Le anglese, es nunc le de facto lingua franca de Europa.

(Languages of this post: Interlingua, English)

Le anglese triumpha in le battalia linguistic inter europeos, ma anglophonos native ha problemas in lor uso de lor lingua native quando illes communica con europeos continental.

Effortios per europeos pro resister le predominantia del anglese como le lingua franca de facto de Europa, il pare, deveni de plus in plus inutile. Multe jornales e magazines europee, como “Der Spiegel” de Germania, “Handelsblad” de Hollanda, e “Politiken” de Danmark nunc ha establite sitos in anglese in Internet. E jornales importante in Italia, Finlandia, Grecia, Espania, Romania, Polonia, Bulgaria, e Turchia nunc comencia a sequer lor exemplo.

Tal jornales vole formar un rete in un sol lingua que omne europeos pote usar pro apprender le ideas e opiniones de altere europeos sur le disveloppamentos commercial, politic, e cultural in Europa e altere partes del mundo. Kees Versteegh de “Handelsblad” sovente parla de crear un “demos” europee, e ille deveni fatigate de publicar articulos importante in hollandese que altere europeos ignora proque foras de Hollanda pauches cognosce le hollandese.

Iste disveloppamento es un forte indication del collapso imminente del politica linguistic official del Union Europee que incoragia omne europeos a apprender duo altere linguas ultra lor lingua native. Europeos juvene de 14 a 18 annos de etate vole studiar solmente le anglese, e 60% de illes lo parla multo ben.

Ben que politicos europee ha timite que le uso crescente del anglese anque significara le augmentante domination del cultura statounitese e britannic in Europa, illes non ha ullo a timer. Le uso del anglese, dice le senior Versteegh de “Handelsblad” ha devenite un medio neutral de communication inter le europeos que non significa le victoria del cultura anglosaxon.

E anglophonos non va a dominar iste nove rete de communication inter europeos proque illes non vole facer isto. Solmente 5% del lectores del publicationes in anglese de “Der Spiegel”, pro exemplo, es anglophonos native. Le jornales de Anglaterra es de plus in plus propense a publicar articulos trivial e sensationaliste. Generalmente lor articulos sur Europa es sur touristas anglese in Europa e lor problemas intercultural, lo que le britannicos appella “Brits in the shit”. (In le Statos Unite nos dicerea “Brits in deep shit”.)

Le studio de altere linguas deveniva facultative in Anglaterra e Galles in 2003 pro studentes de plus de 14 annos. Ben que juvene studentes anglese ha perdite le beneficios intellectual del studio de linguas, dice Philippe van Parijs, un academic belge, il es completemente rational que illes non studia altere linguas proque multe europeos nunc cognosce le anglese. In conferentias e reuniones europee, on nunc non usa le lingua meglio cognoscite pro omne le participantes, que in multe casos pote esser le francese. In vice de isto illes usa le lingua que exclude le minime numero de participantes in lor reuniones, e ille lingua sovente es le anglese.

Ma le uso del anglese non significa un victoria complete pro anglophonos native, le quales non es multo ben comprendite per le europeos, le quales non cognosce le vocabulario e multe expressions idiomatic de anglophonos native, le quales generalmente non pote limitar lor uso del anglese al limites del anglese international.

(Rebus sic stantibus, io spera que mi textos bilingue in interlingua e anglese essera utile pro europeos qui vole meliorar lor cognoscimentos del anglese.)

---

English is winning the language battle among Europeans, but native English speakers are having problems when they use their language to communicate with continental Europeans.

Efforts by Europeans to resist the predominance of English as a de-facto lingua franca in Europe, it seems, is becoming more and more useless. Many European newspapers and magazines, such as Germany’s “Der Spiegel,” Holland’s “Handelsblad,” and Denmark’s “Politiken” now have established Internet sites in English. And important newspapers in Italy, Finland, Greece, Spain, Romainia, Poland, Bulgaria, and Turkey are now starting to follow their example.

Such newspapers want to form a network in a single language that all Europeans can use to learn about the ideas and opinions of other Europeans on commercial, political, and cultural developments in Europe and other parts of the world. Kees Versteegh of “Handelsblad” often talks about creating a European “demos,” and he is getting tired of publishing important articles in Dutch that other Europeans ignore because outside of Holland very few people know Dutch.

This development is a strong indication of the imminent collapse of the official language policy of the European Union that encourages all Europeans to learn two other languages besides their native languages. Young Europeans between fourteen and eighteen years old want to study only English, and 60% of them speak it very well.

Though European politicians have feared that the growing use of English will also mean the growing domination of American and British culture in Europe, they have nothing to fear. The use of English, says Mr. Versteegh of “Handelsblad” has become a neutral medium of communication among Europeans that does not mean the victory of Anglosaxon culture.

And native speakers of English are not going to dominate this new European communication network because they don’t want to. Only 5% of the readers of the English-language publications of “Der Spiegel,” for example, are native speakers of English. The newspapers of England are more and more likely to publish trivial and sensationalistic articles. Generally their articles on Europe are about English tourists in Europe and their intercultural problems, which the British refer to as “Brits in the shit.” (In the United States we would say “Brits in deep shit.”)

The study of other languages became optional in England and Wales in 2003 for students more than fourteen years old. Though young English students have lost the intellectual benefits of studying languages, says Philippe van Parijs, a Belgian academic, it is completely rational for them not to study other languages because many Europeans now know English. In European conferences and meetings the language that is best known among all the participants is not used, which in many cases may be French. Instead they use the language that excludes the smallest number of participants in their meetings, and that language often is English.

But the use of English does not mean a complete victory for native speakers of English, who are not understood very well by Europeans, who do not understand the vocabulary and many idiomatic expressions of native English speakers, who generally cannot limit their use of English to the boundaries of international English.

(Rebus sic stantibus, I hope that my bilingual texts in Interlingua and English will be useful for Europeans who want to improve their knowledge of English.)