A Pure English?
America is a land of diversity. Many different people and cultures make this a unique country, and some would argue that is why so many immigrants come here. Of the 6,912 living languages in the world today, there are 311 languages currently in this nation (Robinson). Because there are so many languages and cultures here, the mixture of languages is bound to happen. Language is the means of communication between one person and another. Even though some would argue that foreign languages have diluted the purity of American English, I believe English was never a pure language to begin with, and the dilution of it has occurred in the past and is bound to happen because America is a nation of immigrants.
Before we even consider blaming other languages for diluting American English, we must ask ourselves a question; how can one call American English pure? British English is derived from French, Arabic, Hebrew, German, and many other languages (Harper). When the colonists came here, they brought with them their belongings, their teachings, their food, their culture, and most importantly their language. English was the major language, but there were a significant number of others, such as German, Russian, Irish, and others. American English is the result of all of these languages mixing together. Now, how can you call a language that was based on other languages pure? Many commonly used English words originated from other languages; some examples of this are: tea originated from Chinese, hamburger from German, garage from French, and syrup from Arabic (Harper). Another aspect of American English that goes against the idea that it is pure is the many different dialects of it. A dialect is a variety in a language based on the region. Some of the many different dialects of American English are New York English, Coastal Southern English, Black English and many others (Vajda). Now, how can American English be called a "pure" language when it its own country, it is divided
Before we even consider blaming other languages for diluting American English, we must ask ourselves a question; how can one call American English pure? British English is derived from French, Arabic, Hebrew, German, and many other languages (Harper). When the colonists came here, they brought with them their belongings, their teachings, their food, their culture, and most importantly their language. English was the major language, but there were a significant number of others, such as German, Russian, Irish, and others. American English is the result of all of these languages mixing together. Now, how can you call a language that was based on other languages pure? Many commonly used English words originated from other languages; some examples of this are: tea originated from Chinese, hamburger from German, garage from French, and syrup from Arabic (Harper). Another aspect of American English that goes against the idea that it is pure is the many different dialects of it. A dialect is a variety in a language based on the region. Some of the many different dialects of American English are New York English, Coastal Southern English, Black English and many others (Vajda). Now, how can American English be called a "pure" language when it its own country, it is divided
Cited: Robinson, Jeff. "World Languages." National Virtual Translation Center. 25 Sep 2007 . Vajda, Edward. "The Dialects of American English." Linguistics 201: The Dialects of American English. 25 Sep 2007 . Stavans, Ilan. "Spanglish: The Making of a New American Language." The New World Reader. Ed. Gilbert H. Muller. 2nd edition. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 2006. pg 145. Harper, Douglas. "Online Etymology Dictionary." Nov 2001. 25 Sep 2007 .