In the U.S., there's been some debate about whether or not the federal government should declare English the national language. This leads us to consider what exactly that actually means. What does it mean for the gov't to give its blessing to a particular tongue?
Certainly it has no effect on what words anyone actually speaks. The legislature could declare that Ugaritic is the country's medium of expression, but that wouldn't cause speakers to hit the textbooks. And, contrary to what some people seem to argue, immigrants entering the country aren't using their mother tongues because they consulted a lawyer to see whether or not any senators, congressmen, judges or cabinet secretaries had anything to say on the matter. The fact is, speakers are gonna speak like they've always been speaking, and they're not gonna pay much heed to what Uncle Sam says.
It's certainly true that, from Sea to Shining Sea, the de facto official vessel of speech is English. We don't need congressmen or senators arguing over that. It's common sense. That's because it's what the overwhelming majority of speakers currently speak. If you want to vacation in Berlin, you brush up on your German. If you want to vacation in New York, let's just say you don't study Chinese. However, this has nothing to do with what the gubmint and its agents have decreed.
Could the lawmakers go a step beyond decrees, and enforce Anglophony? Declare that anyone speaking anything else be cast in jail or deported? That wouldn't be a very good idea. It would destroy tourism and diplomacy and be viewed by the world at large as draconion police state law. Not to mention it would be ethically and morally inexcusable.
What about our products? Would officiality save America from having to listen to telephone recordings saying "Press 8 for Spanish"? Not directly. Congress could impose some such restriction, but that would just screw with businesses. Bear in mind, those recordings aren't there because of some vast diabolical Mexican conspiracy to conquer the U.S. from within. They're there because corporations love getting their hands on your cash regardless of the color of your skin. And what about government organizations? Should the local fire department have a Spanish line? That should really be up to city hall, not Washington DC. There are cities dominated by ESL citizens, and if their administrations were forbidden from accomodating any nonEnglish tongue, that would really wreak havoc on the population there.
Maybe officialness means having a special college of experts who govern what is and is not valid Americanglish. That's what they do in France, and it's a laughingstock. Languages are what people speak, and the prescriptive linguist is forced to either concede, or become the target of mockery.
The officializing of languages is usually nothing but cynical political grandstanding, like so many other social issues used to divide us and blind us from issues that really matter. Incidentally, did you know, early in American history, some people were seriously calling to make everything German. After all, the words we're speaking are none other than those of our old arch-nemesis, Royal England!
FURTHER READING
Read the main article about Why English Should Not Be Officialized In The United States.
When you grow up in the U.S., it's easy to underestimate just how tough the dialect be. Read Ten Reasons Why English Is Hard.
I did a 30-day self teaching project to learn as much French as I could in a month. Mostly I just learned that it was harder than I thought, but you can read the whole project log: French In 30 Days.
Certainly it has no effect on what words anyone actually speaks. The legislature could declare that Ugaritic is the country's medium of expression, but that wouldn't cause speakers to hit the textbooks. And, contrary to what some people seem to argue, immigrants entering the country aren't using their mother tongues because they consulted a lawyer to see whether or not any senators, congressmen, judges or cabinet secretaries had anything to say on the matter. The fact is, speakers are gonna speak like they've always been speaking, and they're not gonna pay much heed to what Uncle Sam says.
It's certainly true that, from Sea to Shining Sea, the de facto official vessel of speech is English. We don't need congressmen or senators arguing over that. It's common sense. That's because it's what the overwhelming majority of speakers currently speak. If you want to vacation in Berlin, you brush up on your German. If you want to vacation in New York, let's just say you don't study Chinese. However, this has nothing to do with what the gubmint and its agents have decreed.
Could the lawmakers go a step beyond decrees, and enforce Anglophony? Declare that anyone speaking anything else be cast in jail or deported? That wouldn't be a very good idea. It would destroy tourism and diplomacy and be viewed by the world at large as draconion police state law. Not to mention it would be ethically and morally inexcusable.
What about our products? Would officiality save America from having to listen to telephone recordings saying "Press 8 for Spanish"? Not directly. Congress could impose some such restriction, but that would just screw with businesses. Bear in mind, those recordings aren't there because of some vast diabolical Mexican conspiracy to conquer the U.S. from within. They're there because corporations love getting their hands on your cash regardless of the color of your skin. And what about government organizations? Should the local fire department have a Spanish line? That should really be up to city hall, not Washington DC. There are cities dominated by ESL citizens, and if their administrations were forbidden from accomodating any nonEnglish tongue, that would really wreak havoc on the population there.
Maybe officialness means having a special college of experts who govern what is and is not valid Americanglish. That's what they do in France, and it's a laughingstock. Languages are what people speak, and the prescriptive linguist is forced to either concede, or become the target of mockery.
The officializing of languages is usually nothing but cynical political grandstanding, like so many other social issues used to divide us and blind us from issues that really matter. Incidentally, did you know, early in American history, some people were seriously calling to make everything German. After all, the words we're speaking are none other than those of our old arch-nemesis, Royal England!
FURTHER READING
Read the main article about Why English Should Not Be Officialized In The United States.
When you grow up in the U.S., it's easy to underestimate just how tough the dialect be. Read Ten Reasons Why English Is Hard.
I did a 30-day self teaching project to learn as much French as I could in a month. Mostly I just learned that it was harder than I thought, but you can read the whole project log: French In 30 Days.
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1 comments:
If you want to vacation in New York, let's just say you don't study Chinese
Coincidentally, Victor Mair posted this picture of a sign in a NYC shop window last week =)
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