- The picture here shows something becoming more and more common around the world: the widespread use of English in countries where it is a foreign language. The shot at left is of an advertisement in Stockholm. To see other pictures of Sweden, click
here.
The course will consider many kinds of influences that the English language has had, one of the most notable being the spread of rock music in English in countries where other languages are spoken.
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The picture at left is of a memorial in Lithuania to
the American rock star Frank Zappa. To find out
more and to see an enlargement,
press here.
Just as music in English has become a global phenomenon, English words found in business and technology are finding their way into many other languages.
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The picture at left shows a sign
used by a business in Lithuania. See if you
can recognize the English loanwords,
in the sign. To see an enlargement of the
picture, press here.
To see other pictures of Lithuania, press here.
Sweden and Lithuania are just two countries where English words are spreading. Another is Finland.
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Somewhat surprisingly, a common Finnish word for chicken
comes from English, and it appears in the picture at left.
To find out about the word, press
here.
To see other pictures of Finland, press here.
Just how English finds its way into other languages is not fully understood.
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It can be difficult to predict, for example,
the ways in which English words will be written in another
culture, especially if people there use a different writing
system. Click
here to consider the choices that
advertisers in Russia made about the sign at left.
To see other pictures of Russia, press here.
Just as people in another culture may choose to modify (or not modify) something they borrow from the English language, they may also feel free to adopt and transform other aspects of the culture of America and other English-speaking countries. Many instances of this are found in the film The Japanese Version, which will be part of our activities in 571. To see an example of the Japanese fascination with Western ways (though not an example from the film), press here . As you see, 571 will give you the chance to visit many places where you may find a sign saying, "English spoken here"!