Q1. How many people speak English worldwide?

English is one of the most widely used languages in the world. Recent estimates suggest that over 337 million people speak English as their first language, with possibly some 350 million speaking it as a second language. America has the largest number of English speakers - over 226 million speak the language as a mother tongue. English is an official language in India, alongside Hindi, and some 3,000 English newspapers are published throughout the country. English is also the favoured (предпочитаемый)language of the world’s major airlines and international commerce. Over 80 percent of the world’s electronically stored information is in English and two-thirds of the world’s scientists read in English. English is an official language, or has a special status in over 75 of the world’s territories.

Q2. In what countries do people speak English?

There are English –speaking countries: Great Britain, the USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand. They also speak English in India (the official language), Nigeria, Sweeden, Denmark If the rest of the world isn’t talking English, they’re borrowing English words to add to their own language: the Japanese go on a "pikunikku" (picnic), Italians program their computers with "il software", Germans talk about "ein Image Problem" and "das Cashflow" and Czechs say "ahoy!" for "hello" - a greeting traditionally used by English sailors, which is interesting as there’s no sea in the Czech Republic!

Q3. Why are many English words pronounced differently from the way they are spelt?

The problems with the English spelling system came about as the language developed over a period of 1,000 years. Some complications arose when the Romans tried to write down Old English using the 23 letter Latin alphabet. Old English contained nearly 40 vowels and consonants.          The influence of French after the Norman Conquest also made an impact on English spelling. French scribes introduced "qu" where Old English had used "cw" e.g. queen, and "gh" instead of "h" e.g. night, amongst other changes.

With the introduction of the printing press in 1476 a standard spelling system emerged. And the pronunciation of vowels continued to change during the 15th century, but because of the advent of the printing press, spelling never caught up. Thus modern spelling in many ways reflects outmoded pronunciation of words dating back to the Middle Ages.

 

4. Check your knowledge and do a test:

1. The English language is …

a) the native language of most British people;

b) the international language of South Africa, AUSTRALIA AND New Zealand;

c) the mother tongue of American, Canadian and some Indian people.

 

2. English is the mother tongue of:

a) 337 million people;

b) 350 million people;

c) 3000 English people.

 

3. Great Britain, the USA, Australia, Canada and …. are English-speaking countries.

a) India;

b) Africa;

c) New Zealand.

 

4. The Japanese people borrowed from English the word:

a) software;

b) cash flow;

c) picnic;

 

5. One of the reasons why many English words are pronounced differently from the way they are spelt is:

a) the influence of French;

b) the influence of Latin;

c) the changes in spelling system.

 

6. For you English is … language.

a)the first;

b)the second;

c)the foreign.

 

7. At the college you study English in order to …

a) use it professionally;

b) broaden your horizons;

c) just for fun.

 

8. Cockney is …

a) the literary language of old English books;

b) the dialect of many London’s workers;

c) the jargon of English students.

 

9. The English language came from

a) Old English language;

b) Proto-Germanic language;

c) Proto-European language.

 

10. English is …. subject at the college where you study.

a) special

b) academic

c) humanitarian

 

 

Literature

1) Камминг Дж. Англйский язык для студентов архитектурных и строительных специальностей: Учеб./Джеймс Камминг; - М.:ООО»Издательство Астрель», 2004.

2) Томахин Г.Д. По странам изучаемого языка: Англ.яз.: Справ. Материалы. – 2-е изд., испр. – М.: Просвещение, 1998.

3) Радовель В.А. Английский язык для поступающих в вузы: грамматика, устные темы, диалоги: учебное пособие/В.А. Радовель. – Ростов н/Д: Феникс, 2008

4) Маслыко Е.А. Настольная книга преподавателя иностранного языка. – Издательство «Вышэйшая школа», 1997

5) Gillie Cunningham, Sue Mohamed. Language to go. Pre-Intermediate: Student’s Book – Pearson, Longman – 128.

6) «Wikihow» Форма доступа: http: //wwwwikihow.com/Main page