ENGLISH AS A LINGUA FRANCA OR THE NEW GLOBAL LATIN. SOCIOLINGUISTIC CONSIDERATIONS FROM THE CONFERENCE INTERPRETER'S STANDPOINT

Written by Christina POPAN on 04 July 2011. Posted in Special issue: Interpreting, Guest Editor: Izabella BADIU, Volume XV, Nr. 2

ABSTRACT

In our globalized world English has become not only factually the most widely used, but also the most socially acknowledged tool of communication. As language always vehiculates a particular worldview, this has consequences on the way we think and picture the world. This consequences are felt even when the interpreting profession is concerned, especially in the case of EU institutions, where the inexorable advance of this language at the expense of the others is quite manifest. The present article explores the multiple facets of this phenomenon and especially its drawbacks, ending in a plea for multilingualism.

KEYWORDS: sociolinguistics, lingua franca, English, interpreting, Europe

PAGES: 171-193