Learning Malay For Preschoolers

The age of discovery that began in the 15th century until the end of the 18th century has contributed greatly to the proliferation of the English language outside of North-western Europe. In other words, English was the language of colonisers. European empires explored the world to obtain new land, gold and spices, among others. And in so doing, they exported not only their culture, institutions, laws and politics but also their language. We have often heard the remark that says, “English is the lingua franca of knowledge in today’s world.” But, what exactly is lingua franca? Lingua Franca can be defined as an agreed language used for communication between two individuals who apparently do not share their first language. Bear in mind that languages such as Egyptian, Chinese, French, Greek, Latin, Hebrew, or Arabic were once deemed to be lingua franca. How did these languages achieve such status? It was either by military expansion, economic power or by religious power.

What about today’s lingua franca? Today’s lingua franca is English. Why? It simply is. English was also the language of industrial revolution. It’s therefore unsurprising when one sees almost all of today’s important domains of knowledge the world over, be they the sciences, liberal arts, technology, economy or sports, they are typically communicated, taught, written and published in English. Not forgetting that English is also the primary language of the internet, publishing, electronic games, computers and all its program and software. Another important point to consider is The Nobel Prize in Literature. The prize is awarded only to works of literature that are written only in English or works that have been translated into English. It goes to show that English is such an important language; that the language carries such dominance, albeit implicitly. These are the fact that everyone cannot argue with. English is undeniably very important.