German President succumbs to British empire, wants English as primary European language.
150 replies, posted
[QUOTE=ButtsexV3;39695674]we should really consider a worldwide official language.[/QUOTE]
We would need a way of preventing slang and other regional differences from forming first.
[QUOTE=Brandy92;39695457]The internet is hugely English-centric and works very well.
I don't see the problem of making communication between most people on the planet viable through the quickest means.
Though there is one thing said about English: Easiest language to speak, hardest to learn.[/QUOTE]
idk about hardest to learn. everything is pretty much relative. learning chinese when english is your first language is terrible because writing is character based instead of letter based. learning japanese is also a bitch because their grammar, while consistent, is completely backwards from english(and most western languages as a whole). someone who is spanish will definitely have an easier time learning english vs. learning japanese.
[editline]24th February 2013[/editline]
[QUOTE=Ardosos;39695820]We would need a way of preventing slang and other regional differences from forming first.[/QUOTE]
not really. slang is fine. dialects are where things would get tricky. but with the interconnectedness of the modern world, it's becoming more and more feasible to have a single common language.
[QUOTE=dunkace;39687249]Well I should think so, I mean we only had one of the largest empires ever seen and won both world wars.[/QUOTE]
you would have lost if it weren't for the u.s
[QUOTE=ButtsexV3;39695674]we should really consider a worldwide official language.[/QUOTE]
Espranto!
[QUOTE=Jsm;39696949]Espranto![/QUOTE]
Why make everyone suffer and learn a new language? Pick one that already has a sizable amount of speakers. Either English, Chinese, Spanish...maybe German, I guess.
English or Chinese.
[QUOTE=DrTaxi;39688234]Hence english should be taught as a primary language, everywhere.
I do hope one lingua franca will eventually replace *all* other primary languages. People shouldn't have to learn different langauges for living in different countries.[/QUOTE]
There's a lingua franca and then there's eradicating languages for the sake of convenience. I'd much rather that we struggled in some countries and let them keep what is undoubtedly a huge part of their cultural identity than having some bland world where everyone speaks the same and the only indicator of where you're from will be your accent.
Or would you have everyone taking classes to get rid of that, too?
In my opinion we never should've given up on Latin.
But [I]apparently[/I] that wasn't good enough for some people.
[QUOTE=Aegis°;39695153]I think Latin should be the official language. Going back to the roots. Latin roots.[/QUOTE]
See? This guy gets it!
[QUOTE=Kinversulath;39698004]In my opinion we never should've given up on Latin.
But [I]apparently[/I] that wasn't good enough for some people.[/QUOTE]
Do you know how hard it is to learn Latin?
If you think English is difficult, Latin is like trying to teach a cat to meow O Fortuna while doing a little dance.
finally I'll have a chance with these qt german girls
[QUOTE=Dr. Ethan Asia;39698010]Do you know how hard it is to learn Latin?
If you think English is difficult, Latin is like trying to teach a cat to meow O Fortuna while doing a little dance.[/QUOTE]
The good part about Latin is that it's consistent.
If the Romans say A is A, it's god damn A. There's very little exceptions to anything in their grammar, their spelling is the easiest thing ever (every letter is pronounced one way only, few diphthongs, no silent letters) so the only problem with Latin is that you need to learn quite a few rules from scratch. The good thing is that, unlike English, you barely have to remember exceptions to said rules.
Latin is actually a very easy language to learn, it's just that nobody speaks it, so training it is hard.
[QUOTE=Dr. Ethan Asia;39698010]Do you know how hard it is to learn Latin?
If you think English is difficult, Latin is like trying to teach a cat to meow O Fortuna while doing a little dance.[/QUOTE]
Seems like teaching a cat to meow O fortuna while doing a little dance is not too hard at all it seems. Learning Latin is not particularly difficult.
But that may seem like that because today Latin is tought pretty much in history of language terms, while actually using it for communication might be a major pain in the ass for everyone involved, as it's kind of very diffirent from any language based on it. Because it's a dead language, obviously.
Also, maybe I just think it's easier because our Latin teacher was a little bit too excited by it all and she made us translate from Dutch to Latin on exams for bonus points, so I ended up being able to just talk Latin if I wanted to. (An ability which has eroded since :v: )
[QUOTE=deltasquid;39698094]
Latin is actually a very easy language to learn, it's just that nobody speaks it, so training it is hard.[/QUOTE]
It also has a consistent rule for stress. It's not as arbitrary as... well pretty much any modern language, where stresses are often held simply by tradition.
[editline]24th February 2013[/editline]
Damn it.
[QUOTE=counterpo0;39697808]English or Chinese.[/QUOTE]
Chinese isn't an internationally spoken language, the only reason why so fucking many speak it is becaues there are so many god damn chinese people.
English on the other hand is spoken internationally, if you can't speak it, you should go back to school.
[QUOTE=booster;39688154]Man, you rarely hear about the German [B]president[/B] doing much.
Most of the times it's the chancellor.
I like this proposition though.[/QUOTE]
she's like the queen of europe or something
Why not all people learn esperanto
Its grammar is 100% regular
Vocabulary is based in latin roots, so that helps european language speakers.
And again, no fucking irregular shit ANYWHERE.
you can get all the grammar down in a couple weeks, obviously though vocabulary takes a bit longer.
[QUOTE=thelurker1234;39698405]Why not all people learn esperanto
Its grammar is 100% regular
Vocabulary is based in latin roots, so that helps european language speakers.
And again, no fucking irregular shit ANYWHERE.
you can get all the grammar down in a couple weeks, obviously though vocabulary takes a bit longer.[/QUOTE]
Because it's not English
And the English hate that
[QUOTE=deltasquid;39698419]Because it's not English
And the English hate that[/QUOTE]
I'd be alright with having Esperanto as the worldwide 2nd language.
[QUOTE=Megafan;39698527]I'd be alright with having Esperanto as the worldwide 2nd language.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, Esperanto is pretty cool. Because even if the other person hasn't learnt it, it's so close to Italian, Spanish, French or whatever the other guy speaks, that he can understand it easily enough.
[QUOTE=download;39687216]Over the dead body of France.
They won't like this[/QUOTE]
And over the dead body of pretty much every other European nation, as well as the German citizens.
[QUOTE=gudman;39698097]Seems like teaching a cat to meow O fortuna while doing a little dance is not too hard at all it seems. Learning Latin is not particularly difficult.
But that may seem like that because today Latin is tought pretty much in history of language terms, while actually using it for communication might be a major pain in the ass for everyone involved, as it's kind of very diffirent from any language based on it. Because it's a dead language, obviously.[/QUOTE]
I studied Latin at school and everyone with whom I studied said the same thing. It's a very consistent language, as said above, and very thorough - and therein I think lies the problem. There are different sets of rules for different tenses (six, I think, as opposed to our three), different moods, different voices. Then you have the nouns which differ between gender (which is one of the reasons I struggled with most European language, given that no-one seemed to think that a table having a gender was a silly idea) and cases. There's probably a lot more to it, but I think Latin as a lingua franca isn't a great idea. It's still a beautiful language, though, and I love reading English words and saying "Ah! I know the Latin root for that!"
I don't get how it's so logical to pick english as the official european language.
We all have biased opinions here because we all pretty much speak fluent english, but I'd like to remind everyone we're a minority (well, not in the UK of course). France and Germany are as important for Europe as the brits are. Hell the UK isn't even part of the euro, why would we make their language more important than every other language in Europe?
We are not the United States, we can't just come in and tell everyone : "there english is best language, pls speak it".
[QUOTE=Bliblixe;39699119]I don't get how it's so logical to pick english as the official european language.
We all have biased opinions here because we all pretty much speak fluent english, but I'd like to remind everyone we're a minority (well, not in the UK of course). France and Germany are as important for Europe as the brits are. Hell the UK isn't even part of the euro, why would we make their language more important than every other language in Europe?
We are not the United States, we can't just come in and tell everyone : "there english is best language, pls speak it".[/QUOTE]
Are we seriously still having that discussion?
It's because it's been spread throughout the globe, it's easily one of the most powerful languages in the world thanks to the Uk pretty much owning most of the globe at some point, second to English being Spanish then French. Chinese won't be chosen for the simple reason that while most folk speak it, they're all in China and not spread around the world as effectively as English speakers.
[QUOTE=Pierrewithahat;39699151]Are we seriously still having that discussion?
It's because it's been spread throughout the globe, it's easily one of the most powerful languages in the world thanks to the Uk pretty much owning most of the globe at some point, second to English being Spanish then French. Chinese won't be chosen for the simple reason that while most folk speak it, they're all in China and not spread around the world as effectively as English speakers.[/QUOTE]
For now. Language has been proved to change extremely fast, 50 years ago nobody but british, americans, australians and intellectuals spoke english. French used to be the international language of reference, now, well not so much.
Esperanto seems like a more logical choice as it is incredibly easy to master and is a language based off every other language.
[QUOTE=GREN EYGS N HAM;39687262]Would be great if everyone had to learn English and be good at it so you can actually communicate with other people when traveling within the EU.[/QUOTE]
Personally I think that's a pretty ignorant approach to things. The EU isn't a single nation, all countries in it have the right to their own culture and language. That's what makes it so great. To force everybody to learn English purely to satisfy ignorant tourists is ridiculous.
I've travelled extensively in Europe and can only speak English, and it's never been a problem. Most folk can speak basic English, and with minimal effort I can usually learn the basics of the native language in a matter of days. It's amazing how far a "hello, please, thank you" will get you in a foreign country, if you're feeling adventurous you can learn how to order a coffee or a beer. It's not difficult.
You wouldn't expect a Spaniard to walk up to you in your own country and just start talking Spanish.
[QUOTE=Scotchair;39699419]Personally I think that's a pretty ignorant approach to things. The EU isn't a single nation, all countries in it have the right to their own culture and language. That's what makes it so great. To force everybody to learn English purely to satisfy ignorant tourists is ridiculous.
I've travelled extensively in Europe and can only speak English, and it's never been a problem. Most folk can speak basic English, and with minimal effort I can usually learn the basics of the native language in a matter of days. It's amazing how far a "hello, please, thank you" will get you in a foreign country, if you're feeling adventurous you can learn how to order a coffee or a beer. It's not difficult.
You wouldn't expect a Spaniard to walk up to you in your own country and just start talking Spanish.[/QUOTE]
Yeah, except if everyone spoke one language (ie: English, because it's already understood by over half of adults in the EU) then you wouldn't even need to do that. Everyone can keep their own languages, that's fine, but things would be so much easier if everyone spoke English as on of their languages.
And it's not like us dastardly imperialist Brits are foisting our language on everyone, it was the German president that suggested this.
[QUOTE=Bliblixe;39699199]For now. Language has been proved to change extremely fast, 50 years ago nobody but british, americans, australians and intellectuals spoke english. French used to be the international language of reference, now, well not so much.
Esperanto seems like a more logical choice as it is incredibly easy to master and is a language based off every other language.[/QUOTE]
Eh... except today we have the internet, TV, radios and everything, and quite alot of stuff being published today is in English, english is being taught in school in most countries, internet's main language is english.
Somehow, I don't think that's gonna change.
[QUOTE=Bliblixe;39699199]For now. Language has been proved to change extremely fast, 50 years ago nobody but british, americans, australians and intellectuals spoke english. French used to be the international language of reference, now, well not so much.
Esperanto seems like a more logical choice as it is incredibly easy to master and is a language based off every other language.[/QUOTE]
What are you talking about. Language doesn't change extremely fast, unless "one hundred years" sounds "fast" to you. And no, 50 years ago English was already very widespread. "Intellectuals", pfft, add 50 years more and you can say that pretty much only intellectuals knew their own languages any good. French is naturally harder to learn then English for a lot of diffirent cultures, same for German (which is more consistent then other two though).
Esperanto is an artifical arbitrary construction, and it often shows. It lacks native speakers, so it lacks established rules. Why bother with studying completely new language, from scratch, for everyone, when we can just rely on already existing language of international communication? It all just comes down to unreasonable nationalism.
[QUOTE=Scotchair;39699419]Personally I think that's a pretty ignorant approach to things. The EU isn't a single nation, all countries in it have the right to their own culture and language. That's what makes it so great. To force everybody to learn English purely to satisfy ignorant tourists is ridiculous.
[/QUOTE]
The proposal is not to replace anyone's culture and language, but to add one more, basic language of international communication. No one said anything about forcing English onto everyone instead of their native language.
[QUOTE=dunkace;39687249]Well I should think so, I mean we only had one of the largest empires ever seen and won both world wars.[/QUOTE]
No, you [I]were[/I]winning them and America said "Sit down Little Jimmy I got this!" and fucked up Hitler's shit.
/joke
Sorry, you need to Log In to post a reply to this thread.