English Language Day | LearnEnglish

English Language Day is celebrated on 23 April. Read about where English came from ... I speak English with my friends to improve my English speaking level. Skiptomaincontent GeneralEnglish Magazinezone EnglishLanguageDay EnglishLanguageDay EnglishLanguageDayiscelebratedon23April.ReadaboutwhereEnglishcamefrom,howitcametobespokenallovertheworldandhowitischanging. Dothepreparationtaskfirst.Thenreadthearticleanddotheexercises. Preparation Matching_MjM0MjM= WhatisEnglishLanguageDay? EnglishLanguageDaywasfirstcelebratedin2010,alongsideArabicLanguageDay,ChineseLanguageDay,FrenchLanguageDay,RussianLanguageDayandSpanishLanguageDay.ThesearethesixofficiallanguagesoftheUnitedNations,andeachhasaspecialday,designedtoraiseawarenessofthehistory,cultureandachievementsoftheselanguages. WhyisEnglishLanguageDaycelebratedon23April? Thisday waschosenbecauseitisthoughttobeShakespeare'sbirthday,andtheanniversaryofhisdeath.AswellasbeingtheEnglishlanguage'smostfamousplaywright,Shakespearealsohadahugeimpactonmodern-dayEnglish.Atthetimehewaswriting,inthe16thand17thcenturies,theEnglishlanguagewasgoingthroughalotofchangesandShakespeare'screativitywithlanguagemeanthecontributedhundredsofnewwordsandphrasesthatarestillusedtoday.Forexample,thewords'gossip','fashionable' and'lonely' wereallfirstusedbyShakespeare.Healsoinventedphraseslike'breaktheice','allouryesterdays','faint-hearted' and'loveisblind'.Canyouguesswhattheymean? TheoriginsofEnglish ThestoryoftheEnglishlanguagebeganinthefifthcenturywhenGermanictribesinvadedCeltic-speakingBritainandbroughttheirlanguageswiththem.Later,ScandinavianVikingsinvadedandsettledwiththeirlanguagestoo.In1066WilliamI,frommodern-dayFrance,becameking,andNorman-Frenchbecamethelanguageofthecourtsandofficialactivity.Peoplecouldn’tunderstandeachotheratfirst,becausethelowerclassescontinuedtouseEnglishwhiletheupperclassesspokeFrench,butgraduallyFrenchbegantoinfluenceEnglish.Anestimated45percent ofallEnglishwordshaveaFrenchorigin.ByShakespeare'stime,ModernEnglishhaddeveloped,printinghadbeeninvented andpeoplehadtostarttoagreeon'correct' spellingandvocabulary. ThespreadofEnglish ThespreadofEnglishallovertheworldhasanuglyhistorybutarichandvibrantpresent.DuringtheEuropeancolonialperiod,severalEuropeancountries,includingEngland,competedtoexpandtheirempires.Theystoleland,labourandresourcesfrompeopleacrossAfrica,Asia,theAmericasandOceania.BythetimeformerBritishcoloniesbegantogainindependenceinthemid-20thcentury,Englishhadbecomeestablishedintheirinstitutions.ManybrilliantwritersfromdiverseplacesacrossAfrica,theCaribbean andAsiahadstartedwritinginEnglish,tellingtheirstoriesofoppression.PeoplefromallovertheworldwereusingEnglishtotalkandwriteaboutjustice,equality,freedomandidentityfromtheirownperspectives.ThedifferentvarietiesofEnglishcreatedthroughthishistoryofmigrationandcolonisationareknownasWorldEnglishes. InternationalEnglish Morethan1.75billionpeoplespeakEnglishworldwide–that'saround1in4peoplearoundtheworld.Englishisbeingusedmoreandmoreasawayfortwospeakerswithdifferentfirstlanguagestocommunicatewitheachother,asa'linguafranca'.Formanypeople,theneedtocommunicateismuchmoreimportantthantheneedtosoundlikeanativespeaker.Asaresult,languageuseisstartingtochange.Forexample,speakersmightnotuse'a' or'the' infrontofnouns,ortheymightmakeuncountablenounspluralandsay'informations','furnitures' or'co-operations'. Arethesevariationsmistakes?OrpartofthenaturalevolutionofdifferentEnglishes?'InternationalEnglish' referstotheEnglishthatisusedanddevelopedbyeveryoneintheworld,anddoesn'tjustbelongtonativespeakers.ThereisalotofdebateaboutwhetherInternationalEnglishshouldbestandardisedand,ifso,how.Whatdoyouthink?Ifyou'rereadingthis,Englishisyourlanguagetoo. Source http://www.un.org/en/events/englishlanguageday/ Task1 TrueOrFalse_MjM0MjQ=.xml Task2 GapFillDragAndDrop_MjM0MjU=.xml DoyouneedtoimproveyourEnglish? WhetheryouneedbetterEnglishtotravelormeetnewpeople,ouronlineEnglishcourseswillgiveyourealpractice.JointhousandsoflearnersfromaroundtheworldwhoaremakinggreatprogresswiththeirEnglishlevelwithouronlinecourses. Findoutmore Discussion WhodoyouspeakEnglishwith? Download Worksheet88.32KB Languagelevel B2Englishlevel(upperintermediate) NowItrytolearnEnglish.Ipractiseenglisheveryday.Ipractisespeaking,listeningandwritingonthiswebsite.IthinkthatthiswebsiteisusefulandhelpmealotinstudyingEnglish.IthinkthatB2levelissuitableforme.IcanunderstandwhatIread,butsometimeslisteningisabitdifficultforme.Ihavetolistentheaudiotwiceatleasttounderstandit. Loginorregistertopostcomments IgenerallyspeakEnglishwithmyfriend.whenIstartedlearningtheEnglishlanguageitwasdifficultforme.inmystartingjourney,IspokeEnglishinfrontofthemirrorandwithobjects.Ididn'tmakeitapropersentencesoit'shardtospeakinfrontofanyone.afteroneyearofmyjourney,ItriedtospeakwithmybestfriendhealwayssupportsmewheneverIdidmistakeshecorrectedmymistake.still,I'mlearningEnglishbecauseeverylanguagetakestime Loginorregistertopostcomments Amazing!IlikelearningEnglishanditmakesmefeelgood. Loginorregistertopostcomments ActuallyIdonhavealotofpeoplewhospeakEnglishwith,becauseIliveinaSpanish-speakingcountry,butmywifeandItrytocommunicateeachotherinEnglishdayly.Wechatandtextallthetime,andattheendofthedaywespeakalittle.Thiswayweimproveourknowledge. Loginorregistertopostcomments IspeakEnglishwithmyfriendstoimprovemyEnglishspeakinglevel. Loginorregistertopostcomments ItrytospeakEnglishmyselfwiththehelpofappaboutthirtyminutesperday.Itisenjoyableandinteresting.IbelievelcanspeakEnglishfluentlyoneday. Loginorregistertopostcomments Hi, Manythanks!Ireallyenjoyedreadingthisarticle. CouldyoupleasetellmewhereIcanfindthemeaningofEnglishphraseslikethosecitedinthisarticle.Iknowthemeaningof'breaktheice'and'loveisblind',weusthesamephrasesinArabic(it'sinterestingtofindouttheirEnglishroots).Ifoundthemeaningof'faint-hearted'inCambridgeDictionnary;butIstillstruggletounderstand'allouryesterdays'. Loginorregistertopostcomments HiLeila77, I'mgladyouenjoyedthearticle:) Allouryesterdays meansourpast.Forexample: ThesefilmsandTVshows wereapartofallouryesterdays. SomeofShakespeare'sphraseshavebecomeverycommonlyused,suchastheotherphrasesyoumentioned.Thesehaveoftenbeenaddedto dictionariestoo.But allouryesterdaysisn'tsocommonlyused,andmightnotbeincludedindictionaries.Inthatcase,tofindthemeaning,thebestwayisprobablytosearchfor anexampleofsomebodyusingitinrealspeechorwriting-youcanprobablyhaveagoodguessatthemeaninginthecontextofthewholespeechorwriting.Otherwise,youmightneedtocheckasourcethatspecificallyexplainsShakespeareantexts. Ihopethathelps. Jonathan TheLearnEnglishTeam Loginorregistertopostcomments HiJonathan, Iappreciateyourhelp. IhopeonedayIcanreadShakespeareinEnglish! Loginorregistertopostcomments HiLeila77, Noproblem.ReadingShakespeareischallenging,butveryinterestingandenjoyable:) Jonathan TheLearnEnglishTeam Loginorregistertopostcomments IspeakEnglishwithmyclassmatesinthethecourseI'mtkingrightnow.Weallarelearning,soitisagoodchancetoimproveandknowingeachother.Englishismylanguagetoo,aslongasI'mpracticingit,it'llbemine. Loginorregistertopostcomments IspeakEnglishwithmyself,IchatwithforeignpeopleusingtandembutIfeellikeIdon'thavetheabilitytoholdafluentconversationyet,nowIjustreadandlearnnewvocabularyeverydayandI'mgoingtoreturnlistentothepodcasts.andaboutthetext,IlikethedifferentaccentsofEnglishwhensomeonemixesBritishEnglishwithAmericanIfindthesoundreallynice,daybydayEnglishisspreadingmoreandmore Loginorregistertopostcomments Iusuallydon'tspeakEnglishbecauseIhaven'tthisopportunity,butItrytolearningthislanguagepractisingitbybooks,magazines,internet. Loginorregistertopostcomments WhodoyouspeakEnglishwith? IusuallyspeakEnglishinEnglishclasses. Loginorregistertopostcomments Iwouldliketodownloadtheaudio,howcanIdothat...? Loginorregistertopostcomments HelloAbraãoMiguelMuzumbi, Thisisareadingtextonly,so noaudioisavailableforit.   Peter TheLearnEnglishTeam Loginorregistertopostcomments IusuallyspeakEnglishwithmystudentsasIamanEnglishTeacher.IalsospeakEnglishwithcolleagues,friends,teachersandatplaceswhereoneisrequiredtoconverseinEnglishsuchaswiththesalespeopleinShoppingMalls,hospitalitystaffinHotelsnRestaurants,etc.Last,butnottheleast,IwritealotinEnglish-beitpoetry,notestoself,articles,etc.IloveEnglish. Loginorregistertopostcomments TobehonestIloveenglishsomuchthatIlistentoenglishpodcastsfor3-4hoursperdaywhichisnotbadbutIdon'tspeakwithpeoplebecauseIdon'thavetheopportunityandwhenitcomestospeakingIfeelanxiousbutIstartedtotalktomeselfandI'mgettingovermyfearnow ItwouldbeagreatIideatomakeEnglishinternationallanguageandIthinkthereareseveraladvantagescommunicationwilleasiermostpoorcountrieswillalsogetbenefitfromenglishoverallenglishisnecessaryfortheworldsinceitsverypopular Andlearningenglishwillhefun *Pleasecorrectmymistakes* Loginorregistertopostcomments Thispagegood.Lovenglish.Improveeverydai Loginorregistertopostcomments IlearningnowEnglish,trytospeakwithmyboyfriend...hespeakbetterthanme,Itrytospeakproperlyandwithgrammar,withnewwords...withnewwayswhichIseeninmovies,whichIlearninEnglishBritishCouncil...Ineedtofindhereinformation,whichcanhelpme...topreparefornurse...topreparetotakemyPIN:) IwillbesothankfullyifIfindlessons:) Loginorregistertopostcomments HelloStelaStoycheva Itsoundsasifyouaremakinggreatprogress,andwe'regladthatyou'reusingoursitetohelpyou. I'mafraidwedon'thaveanysectionsthatarespecificallymadeformedicalEnglish,butI'dsuggestourSkillssection,whereyoucanfindawidevarietyoftopicsandskillstoworkon. Letusknowhowyougeton! Allthebest Kirk TheLearnEnglishTeam Loginorregistertopostcomments 'loveisblind'=⁽⁽(⸝⸝⸝❤︎Ɛ❤︎⸝⸝⸝)⁾⁾​​​+*✧(●♡ᴗ♡●)o(♡´▽`♡)o\\((♡▽♡))// Loginorregistertopostcomments "Healsoinventedphraseslike'breaktheice','allouryesterdays','faint-hearted'and'loveisblind'.Canyouguesswhattheymean?" breaktheice=\(´꒳`)/♥︎ヾ(*´∀｀*)ﾉ allouryesterdays=∠(￣^￣) faint-hearted=˘˘̥(ᵒ̴̶̷̥́_ᵒ̴̶̷̣̥̀) Loginorregistertopostcomments Idon'tspeakEnglishwithanybodyexceptmyself.IamthepersonwhotalkalotwithmyselfIalwaystalkinmyhead.everytimeIwatchEnglishmoviesandseriesItalkEnglishinmymind. IalsospeakEnglishwhenIgotoatrip.I'vemostlylearnedAmericanEnglish,butrecentlyIinterestedinBritishEnglishtoo.IlikethewayfamousBritishpeopletalking.IloveEmmaWatson'sandMathewBellamy'saccent.IalsolikeBritishCouncilteam'accent,Thegirlsandboyswhoareplayinginvideosortalkinginpodcast.Theyarereallylovely. Loginorregistertopostcomments IreadthearticleandIwonderwhyRussianhasaninternationalday,IknowmanypeopleintheworldspeakEnglish,French,Spanish,ArabicandchineseButIsuprisedwhenIheardevenRussianhasaday.IfyouwanttoraiseawarenessofhistoryandcultureIguesstherearemoreimportantandolderlanguagesthatshouldbecaredabout,someoftheselanguagesarethosewhicharespokeninancientcountrieslikeGreek,ItalianandPersian. Loginorregistertopostcomments I'mlearningEnglishbutIdon'thaveanybodytospeakwith.NextyearI'mgoingtosignupforareadingclubinEnglishinordertoreadandtospeakEnglishtootherpeopleinterestedin. Loginorregistertopostcomments Englishismyracinglanguage,Theonlylanguagethaticanspeak,readandwriteonpaper.Icanspeakemylocallanguage,butcan'treadorwriteitcorrectlyonpaperbecauseididnotstudyinit. Loginorregistertopostcomments MyracinglanguageisSpanish Loginorregistertopostcomments I'mliveinasmallvillagesoidon'tknowifwehaveasutiableplacewherewecanracewithourlanguages:(( Loginorregistertopostcomments Wonderful,I'mlearningsomethingspecialonimprovingmyvocabulary. Loginorregistertopostcomments Englishisspokenandstudiedallovertheworld.LearningEnglishmeanstomeawaytoenjoymylife,toearngoodvibesandbeimprovedthroughthecultureandlanguageofagreatcountry.IamgoingtoimprovemyfourlanguageskillswithBritishCouncil.Itisfascinating! Loginorregistertopostcomments Ouronlineself-study,liveclassesandone-to-onecourseswithpersonaltutorshelpyouimproveyourEnglishandachieveyourambitions. OnlineEnglishcourses Ourwebsites Help