Whose language?

英语是谁的语言？

By Michael Skapinker

Wednesday, January 16, 2008

Chung Dong-young, a former television anchorman and candidate to be president of South Korea, may be behind in the opinion polls but one of his campaign commitments is eye-catching. If elected, he promises a vast increase in English teaching so that young Koreans do not have to go abroad to learn the language. The country needed to “solve the problem of families separated for English learning”, the Korea Times reported him saying.

前电视节目主持人、韩国总统候选人郑东泳(Chung Dong-young)在民意调查中选票或许落后，但他的一项竞选承诺却非常引人注目。当时，郑东泳承诺如果当选，要大幅增加英语教育，让韩国年轻人不必出国去学英语。据《韩国时报》(Korea Times)报道，郑东泳称，韩国需要“解决英语学习造成家庭分开的问题”。

In China, Yu Minhong has turned New Oriental, the company he founded, into the country's biggest provider of private education, with more than 1m students over the past financial year, the overwhelming majority learning English. In Chile, the government has said it wants its population to be bilingual in English and Spanish within a generation.

在中国，俞敏洪已将创建的公司新东方(New Oriental)打造成中国最大的私人教育提供商，过去一个财年，该校拥有逾100万学生，其中绝大多数是学英语的。在智利，政府已表示希望在未来二三十年内其人民能同时掌握英语和西班牙语。

No one is certain how many people are learning English. Ten years ago, the British Council thought it was around 1bn. A report, English Next, published by the council last year, forecast that the number of English learners would probably peak at around 2bn in 10-15 years.

没人可以确定有多少人在学英语。10年前，英国文化协会(British Council)认为这个数字大概在10亿。该协会去年发布了一份报告《英语走向何方》(English Next)，预测英语学习者数量可能在10年至15年内达到约20亿的峰值水平。

How many people already speak English? David Crystal, one of the world's leading experts on the language and author of more than 100 books on the subject, estimates that 1.5bn people – around one-quarter of the world's population – can communicate reasonably well in English.

有多少人会说英语？全球知名英语专家戴维?克里斯特尔(David Crystal)已就该主题撰写了逾100本著作。他估计，15亿人（约占全球人口的四分之一）可以用英语很好地进行交流。

Latin was once the shared language over a vast area, but that was only in Europe and North Africa. Never in recorded history has a language been as widely spoken as English is today. The reason millions are learning it is simple: it is the language of international business and therefore the key to prosperity. It is not just that Microsoft, Google and Vodafone conduct their business in English; it is the language in which Chinese speak to Brazilians and Germans to Indonesians.

拉丁语曾在一片广袤的地区上充当共同语言，但这仅限于欧洲和北非。历史上从未有哪种语言像今天的英语那样得到广泛的使用。数百万人学习英语的原因非常简单：英语是国际商业语言，因此也是走向繁荣的关键。英语不仅是微软(Microsoft)、谷歌(Google)和沃达丰(Vodafone)做生意时使用的语言；它也是中国人与巴西人、德国人同印尼人交流的语言。

David Graddol, the author of English Next, says it is tempting¹ to view the story of English as a triumph for its native speakers in North America, the British Isles² and Australasia – but that would be a mistake. Global English has entered a more complex phase, changing in ways that the older English-speaking countries cannot control and might not like.

英语走向何方》的作者大卫·葛拉多尔(David Graddol)表示，人们很容易将这看作是北美、不列颠群岛及澳大拉西亚等地以英语为母语的人士的胜利——但这是错误的。全球英语已进入一个更为复杂的阶段，以一些老牌英语国家无法控制、可能也不喜欢的方式不断变化着。

Commentators³ on global English ask three principal questions. First, is English likely to be challenged by other fast- growing languages such as Mandarin⁴, Spanish or Arabic? Second, as English spreads and is influenced by local languages, could it fragment, as Latin did into Italian and French – or might it survive but spawn⁵ new languages, as German did with Dutch and Swedish? Third, if English does retain a standard character that allows it to continue being understood everywhere, will the standard be that of the old English-speaking world or something new and different?

全球英语的评论人士问及三个主要问题。首先，英语是否可能遭遇其它发展迅速的语言的挑战，如汉语、西班牙语或阿拉伯语？其次，随着英语不断传播并受到地方语言的影响，它是会被分化——像拉丁语分化为意大利语和法语一样，还是会继续存在但滋生出新的语言——就像德语与荷兰语和瑞典语的关系？第三，如果英语确实能保留标准特性，使之继续为全球各地的人所理解，那么这个标准将是老牌英语世界的标准，还是一个不同的新标准？

Mr Graddol says the idea of English being supplanted⁶ as the world language is not fanciful. About 50 years ago, English had more native speakers than any language except Mandarin. Today both Spanish and Hindi-Urdu have as many native speakers as English does. By the middle of this century, English could fall into fifth place behind Arabic in the numbers who speak it as a first language.

葛拉多尔表示，英语作为世界语言的地位被取代，这种想法并非不切实际。大约50年前，除了汉语之外，以英语为母语的人口超过了其它任何语言。今天，以西班牙语和印度-乌尔都语为母语的人口已经和以英语为母语的人口一样多。到本世纪中叶，以英语为第一语言的人口可能少于阿拉伯母语人口，跌倒世界第五位。

Some believe English will survive because it has a natural advantage: it is easy to learn. Apart from a pesky “s” at the end of the present tense third person singular (“she runs”), verbs remain unchanged no matter who you are talking about. (I run, you run, they run; we ran, he ran, they ran.) Definite and indefinite articles are unaffected by gender⁷ (the actor, the actress; a bull, a cow.) There is no need to remember whether a table is masculine or feminine.

一些人相信英语会流传下去，因为它有一个天然优势：容易学习。除了现在时第三人称单数后面那个讨厌的“s”以外(“she runs”) ，不管你谈到谁，动词形式保持不变。(I run, you run, they run; we ran, he ran, they ran.)定冠词和不定冠词不受性别的影响(the actor, the actress; a bull, a cow)。没有必要去记住一张桌子是阳性还是阴性。

There is, however, plenty that is difficult about English. Try explaining its phrasal verbs – the difference, for example, between “I stood up to him” and “I stood him up”. Mr Crystal dismisses the idea that English has become the world's language because it is easy. In an essay published last year, he said Latin's grammatical complexity⁸ did not hamper⁹ its spread. “A language becomes a world language for extrinsic¹⁰ reasons only, and these all relate to the power of the people who speak it,” he wrote. The British empire carried English to all those countries on which the sun never set; American economic and cultural clout¹¹ ensured English's dominance after the British empire had faded.

不过，英语还是有很多难点。例如，试着解释一下动词词组“I stood up to him”（在他面前，我坚持了自己的原则）与“I stood him up”（我爽约了，没去见他）之间的区别。克里斯特尔并不认为，英语成为世界语言的原因是它易于学习。他在去年发表的一篇论文中表示，拉丁语的复杂语法并未妨碍它的传播。“一种语言成为世界语完全是由外部原因造成的，与说这种语言的人的实力密切相关，”他在文中写到。大英帝国将英语带到了那么多的国度——在这些国家，太阳永远不会落下；在大英帝国没落之后，美国的经济和文化影响力确保了英语的统治地位。

So could China's rise see Mandarin becoming the world's language? It may happen. “Thinking back a thousand years, who would have predicted the demise¹² of Latin?” Mr Crystal asks. But at the moment there is little sign of it, he says. The Chinese are rushing to learn English.

那么中国的崛起是否能让汉语成为世界语言呢？这是有可能的。“回想一千年前，谁能预见到拉丁语的消亡呢？” 克里斯特尔问道。但他表示，目前还几乎没有这种迹象。中国人正在争先恐后地学习英语。

Mr Graddol agrees that we are unlikely to see English challenged in our lifetime. Once a lingua franca is established, it takes a long time to shift. Latin may be disappearing but it remained the language of science for generations and was used by the Roman Catholic church well into the 20th century.

葛拉多尔同意，在我们这一代，可能还不会看到英语的地位受到挑战。通用语言一旦形成，它的地位就不会在短时间内受到撼动。拉丁语也许正在消亡，但它在很长的时间里都是科学界的通用语言，在进入20世纪很多年之后，罗马天主教还在使用拉丁文。

As for English fragmenting, Mr Graddol argues it has already happened. “There are many Englishes that you and I wouldn't understand,” he says. World Englishes, a recent book by Andy Kirkpatrick, professor at the Hong Kong Institute of Education, gives some examples. An Indian teenager's journal contains this entry: “Two rival groups are out to have fun . . . you know generally indulge in dhamal [a type of dance] and pass time. So, what do they do? Pick on a bechaara bakra [poor goat] who has entered college.” Prof Kirkpatrick also provides this sample of Nigerian pidgin English: “Monkey de work, baboon¹³ dey chop” (Monkeys work, baboons¹⁴ eat).

至于英语的分化，葛拉多尔认为，这一过程已经开始了。“有很多种英语都是你我所不能理解的，”他表示。香港教育学院(Hong Kong Institute of Education)教授安迪?科克帕里克(Andy Kirkpatrick)在最近出版的新书《世界英语》(World Englishes)中列举了一些例子。一个印度青少年刊物里有这样一段话：“两个对立的团体出去玩……你知道，他们一般都沉浸在dhamal（一种舞蹈）里消磨时间。那么他们做什么呢？作弄一只进了大学的bechaara bakra（可怜的山羊）。”科克帕里克教授还提供了一个尼日利亚混杂英语的例子：“Monkey de work, baboon dey chop”（猴子工作，狒狒吃东西）。

It is unlikely, however, that this fragmentation will lead to the disappearance¹⁵ of English as a language understood around the world. It is common for speakers of English to switch from one or other variantto a use of language more appropriate for work, school or international communication. Mr Crystal says modern communication through television, film and the internet means the world is likely to hold on to an English that is widely understood.

然而，这种分化不大可能导致作为全世界都理解的语言——英语的消失。对于英语使用者来说，从一种或另一种变化转向更适合工作、学校或是国际交往的语言运用，这种做法很常见。克里斯特尔表示，电视、电影和互联网等现代沟通方式意味着，这个世界可能会坚持使用一种可以被广泛理解的英语。

The issue is: whose English will it be? Non-native speakers now outnumber native English-speakers by three to one. As hundreds of millions more learn the language, that imbalance will grow. Mr Graddol says the majority of encounters in English today take place between non-native speakers. Indeed, he adds, many business meetings held in English appear to run more smoothly¹⁶ when there are no native English-speakers present.

问题在于：它将是谁的英语？目前，在讲英语的人中，非英语母语人士和英语母语人士的比例是3比1。随着数以亿计的人开始学习这种语言，这种不均衡将得到进一步增强。葛拉多尔表示，如今大多数英语交流发生在非英语母语人士之间。事实上，他补充道，很多用英语召开的商业会议在没有英语母语人士在场时似乎运作得更加平稳。

Native speakers are often poor at ensuring that they are understood in international discussions. They tend to think they need to avoid longer words, when comprehension problems are more often caused by their use of colloquial¹⁷ and metaphorical¹⁸ English.

在国际讨论中，英语母语人士常常不能确保别人能明白自己的意思。他们往往认为自己需要避免使用长单词，而实际上，理解问题更多地是由他们使用口语和比喻造成的。

Barbara Seidlhofer, professor of English and applied¹⁹ linguistics²⁰ at the University of Vienna, says relief at the absence of native speakers is common. “When we talk to people (often professionals) about international communication, this observation is made very often indeed. We haven't conducted a systematic²¹ study of this yet, so what I say is anecdotal for the moment, but there seems to be very widespread agreement about it,” she says. She quotes an Austrian banker as saying: “I always find it easier to do business [in English] with partners from Greece or Russia or Denmark. But when the Irish call, it gets complicated and taxing.”

维也纳大学(University of Vienna)英语与应用语言学教授芭芭拉?赛德尔霍弗 (Barbara Seidlhofer)表示，人们通常感觉没有英语母语人士在场会更轻松。“当我们和人们（通常是专业人士）谈起国际交流时，他们确实经常会提到这一点。我们还没有对此现象展开系统研究，所以我说的这些目前只能算是轶事，但人们似乎对此已达成共识，”她表示。她引用了一位奥地利银行家的话称：“我总是发现，（用英语）和希腊、俄罗斯或丹麦人做生意更容易一些。但当爱尔兰人来电话的时候，情况就变得复杂而费力。”

On another occasion, at an international student conference in Amsterdam, conducted in English, the lone²² British representative was asked to be “less English” so that the others could understand her.

在另一个场合，在阿姆斯特丹用英语举办的国际学生大会上，人们要求唯一的一位英国代表“不要太英国化了”，要让其他人可以理解她的意思。

Prof Seidlhofer is also founding director of the Vienna-Oxford International Corpus of English (Voice), which is recording²³ and transcribing²⁴ spoken English interactions between speakers of the language around the world. She says her team has noticed that non-native speakers are varying standard English grammar in several ways. Even the most competent sometimes leave the “s” off the third person singular. It is also common for non-native speakers to use “which” for humans and “who” for non- humans (“things who” and “people which”).

赛德尔霍弗教授还是维也纳牛津国际英语（声音）库[Vienna-Oxford International Corpus of English (Voice)]的创始人，英语库正在对世界各地的英语使用者的英语口语交流进行录音和笔录。她表示，她的团队注意到非英语母语人士在几个方面改变着标准英语语法。即便是那些英语非常好的人有时也会忘记在第三人称单数形式后加上“s”。非英语母语人士对人用“which”，对物用“who”（“things who”与 “people which”），这种情况也很常见。

Prof Seidlhofer adds that many non- native speakers leave out definite and indefinite articles where they are required in standard English or put them in where standard English does not use them. Examples are “they have a respect for all” or “he is very good person”. Nouns that are not plural²⁵ in native-speaker English are used as plurals²⁶ by non-native speakers (“informations”, “knowledges”, “advices”). Other variations include “make a discussion”, “discuss about something” or “phone to somebody”.

赛德尔霍弗教授补充称，在标准英语要求使用定冠词和不定冠词时，许多非英语母语人士会忘记这一点，或是在标准英语不使用定冠词和不定冠词时加上冠词，例如：“they have a respect for all” 或 “he is very good person”。非英语母语人士将英语母语人士视为没有复数形式的名词以复数形式使用(“informations”，“knowledges”，“advices”)。其它变异包括“make a discussion”、“discuss about something”或 “phone to somebody”。

Many native English speakers will have a ready riposte: these are not variations, they are mistakes. “Knowledges” and “phone to somebody” are plain wrong. Many non-native speakers who teach English around the world would agree. But language changes, and so do notions of grammatical correctness. Mr Crystal points out that plurals such as “informations” were once regarded as correct and were used by Samuel Johnson.

很多英语母语人士的典型回应是：这些不是变异，而是错误。“Knowledges”和“phone to somebody”完全是错误的。世界各地许多教授英语的非英语母语人士也会同意这种观点。但语言会变化，语法正误的概念也会变化。克里斯特尔指出，“informations”等复数形式曾被认为是正确的，赛缪尔?约翰逊(Samuel Johnson)就曾经这么用过。

Those who insist on standard English grammar remain in a powerful position. Scientists and academics who want their work published in international journals have to adhere to the grammatical rules followed by the native English-speaking elites²⁷.

那些坚持标准英语语法的人仍处于强大地位。科学家和学术人员如果想要国际刊物上发表文章，就必须坚持英语母语精英人士遵循的语法规则。

But spoken English is another matter. Why should non-native speakers bother with what native speakers regard as correct? Their main aim, after all, is to be understood by one another. As Mr Graddol says, in most cases there is no native speaker present.

但英语口语就完全不同了。非英语母语人士为什么要在意英语母语人士的看法呢？毕竟，他们的主要目的就是了解彼此的意思。正如葛拉多尔所说，在大多数场合，根本就没有英语母语人士在场。

Prof Seidlhofer says that the English spoken by non-native speakers “is a natural language, and natural languages are difficult to control by ‘legislation'.

赛德尔霍弗教授表示，非母语人士讲的英语“是一种自然语言，而自然语言难以通过‘立法'进行控制”。

“I think rather than a new international standard, what we are looking at is the emergence²⁸ of a new ‘international attitude', the recognition and awareness²⁹ that in many international contexts interlocutors do not need to speak like native speakers, to compare themselves to them and thus always end up ‘less good' – a new international assertiveness³⁰, so to speak.”

“我认为，与其说我们看到的是一个新的国际标准，不如说是一种新的‘国际态度'的诞生，人们意识到并承认，在许多国际场合，对话者不需要像母语人士一样讲话，也不需要去和他们比较，进而总是感觉‘逊人一筹'——这可以说是一种新的国际自信。”

When native speakers work in an international organisation³¹, some report their language changing. Mr Crystal has written: “On several occasions, I have encountered English-as-a-first-language politicians, diplomats³² and civil servants working in Brussels commenting on how they have felt their own English being pulled in the direction of these foreign- language patterns . . . These people are not ‘talking down' to their colleagues or consciously adopting simpler expressions, for the English of their interlocutors may be as fluent as their own. It is a natural process of accommodation, which in due course could lead to new standardised forms.”

当母语人士在国际组织中工作时，有些人表示，他们的语言在变化。克里斯特尔写到：“有几次，我遇到一些在布鲁塞尔工作、以英语为母语的政治家、外交官和公务员，他们都提到如何感觉自己的英语被引向了这些外国语言模式的方向……这些人不是在‘贬低'自己的同事，也不是在有意识地采用更简单的表达方式，因为对话者的英语可能和他们一样流利。这是一个互相迁就的自然过程，经过适当的时间，就会形成新的标准形式。”

Perhaps written English will eventually make these accommodations too. Today, having an article published in the Harvard Business Review or the British Medical Journal represents a substantial professional accomplishment³³ for a business academic from China or a medical researcher from Thailand. But it is possible to imagine a time when a pan-Asian journal, for example, becomes equally, or more, prestigious³⁴ and imposes its own “Globish” grammatical standards on writers – its editors changing “the patient feels” to “the patient feel”.

也许书面英语最终也会进行这种调节。目前，对于来自中国的商科学术人士或是来自泰国的医学研究员，在《哈佛商业评论》(Harvard Business Review)或《英国医学期刊》(British Medical Journal)上发表文章是一项重大专业成就。但我们可以想象，也许有一天，一个泛亚洲刊物会具有同样或是更高的声望，并要求作者采用自己的“国际英语(Globish)”语法标准——它的编辑将“the patient feels” 改成“the patient feel”。

Native English speakers may wince³⁵ but are an ever-shrinking minority.

英语母语人士也许会厌烦这种情况，但这些人是少数，而且数量在不断减少