Why is English more widely used than Chinese?

With the advent of globalization and the wave of informationization, it is an indisputable fact that more and more people from different countries are communicating with each other and spreading ideas in one language, namely English. Whether you like English or not, if you want to integrate into the trend of globalization and the wave of informatization and carry out effective international communication, or become a politician, businessman and scientist with some influence in the world, then you must (or at least learn to) be able to communicate internationally in English. "This strength of the English language is like a giant snowball that is almost unstoppable." [1]

I. Ways in which the strength of English in international communication manifests itself

First, the strength of English in international communication manifests itself in the number of people who use English. At present, nearly 380 million people around the world speak English as their mother tongue, and about 250 million people use English as a second language. And the number of people learning English is even greater. The British Council estimates that the global population that is learning English is about 1 billion, with another 1.5-2 billion people using contact English on a daily basis. By 2050, half the world's population will be more proficient in English. [2]? [2]?

Linguists categorize the English-speaking populations mentioned above into three main groups: the first group refers to people for whom English is their native language, and often their only language. These people live mainly in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Iceland, and South Africa. The second category refers to people who speak English as a second language, and these people generally live in countries and regions that were once British colonies or where the United States has had greater influence, such as India, Nicaragua, Singapore, the Philippines, and Hong Kong, China. The third category refers to countries and regions where English is learned as a foreign language, generally not very closely related to the United States or the United Kingdom. [3]?

Although the population of people who speak Chinese as their mother tongue is now also more than 1.3 billion (including overseas Chinese), the Chinese-speaking population is mostly confined to Chinese and Chinese, and foreigners who speak Chinese as their mother tongue or second language are, after all, few and far between. Over the years, as China's national strength has grown, there has been a Chinese language boom, but it is not comparable to the English language boom.

In fact, the strength of English in international communication is not only reflected in the number of people who use it, but also in the scope of its application. After the end of the Cold War, with the advent of globalization and informatization, English has been widely used in various fields all over the world, including politics, economy, trade, culture, diplomacy, tourism, communication, and academic research in natural sciences and humanities. According to statistics, more than 60 countries in the world now use English as an official language. [4] Eighty-five percent of international organizations list English as a common language (United Nations, European Union, etc.). Seventy-five percent of the world's mail is written in English, and 80% of publications and Internet information are published and distributed in English. [5]? The strength of English is particularly evident in communication in the field of scientific research. Before and after World War I, German had replaced English as the main language of scientific research. However, with the establishment of the United States' supremacy in the world after World War II (especially in the two decades after the Cold War), the strength of English has become unstoppable. According to a survey of thousands of major scientific journals around the world in 1997 by Prof. Eugene Garfield, the founder of the Science Citation Index (SCI), 95% of the 925,000 scientific papers published globally*** in 1997 were in English, and only half of them were written by authors from English-speaking countries, i.e., half of the papers were non-English-speaking. half of the papers were written in English by non-English-speaking authors. The strength of the English language is evident. [6]?

The strength of English in international communication is also more evident in China, especially in the past 20 years. This is exemplified by the proliferation of English-language media in China. So far, the English-language media in China, which mainly disseminate news, include one English-language TV channel, one foreign-language radio station, nine English-language daily and weekly newspapers, 10 English-language magazines and nine major English-language websites. This is enough to show that China has made great achievements in foreign communication for a country where Chinese is the official language, but at the same time it also shows the importance of the English language from one side. [7] The above statistics do not include English newspapers around the country that focus on English learning.

Besides the development of English media, the huge number of English learners in China is enough to illustrate the impact of the strong English language. It is estimated that about 300 million people in China are learning and using English[8], there is an unprecedented English fever, and the number is still growing.

The emergence of English fever in China is closely related to the country's open-door policy, which is even more so after China's accession to the WTO. Nowadays, China not only requires all students from high middle school and above to take English as a compulsory subject, but also requires the popularization of English teaching in the third grade of elementary school in cities with the conditions since 2001[9]. English is also a compulsory subject in China's annual college entrance examination and postgraduate examination, or one of the necessary conditions for the promotion of cadres and technical titles. In a big city like Shanghai, a person's English ability can also determine whether he can become a mark of internationalized talents.

The causes of the strength of English in international communication

The strength of the English language has gone through a long process of development, from 1300, when English was just a language spoken by the "inferior people" of England, to 1500, when the modern English language began to take shape, which means that the English language has a relatively stable spelling, pronunciation and pronunciation. It was only after 1500 that modern English began to take shape, mainly because it had a relatively stable spelling, pronunciation and word meaning [10]. However, the real emergence of English as an international language took place after the 19th century. This paper argues that there are three main reasons that contributed to the international status of English.?

1. From a macroscopic point of view, English strength is not contributed by the language itself, so the emergence of English strength in international communication is not just a result of the strength of this language itself. As Jean Aitchison, a professor at the University of Oxford, points out, the success or failure of a language has little to do with the intrinsic characteristics of the language and much to do with the strength of the people who speak it. [11]?

In the case of English, this is most obvious. In the middle of the 18th and 19th centuries, the Industrial Revolution allowed the influence of the British Empire to begin to spread to all corners of the world. English also began to become popular around the world with the soldiers and merchants of Great Britain's Sunset Empire and moved towards the goal of being a global language. English was not only used in British colonies, but also in diplomatic negotiations in non-English speaking countries; in 1940, when Germany and Japan were negotiating an alliance against Britain and the United States, the foreign ministers of the two countries (Joachim von Ribbentrop and Yosuke Matsuoka) used English in the negotiations. [12]?

However, no matter how adaptable the English language is or how large an area English power once covered, the current international status of English stems largely from the great power status of the English-speaking United States after World War II. Churchill, realizing the inevitable decline of the British Empire at the end of World War II, envisioned the use of American power to maintain Britain's leadership of the world, but all he got was a "special relationship" between the United States and Britain. As global influence shifted to the other side of the Atlantic, a new English language (American English) became popular around the world [13]. The popularity of American English is slightly different from that of British English: instead of relying mainly on politics and the military, American English has been promoted all over the world by the power of popular culture and the media market, and its breadth and depth have never been seen before, resulting in new terms such as "palatable colonialism" and "cultural imperialism" to describe the "special relationship" between American and British English. New terms such as "palatable colonialism" and "cultural imperialism" have emerged to depict the strength of the English language in international communication.

In addition to the above, the globalized economy and the new political landscape of the late 20th century also created an urgent need for an "international" lingua franca, and the English language itself quickly became the target of choice because of some of its conveniences.

2. At the linguistic level, the strength of English in international communication is closely related to the vitality of the English language itself. First of all, English is associated with all the languages of the Indo-European family. For Easterners, English may be difficult. But for Western Europeans, Russians and even Iranians, English may be less difficult to learn because they will find similarities between the grammar and vocabulary of English and their native languages.?

In contrast to the Indo-European languages, English has the unique characteristics of a "world language", i.e. it is diverse, flexible and adaptable. Although English is strong in British and American English, it is an official language in countries on all five continents. At the same time, although English has the largest vocabulary in the world, with at least 500,000 words, more than German (nearly 200,000) or French (100,000), the average user can communicate effectively in English with a mastery of 1,000 to 2,000 English words.

In addition, English is the world's most versatile language, with more than 1,000,000 words.

In addition, English allows non-English speakers to "localize" and create their own version of English, such as Singaporean, Chinese (a mix of Mandarin and English), Western (Spanish plus English), Japanese (Japanese plus English), Creole (West Indian plus English), and even French (French plus English) and German (French plus English). English (French plus English) and German English (German plus English), etc.[14]? The English language can also include the "Yangjingbang" English that appeared in Shanghai. In short, the strength of the English language is expressed in its "tolerance of non-English speakers' use of broken English", which in turn makes them find it convenient and approachable [15], making it more "cosmopolitan".

3. These "cosmopolitan" aspects of English are of course closely related to its cultural value system. Compared with other cultures, Anglo-American cultural values encourage more innovation and tolerance for "dissent". Perhaps because of this, a figure like Bill Gates may only be found in the United States, and he is unlikely to be found in Europe or the East, where collectivism is emphasized.

Secondly, the strong market-oriented tendencies and technological prowess of the Anglo-American media have been enough to make the English language dominant in international communication. The "Hollywood effect" and the "Silicon Valley phenomenon" are most noteworthy here. The former refers mainly to cultural products, including English-language media, movies and other entertainment products; the latter refers mainly to computer- and Internet-based technological products. The popularity of these products in the world will inevitably lead to the popularity of the English language contained in the products all over the world, and the dominance of these products in the world will of course help the English language to gain strength in the process of international communication.

Finally, the strength of English is also due to the fact that most of the existing world cultures are already in the form of English language. As mentioned above, 80% of the world's literature is written in English. It is almost impossible to translate this literature into one of the other world languages, such as Esperanto, Chinese or German. Thus, the formation of the strength of the English language becomes a reincarnated logic: the English language is cosmopolitan because it is already cosmopolitan in the first place. [16]

Three Characteristics of Strong English

From the above discussion, it is not difficult for us to find three major characteristics of strong English in international communication.?

1. First of all, the essence of English strength is the strength of the English-speaking countries. This is no exception in English-speaking countries. At present, the reason why American English can replace British English is also just a reflection of the status and strength of the United States as the only superpower in the world pattern. Thus, the language that is sweeping the globe today is still called "English", but it carries the content of American culture. [17]?

2. The strength of the English language is irresistible and difficult to change in a short period of time. Non-English-speaking countries can choose whether to go along with this strength or to reject it, but they cannot stop it.?

3. As language and the fields of politics, economy, culture and international communication industry are closely linked. Strong English language is bound to further strengthen this country's strength in politics, economy, culture and international communication industry in turn. In other words, English language strength is not simply a matter of linguistic cosmopolitanism, it will use various means through its strong position to influence the rest of the world in all aspects (including language).

Fourth, the Impact of Strong English

The impact of strong English is like a double-edged sword. They can be positive, negative or both, i.e. a seemingly negative influence is often accompanied by a favorable one and vice versa. Interestingly this applies not only to non-English-speaking countries but also to English-speaking countries themselves.?

1. Effects on English-speaking countries

For English-speaking countries or native English-speaking populations, the effects of strong English should be said to be more positive and favorable than negative and unfavorable. First of all, strong English makes these countries stronger in all aspects of politics, economy, culture, etc., which in turn will further strengthen the strength of English; secondly, strong English will also prompt the nationals of these countries to naturally generate a sense of national superiority, making them feel a sense of honor as an English-speaking population. In the long run, this is the biggest benefit (or favorable impact) of English strength to English-speaking countries, because it will make the whole country and the nation always maintain a high attitude and will show a strong cohesion. Of course, the degree of this sense of superiority and honor varies from one English-speaking country to another, with the strongest country, the United States, showing the strongest expression.

But the sense of superiority and honor that comes with such strength can sometimes have negative consequences. For example, because of the universality and convenience of the English language in the world, most English-speaking nationals are not interested in learning about other countries and cultures, and care less about international news, nor do they want to learn a foreign language. Native English speakers are known to have the least ability to use other languages. in 2000, of all the people who studied Arabic in universities across the United States, only nine graduated, and the United Kingdom is the most monolingual country in Europe. This inertia causes them to become more and more closed and their way of thinking to become progressively more rigid. [18]?

In addition, the strong English language and its popularity can also lead to variants of English, such as Singaporean and Chinese English (a mixture of Mandarin and English). Such variants not only cause some kind of language communication barrier, but also have an impact on the English language itself in both the UK and the US. The Financial Times points out that the real challenge to English comes from the population that speaks English as a second language, which not only far outnumbers the native English-speaking population, but is also growing at a rapid rate. The newspaper predicted that this situation would have far-reaching consequences for the English language itself. [19]?

2. Impact on non-English speaking countries?

The impact of strong English on non-English-speaking countries may be the opposite of that of English-speaking countries, and may have more negative than positive effects. The immediate benefit of English becoming a global language is that people from different countries are able to communicate freely, but language is not just a tool for communication; it is also a vehicle for culture and a marker of identity. Many non-English-speaking countries feel helpless in the face of the irresistibility of the strong English language, but they are also worried about the cultural invasion (cultural imperialism) brought about by the strong English language, because the effects of these cultural invasions, though invisible and untouchable, do exist and cannot be changed in a short time. Some people even think that cultural imperialism is a continuation of the gunboat policy of these colonial sovereigns in the past, only that the means of colonization are relatively more civilized now. [

Particularly for minority languages and peoples, the strength of the English language can be devastating, and can even mean the demise of their languages, cultures, and identities. The demise of languages has been happening for a long time, only now it is on a much larger scale and at a much faster rate. Some say that half of all languages will be gone by this century, while others say 90%. [21]?

This hopelessness is even more pronounced for non-English-speaking Western countries (such as France) that also want to become language powerhouses. Now, despite spending $100 million a year to promote francophone culture, France still ranks only 9th among the world's languages, and the decline of the French language is still visible everywhere. French scientists are well aware of their situation, "Either publish in English or die in obscurity speaking French?" [22].?

The non-English-speaking countries are then faced with a dilemma: do they want to integrate into the world and modernize, or do they want to isolate themselves and remain national? Modernization requires integration into the world, and integration into the world will certainly bring about certain changes in the language and traditional culture of the nation. From the present situation, whether we can successfully get out of this dilemma largely determines whether we can effectively deal with the problem of strong English in international communication.

3. The impact on China?

Strong English has both positive and negative effects on China. From a positive point of view, the direct effect of strong English is to promote the widespread popularization of English in China, which effectively improves the quality and internationalization of our nationals and improves the soft environment of China's integration with the world. Imagine what would have happened to China's reform and opening up if there had been no English as a language bridge in the past 20 years. If our country does not introduce the strong English language, does not attach importance to English learning, does not link the English level with education, promotion and employment, etc., then in the past 20 years, it is impossible to appear one after another English fever: from the new concept of English, to the 3L, to the "Walking Across the U.S.", to the Crazy English, and it is not possible to appear the so-called "English Economy

In short, without the effective absorption of the strong English language over the past 20 years, there would be no environment in which our country now has an initial degree of internationalization, and without such an environment, it would be inconceivable for our country to be able to accede to the World Trade Organization (WTO) and succeed in its bid for the Olympic Games.

China's experience shows that as long as we can handle the English language properly and use it only as a tool to integrate into the world, we can use less cost to develop our modernization faster, reduce the time lagging behind, and lay the foundation for "catching up" as soon as possible.

Of course, many Chinese scholars are concerned about the potential dangers of the current strength and popularity of the English language, and at a seminar on "Technological Progress and Development in Today's World" held in Harbin in 1998, they argued that in today's age of information technology, linguistic strength inevitably triggers cultural strength, which in turn creates new injustices. Justice. [23]?

This concern is clearly justified. One need only look at the penetration of English into the Chinese language: government officials at press conferences will casually utter English abbreviations such as WTO, PNTR, APEC, etc., as if they were speaking the language of their hometown. The youngsters are also full of TOEFL, GRE, NBA, etc. Even if you ask an old lady what she's doing in the hospital, she'll answer: "I'm having a CT."

The famous Chinese writer, Mr. Kennedy, said that the Chinese language is not the same as the English language.

Chen Yuan, a famous sociolinguist, thinks it's a miracle of the Chinese language that English words appear so naturally in the Chinese language without any red tape, even if an old lady doesn't know what CT means but says it's okay. [24]?

So, how do we see that strong English may bring potential dangers (negative effects) even when it brings positive effects? How to see the negative effects that strong English may have on Chinese language and even our culture? This paper thinks that first of all, there is no need for us to be over-worried. As Prof. Chen Yuan said, a living language (or culture) is never afraid of "invasion" by foreigners. No language is self-sufficient, and from time to time it will be enriched and developed by some foreign materials. [From another point of view, the fact that the Chinese language can effectively absorb a large number of English words in the face of the strength of the English language is a manifestation of the vitality and vigor of the Chinese language. Therefore, in the face of the strength of English and the resilience of our Chinese language, we should be full of self-confidence and pride rather than full of apprehension.?

As with language, so with culture. Chinese culture has survived for 5,000 years because of its ability to extract the best from the worst. Western culture is bound to affect our culture through the strength of the English language. However, in the long run, if we can absorb the essence of foreign culture and remove the dregs, Chinese culture will certainly be absorbed on the basis of Western culture to obtain new development, and more show its strong vitality.

V. Concluding Remarks: A Strong English Future?

Before English was strong, other languages (such as Latin, Esperanto, French and German) had also appeared strong, but with the decline of the influence of the countries that speak the language, the strength of these languages no longer exists, and some of them have even died. So, will English sink too? Will English see a decline like other languages?

The answer, of course, is yes. Since other languages sink and float, English should not be an exception. So what are the signs of English's decadence? David Graddol, author of The Future of English, sees science and technology as a big sign, and he believes that a sign of English's decadence could be when major technological discoveries continue to come out of China or other countries. This is a time when the importance of the English language may decline dramatically. [26]?

Science and technology is certainly a sign, but the author believes that the decline of English will certainly be manifested in other aspects (such as political influence, economic power, etc.), after all, the strength of a language is supported by other strengths. In fact, the lack of interest in international news, the lack of understanding of world affairs, and the "low ability" of English-speaking citizens to learn a foreign language are all indicative of the inflexibility and even rigidity of these English-speaking countries (at least in these areas). In the long run, this may be the beginning of the decline of the English language, but it should be recognized that the process will be long.

References:?

[1][2][3][19][26] English is the international language.Financial Times.December 28.2000.p.20?

[2][10][11][12] A world empire by other means.The Triumph of English?December 22 2001.Christmas special of The Economist.p.63.?

[4][23] Huang.C.Z. Linguistic Diversity a concern a global village.December 11.2000.China Daily.p.4.?

[6] The Dominance of English: Colleges worldwide abandon their native languages for acommon tongue.The Chronicle of Higher Education. The Chronicle of Higher Education. September8.2000.p.1.?

[7] Guo Ke: "The Development Trend and Communication Effect of English Media in China", unpublished paper, 2002.?

[8]Zhao.Y. & Keith.P.C.. (1998) English in China.World Englishes. vol. 14. no. 3. p. 377-399.

[9]China Boosts English.21st Century.March 29.2001. p14.?

[13]Stevenson.R.L (1994) Global Communication in the 21st Century.?Longman Publishing Group.New York:Longman. p. 88.?

[14]"Ground English will no longer exist", Reference News, March 29, 2001, page 6.?

[15]Stevenson.R.L (1994) Global Communication in the 21st Century.?Longman Publishing Group.New York:Longman.p.91.?

[16][20]Stevenson.R.L. (1994) Global Communication in the 21st Century.?Longman Publishing Group.New York:Longman.p.92.?

[17][18][21][22]? Zuo Haokun, compiler, "Is English Really Winning Big? , Look at the World, No. 3, 2002, p. 43.?

[24] Chen Yuan, "The New Landscape of Chinese Territory at the Turn of the Century," Reference News, May 15, 2001, p. 8.