Quote:
Originally Posted by kennyc
And what about English as the Universal language....
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Good one: The "universal language" idea has changed over the years to be whatever country was dominant on the global scale at the time; it just so happens that English has been the dominant language on the global scale in the last half-century, so it is presently considered to be the "universal language." If, say, China becomes a stronger world player, we could see Chinese becoming the "universal language" (Joss Whedon's
Firefly is a great TV example of the result... smart guy, that Whedon)... or if, say, Germany assumes dominance of global trade because of some invention or legal process favorable to all, we could all end up using Dutch as our "universal language."
Or, nations could eventually settle on one "universal language" that will stick, and everyone will use it out of expediency of its already being in-place.
Bottom line, it's impossible to say how long English will remain "universal," or what might replace it, or when.