CHAPTER ONE

INTRODUCTION AND BACKGROUND

This chapter comprises the background of the study, statement of the problem, objectives, hypothesis, significance of the study and the scope.

1.1 Background to the study

The English language is an indo-European language belonging to the West Germanic branch; the official language of Britain and the United States and most of the commonwealth countries and now used as a language of international or global communication throughout the world (wordweb2009). English is by far the most used of the 4-5 thousand living languages in the world today. As a mother tongue it ranged second only to Chinese which has mutually eligible dialects used only within china.

On the other hand, English has more than three hundred native speakers found in every continent and an equally distributed body of people who speak it as a second language totally more than 250 million. According to statics, English has 300 million native speakers; Chinese has I billion native speakers. Spanish 240 million native speakers, Russia has 210 million native speakers. Portuguese has 125 million native speakers, German has 110 million native speakers, and French has 85 million native speakers, or more than half a immigrants From the Indian subcontinent and the West indies have added Varity and diversity to the rich patch work of accents and dialects spoken in the UK. British colonizers originally exported the language to all four comers of the globe and migration in the 1950s brought altered forms of English back to these shores. Since that time, especially in urban areas, speakers of Asian and Caribbean decent have blended their mother

tongue speech patterns with existing Local dialects, producing wonderful new varieties of English such as London Jamaican or Bradford Asian English.

More so, Standard British English has also been enriched by an explosion of new terms such as balti (a dish invented in the west midlands and defined by a world that will refer to a “bucket” rather than food to most south Asians outside the U K). English is one of the most used languages all over the world, which is why it is most important for an individual to learn it. Even in Saudi Arabia, people of different nationalities find English convenient to use in business and in private conversation. Many people try to leam English because it is a universal language that can be understood in different parts of the globe. One important reason for this dominance of English is its propensity for acquiring new ideas, its power of assimilation, its adaptability to decolonisation as a language it manifestation suitability as a flexible medium for literacy and other types of creativity across cultures. English occupies a prominent place in international communication.

Furthermore, there are so far no barriers to the spread of English. Apart from being the language of debate at the UN, it is the language of command at NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organisation). Again, the English language is the official language of aviation and un officially the language of Sports and popular culture. Russian propaganda is in English. SO too is the Chinese attempt to win friends in Africa and the east. More than 60 % of the world’s radio programmes are in English. More to that, English is the leading language iii the world today because ii. is the language of the internet, 70% of the world information in the internet are published in English.

Finally, if we consider those places where political decisions and welfare are taken and announced in English, then English covers about 1/6 of the world population. English is also hugely important as an international language and plays an important part even in countries where the UK has historically had little influence. It is learnt as a principally foreign language in most schools in Europe, it is also an essential part of curriculum in far flung places like Japan and South Korea and is increasingly seems as desirable by millions of speakers in China.

1.2 Statement of the problem

Why is the English language the most leading and global language in the world today?

1.3 Objectives of the study

1. To find out if English Language is a Global language
2. To investigate how English Language becomes a global language.
3. To find out how important the global language is.

1.4 Research question

1. Is the English language a global language?
2. How did it become a global language?
3. How is it important?

1.5 Purpose of the study

English exists in almost every part of the globe but many people do not know how it got to these places, therefore, the purpose of this study is to investigate how and why the English language is a global language.

1.6 Significance of the study

This study is significant to the following group of people:

1. English language students -Linguists
2. Other policy makers Scope

This study is limited only to the factors responsible for the rise of English as a global and leading language in the world and why.

1.7 Hypothesis

H1: English is the leading language of communication in the world today.

1.8: Definition of Key Terms

A global language: A global language is a language spoken internationally and which is learned by many people as a second or a foreign language. A world language is not only characterized by the number of speakers (native or second language speakers), but also by its geographical distribution, international organizations and in diplomatic relations.

English language: According to Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia, English is a West Germanic language that was first spoken in early medieval England and is now a global lingua franca. It is spoken as a first language by the majority populations of several sovereign states, including the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand and a number of Caribbean nations; and it is an official language of almost 60 sovereign states. It is the third- most-common native language in the world, after Mandarin Chinese and Spanish. It is widely learned as a second language and is an official language of the European Union, many Commonwealth countries and the United Nations, as well as in many world organizations.