Modern English
Pronunciation:	/ˈɪŋɡlɪʃ/[1]
Spoken in:	Listed in the article
Total speakers:	First language: 309[2] – 380 million[3] Second language: 199[4] – 600 million[5] Overall: ≈ 1. 8 billion[6]
Ranking:	3 (native speakers)[7][8] Total: 1 or 2 [9]
Language family:	Indo-European  Germanic   West Germanic    Anglo–Frisian     Anglic      Modern English
Writing system:	Latin (English variant)
Official status
Official language in:	53 countries  United Nations
Regulated by:	no official regulation
Language codes
ISO 639-1:	en
ISO 639-2:	eng
ISO 639-3:	eng
Countries where English is a primary language are dark blue; countries where it is an official but not a primary language are light blue. This is a list of languages, ordered by the number of native-language speakers, with some data for second-language use List of language familiesA language family is a group of Languages related by descent from a common ancestor called the Proto-language of that family The Germanic languages are a group of related languages that constitute a branch of the Indo-European (IE Language family. The West Germanic languages constitute the largest of the three traditional branches of the Germanic family of Languages and include languages such as English The Anglo-Frisian languages (sometimes Insular Germanic) are a group of Ingvaeonic West Germanic languages consisting of Old English Anglic (from Latin Anglicus meaning English, cf Germanic) is a term for what are also known as Englishes, in for example World A writing system is a type of Symbolic system used to represent elements or statements expressible in Language. The modern English alphabet consists of 26 letters derived from the Latin alphabet: History See also History of the The following is a list of Sovereign states and territories where English is an Official language, in order of Population. The United Nations ( UN) is an International organization whose stated aims are to facilitate cooperation in International law, International security This is a list of bodies that regulate Standard languages Natural languages Auxiliary languages Interlingua The auxiliary language ISO 639-1 is the first part of the ISO 639 international-standard language-code family ISO 639-2 is the second part of the ISO 639 standard, which lists codes for the representation of the names of languages ISO 639 -3 (ISO 639-32007 is an international standard for Language codes The standard describes three‐letter codes for identifying languages English is also one of the official languages of the European Union. The languages of the European Union are Languages used by people within the member states of the European Union.
Note: This page may contain IPA phonetic symbols in Unicode. In Computing, Unicode is an Industry standard allowing Computers to consistently represent and manipulate text expressed in most of the world's

Modern English is the form of the English language spoken since the great vowel shift, completed in roughly 1550. English is a West Germanic language originating in England and is the First language for most people in the United Kingdom, the United States The Great Vowel Shift was a major change in the Pronunciation of the English language that took place in the south of England between 1200 and

Despite some differences in vocabulary, texts from the early 17th century, such as the works of William Shakespeare and the King James Bible, are considered to be in Modern English, or more specifically, are referred to as using Early Modern English. As a means of recording the passage of Time, the 17th Century was that Century which lasted from 1601 - 1700 in the Gregorian calendar William Shakespeare ( baptised Early Modern English is the stage of the English language used from about the end of the Middle English period (the latter half of the 15th century to 1650

Modern English has a large number of dialects spoken in diverse countries throughout the world. Most of these, however, are mutually intelligible. This includes American English, Australian English, British English, Canadian English, Caribbean English, Hiberno-English, Indo-Pakistani English, New Zealand English, Philippine English, Singaporean English, and South African English. Phonology North American English regional phonology In many ways compared to English English, North American English is conservative in its Phonology. Australian English ( AuE, AusE, en-AU) is the form of the English language used in Australia. British English or UK English ( BrE, BE, en-GB) is the broad term used to distinguish the forms of the English language used in the Canadian English ( CanE, en-CA) is the variety of English used in Canada. Caribbean English is a broad term for the dialects of the English language spoken in the Caribbean, most countries on the Caribbean coast of Central America Hiberno-English also known as Anglo-Irish and Irish English is English as spoken in Ireland, partly the result of the interaction of the English Indian English comprises several Dialects or varieties of English spoken primarily in India, and by first-generation members of the Indian diaspora New Zealand English ( NZE, en-NZ) is the form of the English language used in New Zealand. Philippine English is the variety of English used in the Philippines by the media and the vast majority of educated Filipinos. South African English ( SAE, en-ZA) is a Dialect of English spoken in South Africa and in neighbouring countries with a large number These dialects may be met in different contexts; for example, some American actors in Hollywood or historical or mythic epics often employ British-derivative accents while many British, Australian, and non-native English-speaking international pop singers sing in an 'industry neutral' American accent to appeal to an international demographic.

According to Ethnologue, there are over 508 million speakers of English as a first or second language as of 1999, a number dwarfed only by the Chinese language in terms of the number of speakers. Ethnologue Languages of the World is a web and print publication of SIL International (formerly known as the Summer Institute of Linguistics a Christian However, Chinese has a smaller geographical range and is spoken primarily in mainland China and Taiwan and also by a sizable immigrant community in North America. In contrast, English is spoken in a vast number of territories including the United Kingdom, Ireland, Canada, the United States of America, Australia, New Zealand, India, Pakistan, and Southern Africa. The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located Ireland (pronounced /ˈaɾlənd/ Éire) is the third largest island in Europe, and the twentieth-largest island in the world Country to "Dominion of Canada" or "Canadian Federation" or anything else please read the Talk Page The United States of America —commonly referred to as the For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. New Zealand is an Island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country Pakistan () officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country located in South Asia, Southwest Asia, Middle East and Southern Africa is the Southernmost Region of the African Continent, variably defined by Geography or Geopolitics. Its large number of speakers, plus its worldwide presence, have made English a common language for use in such diverse applications as controlling airplanes, developing software, conducting international diplomacy, and business relations.

Contents 1 History 2 Influences on Modern English 3 Outline of changes in Modern English 3.1 Phonology 3.2 Syntax 4 See also 5 References 6 External links

History

Modern English began in England during the Elizabethan era which is also around the time of the great playwright and poet William Shakespeare. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Romance and reality The Victorian era and the early twentieth century idealised the Elizabethan era William Shakespeare ( baptised

English was adopted in regions around the world such as the United States, India, and Australia through colonization by the British Empire. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the India, officially the Republic of India (भारत गणराज्य inc-Latn Bhārat Gaṇarājya; see also other Indian languages) is a country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic Australia topics. Colonisation (also known as Colonization) occurs whenever any one or more species populates a new area The British Empire was the largest empire in history and for over a century was the foremost global power. As Great Britain began colonising North America, Asia, and Africa, the English language and other customs and ideas spread around the world. This is considered an aspect of the Columbian Exchange. The Columbian Exchange has been one of the most significant events in the history of world Ecology, Agriculture, and Culture.

Influences on Modern English

Early Modern English lacked uniformity in spelling, but Samuel Johnson's dictionary, published in 1755 in England, was influential in establishing a standard form of spelling. Early Modern English is the stage of the English language used from about the end of the Middle English period (the latter half of the 15th century to 1650 Samuel Johnson (often referred to as Dr Johnson) (18 September Noah Webster did the same in America, publishing his dictionary in 1828; see American and British English spelling differences. Noah Webster (October 16 1758 &ndash May 28 1843 was an American Lexicographer, textbook author Spelling reformer word enthusiast and editor American and British English spelling differences are one aspect of American and British English differences.

Public education increased literacy, and more people had access to books (and therefore to a standard language) with the spread of public libraries in the 19th century. A public library (also called circulating library) is a Library which is accessible by the Public and is generally funded from public sources (such Many words entered English from other languages as a result of contact with other cultures through trade and settlement and from the migration of large numbers of people to the United States from other countries. The United States of America —commonly referred to as the World War I and World War II threw together people from different backgrounds, and the greater social mobility afterwards helped to lessen the differences between social accents, at least in the UK. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located The development of radio broadcasting in the early 20th century familiarised the population with accents and vocabulary from outside their own localities, often for the first time, and this phenomenon continued with film and television. Radio is the transmission of signals by Modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible Light. Television ( TV) is a widely used Telecommunication medium for sending ( Broadcasting) and receiving moving Images, either monochromatic

Outline of changes in Modern English

The following is an outline of the major changes in Modern English compared to its previous form (Middle English). Note, however, that these are generalizations, and some of these may not be true for specific dialects:

Phonology

See the sound changes c.1600-1725 and sound changes c.1725-1900 sections of the Phonological history of the English language page. The phonological history of the English language describes changing Phonology of English over time starting from its roots in proto-Germanic to diverse changes in The phonological history of the English language describes changing Phonology of English over time starting from its roots in proto-Germanic to diverse changes in The phonological history of the English language describes changing Phonology of English over time starting from its roots in proto-Germanic to diverse changes in

Syntax

• disuse of the T-V distinction (thou, ye). In Sociolinguistics, a T-V distinction describes the situation wherein a Language has second-person Pronouns that distinguish varying levels of The word thou ( in most dialects is a second person singular Pronoun in English. Ye ( IPA: /jiː/ or traditionally /ðiː/ was the second-person, plural, Personal pronoun ( Nominative) in Old English
• use of auxiliary verbs becomes mandatory in interrogative sentences. In Linguistics, an auxiliary (also called helping verb, helper verb, auxiliary verb, or verbal auxiliary) is a Verb functioning
• rise and fall of prescriptive grammarians. In Linguistics, prescription can refer both to the codification and the enforcement of rules governing how a language is to be used Grammar is the field of Linguistics that covers the Rules governing the use of any given natural language.

See also

• History of the English Language
• List of dialects of the English language
• Old English
• Middle English

References

External links

• Ethnologue's "ENGLISH: a language of United Kingdom"
• World English Organisation
• Shakespeare's Influence on Early Modern English
• Late-Modern English Glossary

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