Should English Be the International Language - Essay Example

Today English is the official language of many international organizations like the United Nations and the International Olympic Committee. For a language to be given the status of an international language, it needs to meet certain criteria. For example, neutrality, it is important for the language to be neutral. It should be able to express many concepts as a natural language; English is considered one of the most expressive languages as it has more words than any other language. It should have flexibility, where speakers have the flexibility even to coin a new word.

English as a language meets these criteria to a certain extent. English also has continuity. It is one of the only languages that come closest to meeting al the criteria, therefore closest to be an international language. Many people believe that learning to read, write, and speak English would give them a better future, with many more opportunities open to them. At a global level, knowing to communicate in English gives people more access to higher levels of the labor market, and enables people to interact at a global level.

Knowing English also gives people greater access to growing technologies and therefore, provides wider access to knowledge. It is considered a necessity to know English to survive in a global community where competition is high and so is the survival rate. It is easier for a person who knows to communicate in English to survive in today’s world than for a person who does not know English. It does not matter what the accent of that person is, or whether that person is a native speaker or not.

Today, it is important to know English if you wish to benefit from technological and scientific research and benefit from business contacts. English is the primary ‘lingua franca’ language today, which means it is one of the only languages that can be easily used to communicate between two people who have different native languages or different mother tongues. Today, English is considered a universal or international language as it is used widely, by people of almost every country and origin.

The importance of knowing and learning English keeps growing each day with the growing global competition and the want for a better living.