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WorldEnglish:ABlessingoraCurse?UniversallanguageByTomMcArthur[1]Intheyear2000,thelanguagescholarGlanvillePrice,aWelshman,madethefollowingassertionaseditorofthebookLanguagesinBritainandIreland:ForEnglishisakiller.ItisEnglishthathaskilledoffCumbric,Cornish,NornandManx.TherearestillpartsoftheseislandswheresizeablecommunitiesspeaklanguagesthatweretherebeforeEnglish.YetEnglishiseverywhereineverydayuseandunderstoodbyallorvirtually(actually)all,constitutingsuchathreattothethreeremainingCelticlanguages,Irish,ScottishGaelic,andWelsh...thattheirlong-termfuturemustbeconsidered...verygreatlyatrisk.(p141)Someyearsearlier,in1992,RobertPhillipson,Englishacademicwhocurrently(atthepresent/atthemoment)worksinDenmark,publishedwithOxfordabookentitledLinguisticImperialism.Init,hearguedthatthemajorEnglish-speakingcountries,theworldwideEnglish-languageteachingindustry,andnotably(especially)theBritishCouncilpursuepoliciesoflinguisticaggrandisement.Healsoassociatedsuchpolicieswithaprejudicewhichhecallslinguicism[aconditionparallelto(equalto/similarto)racismandsexism].AsPhillipsonseesit,leadinginstitutionsandindividualswithinthepredominantlywhiteEnglish-speakingworld,have[bydesign(=deliberately)ordefault(=mistake)]encouragedoratleasttolerated—andcertainlyhavenotopposed—thehegemonicspreadofEnglish,aspreadwhichbegansome(about)threecenturiesagoas(when)economicandcolonialexpansion.[2]PhillipsonhimselfworkedforsomeyearsfortheBritishCouncil,andheisnotaloneamongAnglophoneacademicswhohavesoughttopointupthedangersofEnglishasaworldlanguage.TheinternationalizationofEnglishhasinthelastfewdecadesbeenwidelydiscussedintermsofthreegroups:first,theENLcountries,whereEnglishisanativelanguage(thisgroupalsobeingknownastheinnercircle);second,theESLcountries,whereEnglishisasecondlanguage(theoutercircle);andthird,theEFLcountries,whereEnglishisaforeignlanguage(theexpandingcircle).Sincethe1980s,whensuchtermsbecamecommon,thisthirdcirclehasinfactexpandedtotakeintheentireplanet.[3]Forgoodorforill,therehasneverbeenalanguagequitelikeEnglish.Therehavebeenmanyworldlanguages,suchasArabic,Chinese,Greek,Latin,andSanskrit.Byandlarge,wenowviewthemasmoreorlessbenign,andoftentalkwithadmirationandappreciationabouttheculturesassociatedwiththemandwhattheyhavegiventotheworld.Anditisfairly(very)safetodothis,becausenoneofthemnowposesmuchofathreat.[4]Englishhoweverisprobably(perhaps)toocloseforustobeabletoanalyzeandjudgeitasdispassionately(objectively),aswemaynowdiscusstheinfluenceofClassicalChineseonEastAsiaorofClassicalLatinonWesternEurope.ThejuryisstilloutinthetrialoftheEnglishlanguage,andmaytakeseveralcenturiestoproduceitsverdict,butevensowecanask,inthisEuropeanYearofLanguages,whetherPriceandPhillipsonarerighttowarnusallaboutthelanguagethatIamusingatthisverymoment.[warnsb.ofsth.][5]Itcertainlyisn'thard(difficult)tolookforsituations(examples)wherepeoplemightcallEnglishacurse.AnexampleisAustralia,whichisroutinelyregardedasastraightforwardEnglish-speakingcountry.ThefirstEuropeanswhowentthereoftenusedLatintodescribeanddiscusstheplace.ThewordAustraliaitselfisLatin;evidently(Obviously/Apparently)nooneatthetimethoughtofsimplycallingitSouthland(whichiswhatAustraliameans).Inaddition(besides),inSouthAustraliathereisawidestretchoflandcalledtheNullarborPlains,thefirstwordofwhichsoundsAboriginal,butnullarborisLatinandmeansnotrees.Andmostsignificantlyofall,theearlysettlerscalledthecontinentaterranullius.AccordingtotheEncartaWorldEnglishDictionary(1999)theLatinphraseterranulliusmeans:...theideaandlegalconceptthatwhenthefirstEuropeansarrivedinAustraliathelandwasownedbynooneandthereforeopentosettlement.Ithasbeenjudgednottobelegallyvalid.Butthatjudgmentwasmadeonlyrecently.WhentheEuropeansarrived,Australiawasthinlypopulated—butpopulatednonetheless(fromthenon)—fromcoasttocoastineverydirection.Therewerehundredsofcommunitiesandlanguages.Manyoftheselanguageshavediedout,manymoreareintheprocessofdyingout,andthesedeadanddyinglanguageshavebeenlargelyreplaced(substituted)byeitherkindsofpidginEnglishorgeneralAustralianEnglish.Dependingonyourpointofview,thisiseitheratragiclossorthepriceofprogress.[6]Atthesametime,however,cantheblamefortheextinctionofAboriginallanguagesbelaidspecificallyatthedoorofEnglish?ThefirstEuropeanstodiscoverAustraliawereDutch,andtheirlanguagemighthavebecomethelanguageofcolonizationandsettlement.Anysettlerlanguagecouldhavehadthesameeffect.IfforexampletheMongolshadsustainedtheirvastEurasianempire,MongolianmighthavebecomeaworldlanguageandgonetoAustralia.Again,ifhistoryhadbeensomewhat(alittle)different,today'sworldlanguagemighthavebeenArabic,apowerfullanguageinWestAsiaandNorthAfricathatcurrentlyaffectsmanysmallerlanguages,includingCopticandBerber.Spanishhasadversely(negatively)affectedindigenouslanguagesinso-calledLatinAmerica,andRussianhasspreadfromEuropetotheSiberianPacific.IfEnglishisacurseandakiller,itmayonlybesointhesense(meaning)thatanylargelanguageislikely(possible)toinfluenceandendangersmallerlanguages.[7]Yetmanypeoplesee(consider/regard)Englishasablessing.Letmeleaveasideheret