restaurants alcohol is
extremely expensive, so I went out to make friends with some locals to find the
local hook up for beer. I had my
cousin with me, who speaks Arabic, but we did not need it. We came up to a group of guys in the
park along the Nile fishing and noticed they had some beers. All I said to them was “Beer?” and they
were on their feet offering me a beer asking me how I was doing and where I was
from, in English. These were not
businessmen, or purveyors of tourist trinkets, but just regular working Egyptians. They were a group of road workers just
off of work relaxing in the evening light with a few beers. I never expected them to speak English,
and they somehow knew that I spoke English. They eventually told us were the get beer, and at the market
in the back room in a hidden refrigerator was a stash of hidden alcohol.
After
Egypt I met my girlfriend in Rome and spent a month trying to pick up as much
Italian as I could. As in Spain
English was widely spoken, but not widely expected. English was for the tourist, and a way for the tourist to
communicate with the locals. While
in Rome, we took a weekend trip to Belgium to escape the heat of Rome in
August. In Belgium, English is
widely spoken because of its use as a global language for business. It is taught in the schools, although
it is not one of the official languages.
Unlike Spain and Italy, English was welcomed. When buying fries and mayonnaise (yummy!), no one looks at
you weird for speaking English and a normal response was usually given in
English. But it was not as it was
in Egypt, in Egypt English seemed to be accepted because it was the language
that brought money to the country and the population. In Belgium, English was just another common language. Now not everybody in Belgium speaks
English, but it was spoken enough for me to make educated observations. Our bed and breakfast owner spoke
English, French, Dutch and German, and it was very difficult to determine what
his native was. Belgium, like most
of Europe, has accepted English as a global language and welcomes its use. My next major stop is on its way, but
not yet a member of the English Language global community.
Most
of my family left Poland before the First World War to avoid being drafted into
the Austro-Hungarian army. But I
knew that I still had some distant relatives in Poland. I signed up for a Habitat for Humanity
Global Village home building trip in Gliwice, Poland. I spent three weeks working with Polish speaking carpenter, masons,
and electricians. This was one of
the more difficult communicating situations I have ever been involved in. In Poland, English is widely accepted
and spoken, but mostly by middle to upper class and educated people. Each day we had to figure out new ways
to communicate. The workers all
knew what they were doing, but needed or help. They spoke no English and our team spoke no Polish. There was one Habitat Employee on the work
site to help translate, but his English wasn’t the greatest. This became a daily struggle of
annoyance, anger, laughter, and mistakes. By the third week we had a system
going in which everyone had their job, and very little communicated was
needed. This I find as an example
of English not penetrating into Poland as much as other countries due the
former communist government, where English was thought to be the language of
the enemy.
My
reason for visiting Poland was to meet my relatives. I eventually tracked them down after months of emailing and
letters. I had my friend from
Habitat come with me to meet my relatives to act as translator. These were older great aunts and uncles
(some distance relative on my fathers side, I forgot exactly how we were
related) who had lived in Poland their whole lives. The younger generations of Poland has embraced English and
have even started using it in daily life.
But the older generations have not done this. Not because they still believe English is the enemy,
but they do not have the enthusiasm of the younger people.
Visiting my relatives was one of the
most amazing moments of my life, but might have been the most awkward dinner of
my life. I arrived late, as Polish
trains are not as reliable as they try to say they are. It was some sort of holiday so I was
unable to buy flowers to bring for the home and I had forgotten to buy a bottle
of vodka (Both Polish traditions when invited for a meal). All this beside, I had no idea what to
ask these people, or what kind of conversation were acceptable, or even how to
greet them. My Polish interpreter
was a little help, but communication was still difficult. If English is the global language, it is definitely not the language of older
generations of Eastern Europe. I
ended up drinking two bottles of vodka with my great Aunt and Uncle and their
daughter, along with my interpreter, and this made communication a little
easier or at least more fun.
Mostly hand signs and made up words that sounds familiar, but I learned
a lot from them and I’m pretty sure they learned a lot from me.
From
Poland I flew to Vietnam to meet my mother for a backpacking trip across the
country. English here is similar to Egypt; those who speak English usually have
money. Not many interesting
English interactions here, except for the occasional anti-American video
calling us “hellish devil dogs,” which I thought sounded very Shakespearian and
poetic. I went on to spend time in
Malaysia and Thailand where English was seen in the same way, English-speaking
tourist with money. There are
large populations of expatriates living in these countries. A good friend of mine lives in Thailand
and speaks no Thai at all, even after living there for over 6 years. He communicates with his other ex-pat friends
and his local friends in English.
The locals speak a form of broken English mixed with Thai tongue, which
makes it sounds like an Asian tonal language.
The
most interesting part of my time in Asia when it comes to English was my time
in Nepal. While in London I had
signed up for a Teaching English as a Foreign Language (TEFL) program at a
Buddhist Monastery in Kathmandu, Nepal.
I was to teach aspiring monk ages six to sixteen Basic English. I took an online course and a
three-hour class in London, which taught me how to teach English to someone who
has never spoken English before. A
British company ran the program, and my contact in Kathmandu was from South
Africa. English on the streets of
Nepal was spoken only in the tourist part of town, where signs in English hung
outside every building. Kathmandu
is the starting point for mountaineers and backpackers from all over the
world. If you want to hike anything
in Nepal, you have to go to Katmandu first. This brings is all kinds of people speaking all kinds of
languages. But when ever in a bar
or store, English is spoken. I met
a group of people headed to the Everest base camp that consisted of an Israeli,
an Italian, two Norwegians and a guy from New Zealand and spoke with them about
joining their team on their hike to the Everest base camp. We all spoke fluent English, even their
Sherpa’s.
The
students I taught were amazing.
They were all small children from the high Himalayas that had been sent
to the city for education. These
children had never left their country and probably didn’t know where England
was, but they really wanted to learn English. Their will to learn everything I could teach them amazed me. I eventually ran out of lesson plans
and had to bring in my laptop to show them English speaking movies. The point
being, that these kids don’t know why they are learning English, but they do it
anyways.
This
was the last major Global English experience of my trip. I came back to California and started
school again with a new appreciation for education and the English
language. I became and editor for
the Pasadena City College Courier Newspaper where my love for writing and
journalism was started. I chose to
take this class because I know the importance of English as a Global language
because I have seen it first hand around the globe. English may not be spoken everywhere and my not be spreading
as fast as it used to be but the world needs a common way to communicate, and
it looks like English is that language.
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