Throughout its development, mankind has striven to speak a single language. Once it was Latin, German, French, and then it became English. This was facilitated by several factors - historical and sociocultural.
Today in the world, several languages are most widespread - they are spoken in many countries and over vast territories. These are German, French, Spanish, Arabic and even Russian. However, only English takes the first place among them. He is a native or foreign language for a huge number of people on the planet. There are several reasons for this.
Historical past
At all times, the conquering countries, conquering other cities and states, tried to instill in them their culture and language. This was the case during the Roman Empire, which extended Latin to the entire coast of the conquered Mediterranean. The same happened in the era of Great Britain's domination of the sea. Spreading its influence farther and farther - from Malta and Egypt to the countries of America, Australia, New Zealand, Sudan, India - Great Britain from the 17th century imposed its own order on the conquered territories. This is how dozens of states arose around the world, whose native language was English.
In many of them later it turned into a state one, this happened mainly in those territories that the British conquered from local savages, for example, in the USA, New Zealand, Australia. In the same place, where statehood was already formed, or another country took an active role in the conquests, there were several state languages - this happened in India and Canada. Now Great Britain is no longer considered the main colonizing country, but its historical and cultural heritage still lives on in the previously conquered states.
Globalization and economic strength
The world is on the verge of globalization, distances are reduced due to fast transport, borders are becoming more open, people have the opportunity to travel around the world, do business in different countries, and engage in world trade. All countries are somehow connected with each other, so they need a common means of communication - a single language. In the context of developing globalization, English is recognized as the most convenient language as an ideal means of communication.
Its spread is also helped by the fact that since the 19th century, the United States has taken up the policy of Great Britain in the economic and political aspects, and today they are carrying out a fairly tough conquest of the economic market and increasing political influence in other countries. The language of the strongest country, as a rule, becomes the language of ubiquitous communication.
Convenience of communication
English is the native language of over 400 million people and a foreign language of over 1 billion people on the planet. The number of English learners is constantly growing. In addition, this particular language is relatively simple, which makes it convenient for quick learning and, of course, this also contributes to its mass distribution. Today, only the British themselves allow themselves not to actively study a foreign language at school or university, because everyone around them knows English. For the inhabitants of other countries, such neglect is not typical - they begin to learn languages from a very young age, sometimes from kindergarten and first grades of school.
