English is the most widely spoken language in the world. As stated previously, 23 states have declared English as their official language. Latin went out of use except in the Roman Catholic Church, whose priests and scribes kept it alive in the Dark Ages, allowing its survival today as the lingua franca of scholarship and scientific classification. The creation of the 'English Plus' legislation as defined earlier, appears to be a step in the right direction by establishing a compromise. And language plays the key role in this campaign. If anything, government officials in states with official English laws already on the books err on the side of being too lax in enforcing them.
Many Native American tribes are emphasizing that their children learn their original languages, lest they should be lost after centuries of persecution and imposed assimilation. English as the official language of the United States could benefit the U. In 1780, John Adams proposed to the Continental Congress that English should be declared the official language of the United States. Introduction The debate on whether the United States should declare English as its official language has been a topic thoroughly discussed among the halls of Congress for some time now. The Navy Cross can be presented to Marines and to Coast Guard members serving under the Department of the Navy.
These are not federal holidays. The National Medal of Technology and Innovation - This medal is awarded by the president of the United States to American inventors and innovators who have made significant contributions to the development of new and important technology. Hispanic population constitutes the ninth largest economy in the world, larger than Brazil, Spain or Mexico! The organization known as English First considers itself to be a national, non-profit grassroots lobbying organization whose goals include making English the official language of the United States, eliminating ineffective multilingual policies, and giving every child the opportunity to learn English English First. New Amsterdam was renamed , was renamed. Resident Population of the United States: Middle Series Projections, 2015 - 2030, by Sex, Race, and Hispanic Origin, with Median Age. The Cherokee have the largest tribal affiliation in the U.
Today members of Congress continue to try to pass laws making English the official language. New Mexican Spanish also contains a large proportion of English loan words, particularly for technological words e. It is a , with two official forms, and , which are its. Make a direct contribution today. Most of these languages are , although there are efforts to revive them. In a recent national survey, nearly two-thirds of Americans assumed that English was already the official language set by the United States Constitution, according to the Associated Press, 1987. Lebanese immigrants also have a broader understanding of French as do many Arabic-speaking immigrants from.
In fact, the New Mexico state government uses Spanish to offer services and documents. In the 1970s, however, things began to change. It also restricts the government's ability to communicate with all its citizens and prevents many from voting, thereby going against the principle of a democracy, the very essence and foundation this country was built upon. Similarly, their participation in the electoral process will most likely increase and therefore assure them a more notable presence in the democratic process U. This is a fundamental difference that says a lot about the role English is intended to play in our society. In before statehood in 1907, territory officials debated whether or not to have , , and languages as co-official, but the idea never gained ground.
Today the United States is one of the few countries in the world without at least one official language. University of Minnesota: Center for Advanced Research on Language Acquisition. Dutch was still spoken in many parts of New York at the time of the Revolution. The colloquial registers are mostly indistinguishable, and even though the official standards are nearly identical in grammar, they differ in literary conventions and in academic and technical vocabulary, with Urdu adopting stronger Persian and Arabic influences, and Hindi relying more heavily on Sanskrit. The majority of states already have English as their official language, for English has always provided a much needed cohesion to our diverse citizens since it was founded. The computerization of communications technology for example made it far more feasible for a whole range of institutions from government agencies to medical providers, businesses, and social welfare organizations to provide multilingual services either in person, via telephone translation services, or over the Internet. The result is that the guardians of our language are actually its worst enemy.
In the 1920's the world was experiencing it's first official war, and an anti-German sentiment became more popular in the United States as a result. According to the 2000 Census and other language surveys, the largest Native American language-speaking community by far is the Navajo. Tagalog speakers were already present in the United States as early as the late sixteenth century as sailors contracted by the. In 1780, a proposal was presented to the Continental Congress by John Adams to declare English the official language but his proposal was deemed a threat to the individual liberty. The Debate Over English Only. Opponents also fear that this type of legislation will lead to ethnic and racial intolerance, and confirm to non-native English speakers that they are second class citizens in the eyes of the government of the United States.
Besides Chinese, other Asian languages commonly heard spoken within the United States include Korean, Tagalog, and Vietnamese. Some holidays and observances receive presidential proclamations. It would signal that the United States intends to remain unified as an English-speaking country and not plunge headlong down the path of a linguistically divided society with all the dangers and conflicts that entails. It also , with new appearances and enhanced to prevent counterfeiting. But despite a government report showing such ballots were rarely used, and polls indicating widespread public opposition, Congress lacked the political will to let them expire. Office of Management and Budget, Report to Congress: Assessment of Total Benefits and Costs of Implementing Executive Order No. There would be savings; official English would save billions in federal spending.
One reason for this decline of German language was the perception during both World Wars that speaking the language of the enemy was unpatriotic; foreign language instruction was banned in places during the First World War. Many Americans of all ethnic backgrounds are also learning Mandarin and to a far lesser extent Cantonese. There was also a substantial , which at the time was not yet part of the United States. Plains Standard was used to communicate between these nations. Petersburg had to be fluent in Latin because all classes and exams were conducted in the classic tongue. It was because of this sentiment that 20 Midwestern states created legislation that prevented any type of instruction in German. At the same time it would reassure native-born English-speaking Americans that immigration is not going to transform the United States into a country they do not recognize and where they no longer feel at home.