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Is Chinese going to be the lingua franca?

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249 messages over 32 pages: << Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 ... 25 ... 31 32 Next >>
chucknorrisman
Triglot
Senior Member
United States
Joined 5450 days ago

321 posts - 435 votes 
Speaks: Korean*, English, Spanish
Studies: Russian, Mandarin, Lithuanian, French

 
 Message 193 of 249
12 November 2010 at 1:55pm | IP Logged 
jeeb wrote:
chucknorrisman wrote:


Well, I don't know if Vietnamese and Korean should go back to/keep using characters
because they are too confusing without them. Shouldn't the language governing bodies of
Vietnamese and Korean try to reduce the homophones from the vocabulary instead?

But I agree that the Chinese shouldn't give up the characters just to suck up to foreigners.

"reduce the homophones from the vocabulary instead"
This is like getting rid of the French words in English.

But China is too big that Korean and Vietnamese both feel threatened by Chinese.
I don't know if they want to use Chinese character again.


Why not? Many countries have succeeded reducing loan words in their national languages through the right policies. Besides, English has no problem functioning with French, Latin, Greek words; Korean and Vietnamese have a problem because of the Chinese words. What's wrong with trying to correct a problem?

Anyways, I hope that the Vietnamese don't go back to using them, and that its reduce eventually vanishes in Korean.

Edited by chucknorrisman on 12 November 2010 at 2:02pm

3 persons have voted this message useful



dissident
Newbie
United States
Joined 5314 days ago

37 posts - 43 votes

 
 Message 194 of 249
12 November 2010 at 11:05pm | IP Logged 
chucknorrisman wrote:
Many countries have succeeded reducing loan words in their national languages
through
the right policies.


No. They have succeeded through wrong policies. There is nothing wrong with loan words - i hate it when the
government tries to invent artificial words that supposedly exist in native language to replace a loanword that
everybody has been happily using. It is a pathetic ordeal. There is nothing wrong with adopting words from
other
languages just like there is nothing wrong with adopting ideas from other people - unless one wishes to be an
idiot
until one dies.

There is no reason why there should be different words for "internet" or "coffee" in different languages. It hurts
your national pride that internet was invented elsewhere ? Well then invest in education maybe your people will
invent something worthwhile - don't think you're accomplishing something by inventing useless words except
digging yourself into a ditch.


Edited by dissident on 12 November 2010 at 11:09pm

3 persons have voted this message useful



jeeb
Groupie
Joined 5162 days ago

49 posts - 80 votes 

 
 Message 195 of 249
13 November 2010 at 1:40am | IP Logged 
chucknorrisman wrote:
jeeb wrote:
chucknorrisman wrote:


Well, I don't know if Vietnamese and Korean should go back to/keep using characters
because they are too confusing without them. Shouldn't the language governing bodies of
Vietnamese and Korean try to reduce the homophones from the vocabulary instead?

But I agree that the Chinese shouldn't give up the characters just to suck up to foreigners.

"reduce the homophones from the vocabulary instead"
This is like getting rid of the French words in English.

But China is too big that Korean and Vietnamese both feel threatened by Chinese.
I don't know if they want to use Chinese character again.


Why not? Many countries have succeeded reducing loan words in their national languages
through the right policies. Besides, English has no problem functioning with French, Latin,
Greek words; Korean and Vietnamese have a problem because of the Chinese words.
What's wrong with trying to correct a problem?

Anyways, I hope that the Vietnamese don't go back to using them, and that its reduce
eventually vanishes in Korean.


First of all, I don't mind if Korean or Vietnamese get rid of Chinese loan words.
I am not those patriotic Chinese.
But why don't Korean government do something about homophone if loan word can be
replaced? Is it because the change is too extreme that the extermination of Chinese loan
words becomes impossible? I don't speak Korean. I just heard from some Korean learners
(Chinese people) that Korean has many homophones and causes comprehension problem.

1 person has voted this message useful



jeeb
Groupie
Joined 5162 days ago

49 posts - 80 votes 

 
 Message 196 of 249
13 November 2010 at 1:43am | IP Logged 
Forget to post this one in here.


Even Chinese are so eager to learn English and put their children into Disney English school.
So this will make sure that English will still be the lingua franca in the World.

Edited by jeeb on 13 November 2010 at 1:48am

3 persons have voted this message useful



Sennin
Senior Member
Bulgaria
Joined 6036 days ago

1457 posts - 1759 votes 
5 sounds

 
 Message 198 of 249
13 November 2010 at 5:14pm | IP Logged 
dissident wrote:
chucknorrisman wrote:
Many countries have succeeded reducing loan words in their national languages
through
the right policies.


No. They have succeeded through wrong policies. There is nothing wrong with loan words - i hate it when the government tries to invent artificial words that supposedly exist in native language to replace a loanword that everybody has been happily using. It is a pathetic ordeal. There is nothing wrong with adopting words from other languages just like there is nothing wrong with adopting ideas from other people - unless one wishes to be an idiot until one dies.


Sometimes the loanwords are associated with bad memories, like foreign occupation for example, and not everybody is "happily using them". But I agree that language policies of that sort are not always successful, and not always desirable. It depends on the case.

dissident wrote:
There is no reason why there should be different words for "internet" or "coffee" in different languages. It hurts your national pride that internet was invented elsewhere ? Well then invest in education maybe your people will invent something worthwhile - don't think you're accomplishing something by inventing useless words except digging yourself into a ditch.


What you accomplish is keeping the language interesting and unique. Moreover, loanwords don't make sense to people who have little or no knowledge of English. So I'm very much in favour of creating words based on the rules and core vocabulary of each language. It is inevitable that some English loanwords will persist, but that's no reason to give up the fight.



Edited by Sennin on 13 November 2010 at 5:16pm

1 person has voted this message useful



jeeb
Groupie
Joined 5162 days ago

49 posts - 80 votes 

 
 Message 199 of 249
13 November 2010 at 7:41pm | IP Logged 
Kuikentje wrote:
In my opinion, English is and will be for long time the world's lingua franca.

But, it will diversify. It will be more varieties of English and the native speakers of the old ones,
for example US and UK will lose their power.


Definitely the British and American English speakers have to embrace Chinglish and try not to be
a grammar nazi. XD

But there is a good news for you people -

There're so many "get-rid-of-accent' book in Taiwan and China

1 person has voted this message useful



RealJames
Diglot
Newbie
Japan
realizeenglish.com/
Joined 5126 days ago

37 posts - 42 votes
Speaks: French, English*
Studies: Japanese

 
 Message 200 of 249
14 November 2010 at 4:45am | IP Logged 
This is a long thread!!

I think that finance will dictate the language of choice in coming generations...

If the Chinese economy flourishes so will parents desire to teach it's language to their children :)


1 person has voted this message useful



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