Recently, there was a question asked in my linguistics class regarding the pros and cons of a standard form of English. I did the assignment, but it got me thinking more about how I feel about a universal language.
A universal language sounds like a great idea when you first think about it. If everyone spoke the same standard language then we would have no language barrier to prevent us from connecting with others around the world. We could resolve conflicts in a civilized manner. Heck, we could all be more aware of each other’s needs and maybe there would be more prosperity in countries that live in poverty. With a world that is so connected through the internet, a universal language is a definite possibility.
I am completely against a universal language.
If a universal language was introduced, wouldn’t that make our mother tongues superfluous? Part of my own identity comes from the languages I use, just like any culture. If we start using a universal language, we would be taking away part of our identity.
Furthermore, what language would we use? Would it be an existing dominant language like English or Chinese? Or would we create an entirely new language based on all the languages of the world? Which letter system would we use? Certainly everyone wouldn’t want to use the Latin alphabet or Chinese characters. Who would even be the authority to decide this? We would probably have to set up some sort of world UN or wait for a global government to step into power (which, for the record, I’m also against).
I love languages. That is part of who I am. You can ask anyone who knows me, my eyes light up when the conversation turns to how people communicate.
There is such a rich history associated with all the languages of the world. I’ve had the pleasure of learning about the life of the English language in my linguistics class. I had no idea that English was even remotely related to Sanskrit or why so many of the words in our lexicon resemble French words, until I started taking this class on the development of the English language.
Knowing all this makes me feel connected to the rest of the world. We are all related by the languages we speak. Even if the languages don’t share a common ancestral language, they are still tools that we use to communicate everything from our wants and needs to how we feel. Languages are beautiful living tools that we use every day of our lives.
We can learn languages to communicate with speakers of different ones. It might take time and practice, but it is unfair to go to some country to trade goods and expect the people to learn only the language you know. Language is like trade and needs to have a respectful reciprocation.
When learning a foreign language, it is inevitable that you learn about the people who speak the language. I have been studying French for some time now and I discover new things about how it connects with different people around the world. Learning about others is a thing to celebrate. When encountering people from a different lingual and cultural background it can be intimidating because they may speak and practice different things, but aren’t we all just people when we break it down?
Yes, it’s true that a universal language would connect us in a lot of ways, but is it really worth making our individual identities mean less? I say that we connect the world using what we already have: thousands of languages that represent people from every part of the world. Let's celebrate who we are and the languages we speak!
