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UNIT 6 LANGUAJES
History - Globish, an alternative
to English?
Student information

This lesson links the topic of languages and the effect globalisation may be having on how
the world is communicating, part of the Historia programme.

Starter There is a greater need for global communication now than there was 50 years ago.
Working with a partner, discuss this need and make a list of reasons for why this is the case.

Now read the following text which describes a recent linguistic development:

Globish is a highly simplified form of English. The grammatical rules of Globish are based
on English grammar, but a typical conversation would be difficult for a native speaker of
English to follow. The inventor of Globish is Jean-Paul Nerrire, a Frenchman, who
realised that non-native English speakers were able to communicate using minimal
vocabulary. In the late 1980s, I was a Vice President with IBM USA....My job gave me the
opportunity to travel a lot around the world. I went very often to Tokyo and Seoul. I did my
best to speak English there....This is where I observed that my communication with the
Japanese and the Koreans was much easier and more efficient than what could be observed
between them and the American or British employees he explains.
The key aspects of Globish are that it allows you to:
communicate in English, using only 1,500 words.
easily learn the pronunciation and spelling of these words.
use simple, but standard grammatical structure.
have a business or tourist conversation, anywhere in the world.
Approximately a sixth of the worlds population now uses English as a first or second
language. Experts recognise that English became a dominant world language as a result of
colonisation and global trading by the British in the 17th and 18th centuries. Was this the
beginning of globalization? Commerce is more international now than in the last century and
the people of the world need to communicate efficiently. Is native speaker English a
threatened species? Maybe Nerrire is correct when he says; Globish, (is) the worldwide
dialect of the third millennium. English is not really needed.
Quotes from Jean-Paul Nerrire are taken from:
http://www.jpn-globish.com/articles.php?lng=fr&pg=171

Photocopiable Pearson Educacin, S.A., 2011 1

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Check your understanding

1. Say if the statements are true, false or not mentioned in the text. Give evidence from the
text.

1. Native English speakers have problems understanding Globish.

2. Korean people speak better English than French people.
3. English has only 1,500 words.

Discussion

1. Consider the advantages and disadvantages of learning Globish and not English at school.
Discuss these ideas with a partner and decide if you are for or against Globish as an alternative
to English.

Photocopiable Pearson Educacin, S.A., 2011 2