English Should Be the only World Language: A Killer of Culture or A Necessary Step?

English should be the only world language:

A killer of culture or a necessary step?

The discussion whether the world needs an international language and which language should do the honours has been a long and heated one. Many believe an international language would only serve to destroy a lot of the smaller languages as well as the cultures they represent. And of course, not a lot of people like to stand by as a language other than their own is awarded this prestigious position. Yet no-one can deny the great advantages it would have in our current global society. Just consider the huge amount of online and offline information that's unavailable to you and others simply because it's written in a language you don't understand. While it is true that language is an important part of our culture, we should never forget its main purpose, which is a means of communicating ideas amongst humans. Just imagine how much more we could achieve if all our knowledge was available in one unifying language accessible to all. As for what language we should use to fulfil this purpose, I strongly believe English would be the best choice.

The reason why so many people think English is such a strong candidate is because in part it is already the de facto international language. Not only is English the third most spoken language in the world with 335 million native speakers but it’s also the most widely spread, being spoken in over a hundred countries, beating out both Chinese and Spanish which are only spoken in about 30 countries each^[1]. Add to this the fact that English is taught as a second and even third language in most other countries^[2] and it should quickly become clear that it is by far the most accessible language worldwide.

However, many still argue that it would be better to opt for a more neutral choice like Esperanto to make it fairer on those whose native tongue is not English. And while in theory they may make a good point, the numbers tell quite a different story, as there are only about two million Esperanto speakers, the vast majority of which are second language speakers^[3]. And it might already be too little too late to try and make any major changes now as English has already manifested itself as the global language of business. More and more multinational companies like Airbus, Chrysler, Nokia, Renault and Samsung are mandating English as the common corporate language in an attempt to facilitate communication and performance^[4]. A similar evolution can be seen in the scientific world with the Science Citation Index reporting as early as 1997 that 95% of its articles were written in English, even though only half of them came from authors in English-speaking countries^[5].