There were many lingua francas of which French was supposedly the first global lingua franca. That changed and it became English (from what I understand). We will probably see another language become the lingua franca, so my question is: should it be English? Are there better candidates out there? Why / why not?

  • Lemmist@lemm.eeEnglish
    0·
    21 days ago

    Esperanto is a nice variant: it is much more adequate that any of those chaotically evolved “natural” languages plus nobody would have an unfair advantage just because of being lucky to be born in the English speaking country.

    • atro_city@fedia.ioOP
      0·
      21 days ago

      I like the idea. My only issue with esperanto are its heavy influence by romance languages

      A substantial majority of its vocabulary (approximately 80%) derives from Romance languages, but it also contains elements derived from Germanic, Greek, and Slavic languages

      That gives Spain, France, Italy, Portugal, Romania, and probably a few other countries quite a leg up. But, with influence from other languages, it would probably diversify its vocabulary (at least I hope so).

      • vesi@lemm.eeEnglish
        01·
        21 days ago

        Almost all languages have a very big number of words derived from Latin or French. For example Polish, which is a slavic language, has so many of Latin or French rooted words.

        Esperanto apart, I think that German should be the language od Europe, because is it simply the biggest language of the EU. It is also precise. Ofc it could get simplified, because for many der/die/das is too complicated or it is too much of a hustle to remember. German could get more logical with them and then it should be no problem for everyone.

        We could also think about regianal lingua-francas. For example, it could be this way that in the region of romance languages, everyone would speak French, in the region of germanic - German and in the region of slavic - Polish. Simply the biggest languages in a given region.

        The funniest one but also kind of interesting would be Latin. #useLatin

  • idegenszavak@sh.itjust.worksEnglish
    0·
    21 days ago

    English is a global lingua franca, not just european. And it’s not just because of the american and british influence, but because it’s a relatively easy language.

    Also the translator programs are better and better, this is actually a good and fitting usecase of current LLMs. I think we are not far away from the babel fish.

      • jmcs@discuss.tchncs.deEnglish
        1·
        21 days ago

        Now try to learn Portuguese, or German, or Russian. English has wonky phonetics, but has a relatively simple grammar. As a bonus it’s not properly standardized, so whatever you come up with is going to be correct in at least one of the existing dialects.

        • FundMECFS@lemmy.blahaj.zoneEnglish
          0·
          21 days ago

          As someone who learnt both German and English as a second language, German was easier.

          Consistent spelling and pronounciation make a massive difference.

          • bugg@lemm.eeEnglish
            0·
            20 days ago

            I’m learning German now and it’s insanely logical. I’m angry people dissuaded me as a kid from learning German. I truly love the language and Germans are also very kind.

            Side note: are there any German communities on Lemmy you know of? I’d like to join. I’m a fan of Staiy and Spacefrogs.

    • vesi@lemm.eeEnglish
      01·
      21 days ago

      I HATE the idea that we would have some Kind of built into us translators. Languages are a crucial part of human development and, therefore, they should be learned in school the old way. (Ofc school must also evolve)

  • quatschkopf43@feddit.org
    0·
    21 days ago

    I think we are at a point now where almost everybody in Europe is able to speak at least some English. So cultural exchange has never been easier. Why make it more difficult again by adding another language people have to learn first?

    • fartsparkles@lemmy.worldEnglish
      1·
      21 days ago

      As a Brit (but European at heart and strong “Remain” voter), I am quick to remind fellow Brits that English is a language heavily derived from our European ancestors: French, Latin, Germanic (Proto-Germanic, “Old English”, Old Norse, Romance, etc), Greek, Dutch, Spanish, and more.

      I know the United Kingdom has been a royal asshat throughout the centuries but the mark of Europe is intense and undeniable; without Europe, there is no such thing as the English language (except perhaps a number of proper nouns that are rooted in the Celtic people and their ancestors) [Edit: see crappywittyname’s comment below].

      I hope our European siblings can find solace in the fact that “English” is a distinctly European language that is full of words from all of our tongues.