The impact of English

An international language
Perhaps one of the most obvious impacts of the west is the spread of English. It is the international language of science, business and air traffic control.

It is also the main language of books, newspapers, academic conferences, diplomacy, sport, pop music and advertising.

English is the most widely spoken language in the world, with an estimated billion speakers, or a fifth of the world's population. The next most spoken language is Mandarin Chinese, followed by Spanish, Hindi and then Arabic, Bengali and Russian.

An official language
English is used as the official language of many countries, including India, the Philippines and many sub-Saharan African countries.

Whilst in some areas of the world, English was introduced as a part of British colonialism, it has remained as a unifying language. For example, in India over 87 different languages are spoken, so by adopting English as the national language, no region is given prominence over another.

This doesn't mean that all forms of English are the same. There are many variations and forms of English around the world.

An evolving language
The language itself is also changing. New words are added each year, and older words fall out of use.

For example, you'd be unlikely to hear words like zounds and gadzooks very often in the English speaking words, whereas 'new' words such as ladette, email and detox are becoming common. Words have different meanings in different countries.

For example, zap in British English would bring up images of spacemen with laser guns, whereas in Malaysia, it means photocopying. A lift in the UK is an elevator in the USA. There are differences in grammar as well as vocabulary.

A divisive language?
This spread of English is affecting the way business is done - as the section on call centres shows.

Being able to speak English could become one of the mechanisms for dividing those who have access to wealth and information from those who don't.

Already in some countries, the ability to speak English is used as a selection criterion - even when you never need to use that language in the job.

Meanwhile the number of people who speak only English is declining - it may be an international language but it isn't the only one out there.