Research On Linguistic Imperialism In The Process Of Globalization

The world is in a state of continuous change economically, politically and culturally. In the past few decades it changed more rapidly than ever before. At present the world is experiencing globalization for which Modern communications and production technologies have laid a solid foundation. It has shortened the time and distance of the world dramatically. This thesis discusses linguistic imperialism (that is English imperialism currently) under the circumstance of globalization in that language is closely associated with its environment. There is no reason to talk about English imperialism with out its surroundings– globalization.Ignoring geographical distance and national borders, the globalization is redefining the present world. Information age accompanying globalization which is based on advanced technology has replaced industrial age. Information is sent and received at an increasingly high speed. If people want to make use of certain information or technology, first of all he or she is required to understand the language carrying them– English.The application of English is extraordinarily broad, either in terms of number of users or in terms of functions. It is estimated that by 2010, the number of people who speak English as a second or foreign language will exceed that of native speakers. English which was once restricted to British Isles some 1,500 years ago now almost covers the globe and is continuing to spread to a broader scope. Besides some historical reasons like colonialism some new factors emerging under the circumstance of globalization contribute to this spread of English.Based on former researches, this paper first gives a general picture of globalization and then proceeds to English imperialism. In the part of English imperialism, the manifestations, the reasons and the consequences of English imperialism are discussed separately. Then the paper ends up with"the future of English".