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    Globish: How the English Language Became the World's Language
    Globish: How the English Language Became the World's Language
    Globish: How the English Language Became the World's Language
    Audiobook9 hours

    Globish: How the English Language Became the World's Language

    Written by Robert McCrum

    Narrated by James Langton

    3/5

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    About this audiobook

    It seems impossible: a small island in the North Atlantic, colonized by Rome, then pillaged for hundreds of years by marauding neighbors, becomes the dominant world power in the nineteenth century. Equally unlikely, a colony of that island nation across the Atlantic grows into the military and cultural colossus of the twentieth century. How? By the sword, of course; by trade and industrial ingenuity; but principally, and most surprisingly, by the power of their common language.

    In this provocative and compelling new look at the course of empire, Robert McCrum, coauthor of the bestselling book and television series The Story of English, shows how the language of the Anglo-American imperium has become the world's lingua franca. In fascinating detail he describes the ever-accelerating changes wrought on the language by the far-flung cultures claiming citizenship in the new hegemony. In the twenty-first century, writes the author, English + Microsoft = Globish.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherTantor Media, Inc
    Release dateJun 7, 2010
    ISBN9781400187430
    Globish: How the English Language Became the World's Language
    Author

    Robert McCrum

    Robert McCrum was born and educated in Cambridge. For nearly twenty years he was editor-in-chief of the publishers Faber & Faber, until he suffered a severe stroke, the subject of his acclaimed memoir, My Year Off. From 1996 to 2009 he was literary editor of the Observer and associate editor until 2018. He is also the author of Shakespearean; Every Third Thought; Wodehouse: A Life; six novels; and the co-author of the international bestseller The Story of English.

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    Reviews for Globish

    3/5

    34 ratings7 reviews

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    • 5/5
      Fantastic history lesson about Global English or Globish. This recommended for all history and literature lovers.
    • 4/5
      How did a tiny island, beset by wave after wave of conquerors, become the dominant power of one century, and then one of its colonies become the dominant power of another? Language.Globish explores how English became English, how it spread, and how American English took over the world. The author also explores how a new kind of global English – Globish – will continue to conquer.This is a fun story about language and its impact. The fact that English is so adaptable and eager to swipe words from other languages, that it’s the language of the people instead of the academy, is why it’s been so successful. There are many anecdotes and signposts to the future of the language. Some posit that Chinese, on sheer numbers, will overtake English, but the writer makes a good case against it.Admittedly, you have to be a bit of a language nerd to appreciate this book, but if you are, you’ll delight at it.Read more of my reviews at Ralphsbooks.
    • 3/5
      I like books about the development of language, and was hoping for good things from this book. But it didn't fully live up to those expectations.

      The book is split into several sections, and the first is about the co evolution of the English language and the people of this country. He writes about the way that we have moved from the Celtic languages, and the influx of Saxon, Norse and French peoples and the way that they have shaped the words we speak today. There is a whole section on the American revolution, and the way that the American English and English have devolved; all interesting stuff, but there was a lot of history in this part.

      He then goes on to cover how Britain acquired new words from other cultures - i.e. mainly by invading them. It has made our language richer, but the world was poorer for a long time because of it. Other parts of the book cover the two world wars and the influence of the British / American partnership in creating global institutions, UN IMF, that had English as its core language.

      The final part covers the way that the world is going now. Lots of countries are insisting that English is a compulsory second language, Mexico for example, and when China starts to work with African countries, they converse in English. That coupled with global trade, outsourcing and so on, means that more people will speak English with an accent rather than learn a different language.

      In essence, good, but not great
    • 4/5
      I enjoyed this book. It combines a readable and entertaining introduction to the development of the English language, with a broad history of the English-speaking world. I found it full of fascinating detail and was interested in the "Globish" concept that the language has released itself from its attachment to traditionally English speaking countries and is evolving across the world in ways of its own.
    • 3/5
      This book is titled "Globish: how the English Language Became the World's Language," and the author seems to focus on the "how" part of the title and not as much on English itself. I personally happen to like reading about history, so I enjoyed this book as a tour of Anglo-American history with a linguistic tint. There are those who don't really like history, and if you're one of them, you may not fully appreciate this book. Parts of the book deal directly with development of English as a language, but they are not the majority. If you're looking to read about English as a global language, I recommend the last section of the book. Having exhausted all of the available history, the book shifts into overdrive and the author starts talking about English on the current global stage (the "Globish" part of the title).I liked the book over all, and if you like history and the history of language, I think you will too.
    • 3/5
      A journey through the history of the English language, how world history played its part in the development of English, and even how English played its part in history.A bit long winded and divergent at times, but still worth reading. Other reviewers (here and elsewhere) have noted errors: I have one to add as well. The creators of the Bayeux Tapestry were not weavers, but embroiderers - the 'Tapestry' is not a tapestry, but embroidery.
    • 2/5
      I gave up: this was a DNF for me. I think if I were an Anglophile, I would have enjoyed this more. I picked it up expecting to learn about the origins and global impact of the English language. It mostly seemed to be about English and U.S. history (from a Team England point of view) with a little bit about language changes as seen in the writings of Chaucer, Twain, etc. Some of the historical pieces were interesting, but some of them even I - definitely not a history buff - could recognize as being not entirely correct or only from one particular point of view, with no acknowledgment that there's actually debate about some of those issues (hello, the entire Vikings segment). The writing style was also a little off-putting, varying between very lyrical and very clunky. The clunkiness usually seemed to result from an attempt to put in too many details (that didn't really relate to the thesis anyway, which was frustrating in and of itself). Also, for a book with a somewhat snarky take on language variation (outside of England), there were a surprising number of proofing errors.