The Origin and History of the English Language

English is a Germanic Language of the Indo-European Family. It is the second most spoken language in the world.

It is estimated that there are 300 million native speakers and 300 million who use English as a second language and a further 100 million use it as a foreign language. It is the language of science, aviation, computing, diplomacy, and tourism. It is listed as the official or co-official language of over 45 countries and is spoken extensively in other countries where it has no official status. English plays a part in the cultural, political or economic life of the following countries

English - A Family Tree

Languages in the same box as English (the Germanic Languages) are sister languages to English and are its closest relatives. Languages in other boxes are "cousin" languages - still related but not as closely. The further the box, the more distant the relationship. The Indo-European family is one of many language families. Languages belonging to other familes are not related to English. Examples of unrelated languages include Arabic, Basque, Hungarian, Mandarin, Malay, Quechua, Tamil, Turkish and Zulu.

English Usage in the UK and USA A light-hearted look at some differences between English as spoken on both sides of the Atlantic. Despite our best data recovery efforts due to time and space restraints spelling and pronunciation differences are not included. "The British and Americans are divided by a common language" George Bernard Shaw

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One Meaning - Two Words

Definition	UK Word	USA Word
11th June 1998	11/06/98	06/11/98
the dot at the end of a sentence	full stop	period
unit of paper currency	note	bill
mathematics	maths	math
the season after summer	autumn	fall
day when offices are closed	bank holiday	legal holiday
small pointed thing used to pin papers onto walls	drawing pin	thumb tack
mark made when something is correct or selected	tick	check
the name of the final letter of the alphabet	zed	zee
angry	pissed off	pissed

Definition	UK Word	USA Word
third piece of a male's suit that goes between the jacket and the shirt	waist coat	vest
what women wear over their legs	tights	(panty) hose
what men wear over their legs	trousers	pants
a type of soft shoe used in sports or for casual wear	trainers, plimsolls	sneakers
strap to hold up a man's trousers / pants	braces	suspenders
item to hold up stockings	suspenders	garters
item of clothing worn in house at night	dressing gown	bathrobe
a thin cloth from Arabia	muslin	cheesecloth
large bag carried by females	hand bag	purse
container carried by females for money	purse	pocket book
what you put in a baby's mouth	dummy	pacifier
what you put around a baby's bottom	nappy	diaper

Definition	UK Word	USA Word
the area next to a street where pedestrians walk	pavement	sidewalk
place to cross a street on foot	pedestrian crossing	crosswalk
place from where goods are bought	shop	store
place from where medicines are bought	chemist	drug store
payment in a restaurant	bill	check
place where alcoholic drinks are bought	off licence	liquor store
shop / store selling metal goods and tools	ironmonger	hardware store
the business part of a city	town centre	downtown
law enforcement officer	copper	cop
what there was before email	post	mail
code used when sorting mail / post	postcode	zip code
telephone call where the person called pays	reverse charge	collect call
free telephone call paid by company	free phone	toll free
company on the WWW	.co.uk	.com

Definition	UK Word	USA Word
four wheeled private vehicle	car	automobile
front of a car / automobile	bonnet	hood
rear compartment of a car / automobile	boot	trunk
metal plate with number on a vehicle	number plate	license plate
long piece of metal used for radio reception	aerial	antenna
metal tool for tightening nuts and bolts	spanner	wrench
glass in front of a car	windscreen	windshield
metal over the wheel to keep mud off	mud guard (wing)	fender
multi-lane road for cars	motorway	freeway
road passing over another	flyover	overpass
heavy goods vehicle	lorry	truck
fuel for vehicles	petrol	gasoline
place to buy fuel	petrol station	gas station
area to stop off a major road	lay-by	pull-off
metal container in street for unwanted items	skip	dumpster
ticket for one journey	single	one way
ticket for two journeys: out and back	return	round trip
type of transport run on metal rails	railway	railroad
a beam supporting railway / railroad tracks	sleeper	tie

Definition	UK Word	USA Word
what you eat with milk, tea or coffee	biscuit	cookie
what you put on bread	jam	jelly
a gelatinous dessert	jelly	jell-O
crunchy thin-sliced fried potatoes	crisps	chips
fried stick-shaped potatoes	chips	french fries
a large vessel for juice or water	jug	pitcher
sweet things given to children to rot their teeth	sweets	candy
rolled up cake with jam / jelly in the middle	Swiss roll	jelly roll
a sugary liquid like honey	treacle	molasses
flavoured ice on a stick	lolly	popsicle
soft long green vegetable	marrow	squash
meat passed through a device that breaks it up into little pieces	mince	ground meat
cereal made from oats, sugar and milk	porridge	oatmeal
Swiss cereal made from oats	muesli	granola
fluffy sweet item for children	candy floss	cotton candy

Definition	UK Word	USA Word
arthropod with six legs	insect	bug
red insect / bug with black spots	ladybird	ladybug
dwelling in a large building	flat	apartment
device for obtaining water	tap	faucet
container for household waste	rubbish bin	trash can
portable battery-operated light source	torch	flashlight
the floor of a building that is level with the ground	ground floor	first floor
the floor of a building that is one level above the ground	first floor	second floor
device for carrying people between floors of a building	lift	elevator
place where films / movies can be seen	cinema	movie theater
a type of house connected to one other	semi-detached house	duplex

Definition	UK Word	USA Word
a self contained section of television	programme	show
game played on chess board	draughts	checkers
contest between two teams	match	game
game played by two teams with bats and balls	cricket	baseball
player who throws a ball at another player holding a bat	bowler	pitcher
bar on a pivot for children	see-saw	teeter-totter
simple game of O and X	noughts and crosses	tic tac toe
a collection of playing cards	pack	deck
a portable telephone	mobile	cellular, cell
a group of people waiting for their turn	queue	line
the dates of the Second World War	1939 - 1945	1941 - 1945

English — for present and future

The great German poet Goethe once said, “He, who knows no foreign language, does not know his own one”.

Learning foreign languages is especially important nowadays. Every year thousand of people go to different countries as tourists, to work or to study. They can’t go without knowing the language of the country they are going to. A modern engineer or even a worker cannot work with an imported instrument or a machine if he isn't able to read the instruction how to do that. A scientist, a historian, an expert, a diplomat, a pilot, a stewardess need foreign languages in their work. So English is the language of international communication, it’s the world language of progressive science and technology, trade and cultural relations, commerce and business, aviation, shipping and sport. It’s also the major language of diplomacy. In fact every visitor should be able to find his own way about in an English-speaking community without interpreters.

English is the official language of the UK, the USA, Australia, Canada and New Zealand. Besides, a lot of other people speak English in Japan, India, China, Africa and many other countries. There is a proverb “A new language — a new world”. So English is worth studying.