A world language

A billion people speak English, two-thirds of the world’s scientists write in English, and 80% of the world’s electronic information is stored in English. One result is that the British are terribly lazy about learning other languages. The most important factor in language learning is motivation, and the British just do not have it. …

· Which historical events have been important in the development of English? (Russian?)

· Languages change over time; do you think this is a good or bad thing?

· What different languages are spoken in Britain? (Russia?)

· In Russia, do older people criticise the language of young people?

· How do you feel about the spread of English? Is it a threat or an opportunity?

What’s in a name?

The full name of the country is, of course, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Very briefly the history is as follows.

Wales was merged with England by King Henry VIII in 1543.

Scotland followed with the Act of Union in 1707, after which the country was known as the United Kingdom of Great Britain.

The Act of Ireland in 1801 united Britain and Ireland, but that unhappy union finally broke up in 1921, with only six mainly Protestant counties in the north of Ireland remaining in the UK. This remains the situation today.