Английский Вавилон

                Comrihensive School 5

   ENGLISH BABILON

Student: Maria Kjuzneshova   9 “B” form.

Adviser: Gulia Nazarova.

                         Dzerzinskij

                               2013

    English belongs to the Teutonic or Germanic branch of the Indo-European family of the languages. It is only in the course of the last hundred years that English is become a world language. In Shakespeare's time it was a provincial language of secondary importance with only 6 million native speakers. Nowadays English has become the world's most important language in politics, science. In a number of speakers (400 million) it is second only to Chinese. It is the official language of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, of the United States of America, of Australia and New Zealand. English is used as one of the official languages in Canada, the Republic of South Africa and the Irish Republic. It is also spoken as a second language by many people in India, Pakistan. The number of second-language speakers may soon exceed the number of native speakers, if it has not done so already.

This is the map of the English-speaking countries:

       The working languages of the United Nations are English and French. All documents are written only in the working languages. English has become now the language of international communication. At present no other language on Earth is better suited to play the role of world language. People who speak English fall into one of three groups: those who have learnt it as their native language, those who have learnt it as a second language in a society which is mainly bilingual and those who are force to use it for a practical purpose - professional or educational.         Nowadays when science and technology are progressing so fast all kind of specialists, need English in their work. I am not confident with my English. I think it doesn't sound well. But I am a good English learner. I always attend my English classes and work hard.

       In the land of Senaar in ancient Babylon the best scientists were just about to build the Babylon tower which had been as high as the sky. But God’s interference broke their plans. He mixed their languages up and the scientists could not understand each other so the building ended immediately. After that people went away to four sides of the world and general language of Babylon scattered on ten thousands dialects.

       The Bible did not explain why God had interfered but told that the building of the Babylon tower was what people became to do and they would not give up their plans.

        In the beginning of the third millennium the plans of mankind can come true. After the pyramids, Columbus’ boating and Magellan’s boating there are genetic engineering, the cloning, the organ transplantation, the journeys to the space. The main part of these projects is the English language that has been becoming the world one.

        The English industrialist S. Rodes found his own country named Rhodesia and he wanted to make the united Africa, which was controlled by Great Britain. Rodes thought that this country could become the rival of the USA. Rodes worked hard to create “the world federation of people, which speak English” that was controlled by Great Britain and America. As Rodes’ plans have been coming true the use of English language has directed the energy, the talents and the thoughts of mankind to one way like the general Babylon’s language.

       Officially, there is no official language in England. The royal motto “Dieu et mon droit” (God and my right) is in French. This multiculture may convey the English nature. For example, the famous English saying told that the patriotism was the last refuge of a scoundrel.

       Anglophilia is occurrence which has its own traditions. It also influenced on Russian culture and literature. Pushkin knew the English language and read Byron in English. One hundred years after that Nabokov became the English writer. Many writers which wrote in English were known more in Russia than in Great Britain. In Soviet Union there were people which read translated books and some of these men spoke English well.

                                  The History of English.

       70% of English vocabulary was taken from other languages. This happened because of many events, such as the Roman invasion and the Norman Conquest. In the end, today’s English is the mixture of conquestors’ languages. These events divided the history of English into several periods:

1. The Old English language (from 450 to 1066)
2. The Middle English (from 1066 to 1500)
3. The New English (from 1500 to present)

The period of the Old English language.

       The existence of England began with the invasion of Angles, Saxons and Jutes on British islands in the middle of fifth century. Anglo-Saxon language consisted of Low German and Frisian languages and during the period of the Old English had not changed. This language also developed like other German languages (Icelandic, Danish, Norwegian, Swedish, Scandinavian).

       The influence of German were great so Anglo-Saxon language became the main one in England. But the places which were not occupied by the Germen saved their mother tongues. Today they take parts of Celtic languages and English language takes part of German languages. The Anglo-Saxon culture was more progressive than the Celtic one. That’s why the Anglo-Saxon language became the main one in England.

       In today’s English there are a few words from Celtic language. For example, there is the word cross which came from Latin language. Other examples are dun, crandle, binn, bannock, javelin, iron (from iren).

      Many names of British rivers, cities and mountains came from Celtic too. The name of the capital Of England, London, came from the word Llyn-dun and was changed into Londinium by Roman. The names or rivers Exe, Usk, Esk came from the Celtic word uisge. Whisky came from this word too. There is the Celtic word loch in many names of Scottish lakes.These words from Celtic took part in the Old German language and became indifferent from the German vocabulary.

                       Latin borrowings in English.

       The Roman language, which had been in Britain before Anglo-Saxon one, had more influence on English language than Celtic one. Latin vocabulary came in the Old English language. This event was divided into several stages.

      The first stage included Latin words, which were used by Angles and Saxons before they invaded Britain. This stage also included Latin words, which were used by conquerors after they invaded Britain. For example, there are words wall (from vallum), wine (from vinum), street (from strata via), Chester and Lancaster (from castrum), Lincoln and Colches (from colonia).

      The words, which mean kinds of food, clothes, plants, also came from Latin vocabulary. For example, there are words cheese (from caseus), butter (from butyrum), pall (from pallium), mint (from menta), peach (from persica), pear (from pirum), plum (from prumus), and beet (from beta).

       The second stage was bound up with the converting to Christianity (597 – 735), which influenced on Anglo-Saxon’s way of life. Cloisters, monastic schools were opened and Old English written language appeared. There were 150 Latin words, which came in Old English. They were bound up with the church, the religion and the education. For example, there are words bishop (from episcopus), monk (from monachus), priest, devil, cloister (from claustrum), apostle (from apostolus), master (from magister), and school.

            Scandinavian adoptions of the Old English language.

      In 790 – 1042 there were many Vikings’ raids on Britain. As Scandinavian people became to live in Britain their vocabulary came in the Old English language. For example, there are words son, husband, fellow, ugly, are, happy, ill, low, take, die, call, cast.

       Many names of British cities came from Scandinavian language. They had the ending -by (Crimsby, Rugby). They came from the Scandinavian word byr, which meant village. The names of cities with suffixes -fell, -toft, -beck, -thwaite, -thorp(e) came from the Scandinavian words fjall, topt, bekkr, thveit and thorp. For example, there are words Micklefell, Lovestoft, Wellbeck, Applethwaite, and Scunthorpe.

       From Scandinavian language were taken several pronouns and grammatical words such as she, they, them, their, same, no, both, whole, from

                                     French borrowings.
                   The influence of French on the English spelling.

         The largest group of borrowings are French borrowings. Most of them came into English during the Norman Conquest. French influenced not only the vocabulary of English but also it’s spelling, because French scribes wrote documents as the local population was mainly illiterate, and the ruling class was French. Runic letters remaining in English after the Latin alphabet was borrowed were substituted by Latin letters and combinations of letters, e.g. «v» was introduced for the voiced consonant /v/ instead of «f» in the intervocal position /lufian - love/, the digraph «ch» was introduced to denote the sound /ch/ instead of the letter «c» / chest/ before front vowels where it had been palatalized, the digraph «sh» was introduced instead of the combination «sc» to denote the sound /sh/ /ship/, the digraph «th» was introduced instead of the Runic letters  «0» and «   »  /this, thing/, the letter «y» was introduced instead of the Runic letter «3» to denote the sound /j/ /yet/,  the digraph «qu» substituted the combination «cw» to denote the combination of sounds /kw/ /queen/, the digraph «ou» was introduced to denote the sound /u:/ /house/ (The sound /u:/ was later on diphthongized and is pronounced /au/ in native words and fully assimilated borrowings). As it was difficult for French scribes to copy English texts they substituted the letter «u» before «v», «m», «n» and the digraph «th» by the letter «o» to escape the combination of many vertical lines /«sunu» - «son», luvu» - «love»/.

There are the following semantic groups of French borrowings:

1. a) words relating to government : administer, empire, state, government;
2. b) words relating to military affairs: army, war, banner, soldier, battle;
3. c) words relating to jury: advocate, petition, inquest, sentence, barrister;
4. d) words relating to fashion: luxury, coat, collar, lace, pleat, embroidery;
5. e) words relating to jewelry: topaz, emerald, ruby, pearl ;
6. f) words relating to food and cooking: lunch, dinner, appetite, to roast, to stew.

        Words were borrowed from French into English after 1650, mainly through French literature, but they were not as numerous and many of them are not completely assimilated. There are the following semantic groups of these borrowings:

1. a) words relating to literature and music: belle-lettres, conservatorie, brochure, nuance, piruette, vaudeville;
2. b) words relating to military affairs: corps, echelon, fuselage, manouvre;
3. c) words relating to buildings and furniture: entresol, chateau, bureau;
4. d) words relating to food and cooking: ragout, cuisine.

                                          Italian borrowings.

       Cultural and trade relations between Italy and England brought many Italian words into English. The earliest Italian borrowing came into English in the 14-th century, it was the word «bank» /from the Italian «banko» - «bench»/. Italian moneylenders and moneychangers sat in the streets on benches. When they suffered losses they turned over their benches, it was called «banco rotta» from which the English word «bankrupt» originated. In the 17-th century some geological terms were borrowed: volcano, granite, bronze, lava. At the same time some political terms were borrowed: manifesto, bulletin.

       But mostly Italian is famous by its influence in music and in all Indo-European languages musical terms were borrowed from Italian: alto, baritone, basso, tenor, falsetto, solo, duet, trio, quartet, quintet, opera, operetta, libretto, piano, violin.

Among the 20-th century Italian borrowings we can mention: gazette, incognito, altostrati, fiasco, fascist, dilettante, grotesque, graffitto etc.

                                   Today’s state of English.

        Today’s English is far from the language, which had been 3 hundreds years ago. Today’s English consists of 3 types: conservative English, Received Pronunciation or BBC English and advanced English. The last one is the most mobile; it takes elements from other languages and cultures. Advanced English is subjected to simplification more than others. The biggest changes take place in vocabulary, one of the most mobile parts of a language. New vocabulary comes to Advanced English from the rest versions of English. The language of educated people of London and south-east England is Received Pronunciation. It’s based on the languages of the best private schools (Eton, Rugby, Harrow, Winchester) and universities (Oxford, Cambridge). This is classic literary language, which is the base of any course of English in linguistic schools for foreigners. Irish, Australian and the language of New Zealand are the closest to classic English. Other cultures and languages didn’t influence on these ones. Almost all European countries took part in forming of American but Australia, New Zealand, Canada, South Africa were populated by Englishmen.

        The main difference is in phonetics. Irish English is more melodious – it came from Celtic language; slow pace and equal intonation are typical for Australian English. But America has made a new language – not only phonetics and vocabulary had been changed. Grammar had been changed too. American English is easier to understand than British English and that’s why this language is widely used. English is more or less general because of common culture, dense communication and these ideals and idols, whish have been common spiritual food.

Vocabulary.

       The English vocabulary has increased greatly in more than 1,500 years of development. The most nearly complete dictionary of the language, the Oxford English Dictionary (13 vols., 1933), a revised edition of A New English Dictionary on Historical Principles (10 vols., 1884-1933; supplements), contains 500,000 words. It has been estimated, however, that the present English vocabulary consists of more than 1 million words, including slang and dialect expressions and scientific and technical terms, many of which only came into use after the middle of the 20th century. The English vocabulary is more extensive than that of any other language in the world, although some other languages—Chinese, for example—have a word-building capacity equal to that of English. It is, approximately half Germanic (Old English and Scandinavian) and half Italic or Romance (French and Latin) and extensive, constant borrowing from every major language, especially from Latin, Greek, French, and the Scandinavian languages, and from numerous minor languages, accounts for the great number of words in the English vocabulary. From Old English have come cardinal and ordinal numbers, personal pronouns, and numerous nouns and adjectives: from French have come intellectual and abstract terms, as well as terms of rank and status, such as duke, marquis, and baron. In addition, certain processes have led to the creation of many new words as well as to the establishment of patterns for further expansion. Among these processes are onomatopoeia, or the imitation of natural sounds, which has created such words as burp and clink; affixation, or the addition of prefixes and suffixes, either native, such as mis- and -ness, or borrowed, such as ex- and -ist; the combination of parts of words, such as in brunch, composed of parts of breakfast and lunch; the free formation of compounds, such as bonehead and downpour; back formation, or the formation of words from previously existing words, the forms of which suggest that the later words were derived from the earlier ones—for example, to jell, formed from jelly; and functional change, or the use of one part of speech as if it were another, for example, the noun shower used as a verb, to shower. The processes that have probably added the largest number of words are affixation and especially functional change, which is facilitated by the peculiarities of English syntactical structure.

Spelling.

       English is said to have one of the most difficult spelling systems in the world. The written representation of English is not phonetically exact for two main reasons. First, the spelling of words has changed to a lesser extent than their sounds; for example, the k in knife and the gh in right were formerly pronounced (see Middle English Period below). Second, certain spelling conventions acquired from foreign sources have been perpetuated; for example, during the 16th century the b was inserted in doubt (formerly spelled doute) on the authority of dubitare, the Latin source of the word. Outstanding examples of discrepancies between spelling and pronunciation are the six different pronunciations of ough, as in bough, cough, thorough, thought, through, and rough; the spellings are kept from a time when the gh represented a back fricative consonant that was pronounced in these words. Other obvious discrepancies are the 14 different spellings of the sh sound, for example, as in anxious, fission, fuchsia, and ocean.

Role of Phonemes.

       Theoretically, the spelling of phonemes, the simplest sound elements used to distinguish one word from another, should indicate precisely the sound characteristics of the language. For example, in English, at contains two phonemes, mat three, and mast four. Very frequently, however, the spelling of English words does not conform to the number of phonemes. Enough, for example, which has four phonemes (enuf), is spelled with six letters, as is breath, which also has four phonemes (breu) and six letters. See Phonetics.
The main vowel phonemes in English include those represented by the italicized letters in the following words: bit, beat, bet, bate, bat, but, botany, bought, boat, boot, book, and burr. These phonemes are distinguished from one another by the position of articulation in the mouth. Four vowel sounds, or complex nuclei, of English are diphthongs formed by gliding from a low position of articulation to a higher one. These diphthongs are the i of bite (a glide from o of botany to ea of beat), the ou of bout (from o of botany to oo of boot), the oy of boy (from ou of bought to ea of beat), and the u of butte (from ea of beat to oo of boot). The exact starting point and ending point of the glide varies within the English-speaking world.

Parts of Speech.

        Although many grammarians still cling to the Graeco-Latin tradition of dividing words into eight parts of speech, efforts have recently been made to reclassify English words on a different basis. The American linguist Charles Carpenter Fries, in his work The Structure of English (1952), divided most English words into four great form classes that generally correspond to the noun, verb, adjective, and adverb in the standard classification. He classified 154 other words as function words, or words that connect the main words of a sentence and show their relations to one another. In the standard classification, many of these function words are considered pronouns, prepositions, and conjunctions; others are considered adverbs, adjectives, or verbs.

       American English is widely used at present. In 20th century the USA favored the spread of English to the greatest degree. British English has been taught in schools and American English has been mastered at practice. But students interact with this language every day; they see American films, listen to American music. They take notice of differences between the language they learn and the language they interact with.

                             The history of American English.

       In the beginning of 17th century colonists from England started to bring their language to America. The first English settlement was found in 1607 and named Jamestown. In 1620 the Puritans, which sailed on ‘Mayflower’, found Plymouth. The inhabitants of these two settlements had different language traditions.

      The colonists of Jamestown had been coming from the east part of England (Gloucestershire, Somerset). The colonists of Plymouth had been coming from the west part of England (Kent, Essex, Lincolnshire and Nottinghamshire) and from London.

       In 17 and 18 centuries many émigrés were coming to America with their languages and dialects. In the west and south-west of this country there was Spanish language as the main one. Along Saint Lawrence River there were people from France. In New-York, which had been New Amsterdam, there was the Dutch language as the main one. In Pennsylvania there were the Germans.

These émigrés with Indians had changed the dialect of the colony.

       The emigration to new country continued in 19-20 centuries and there were a lot of new languages. However, English were the main one.

        But this English were enriched by the borrowings from Indian languages. For example, there are words raccoon, woodchuck, hickory, persimmon. From French chowder, prairie were taken. From Dutch language scow, sleigh were taken. Many words appeared by means of linking of known ones (backwoods, bullfrog). Many English words god new meanings (lumber, corn). New words appeared because there were many things, which were unknown for the émigrés.

There were differences in grammar, in pronunciation between British English and American English. But these languages were two versions of main one because the émigrés had been connecting with England. In America there were many books in English too. And many words from American English took place in British English.

       An important development of English outside Great Britain occurred with the colonization of North America. American English may be considered to include the English spoken in Canada, although the Canadian variety retains some features of British pronunciation, spelling, and vocabulary. The most distinguishing differences between American English and British English are in pronunciation and vocabulary. There are slighter differences in spelling, pitch, and stress as well. Written American English also has a tendency to be more rigid in matters of grammar and syntax, but at the same time appears to be more tolerant of the use of neologisms. Despite these differences, it is often difficult to determine—apart from context—whether serious literary works have been written in Great Britain or the United States/Canada—or, for that matter, in Australia, New Zealand, or South Africa.

       The borrowings from Indian and Spanish languages cause the differences in vocabulary between British English and American one. It’s also necessary to take notice of differences in spelling, which are Noah Webster’s service.

        Noah Webster (1758-1843) was a spelling reformer; he had been called the ‘Father of American Scholarship and Education’. He changed the spelling of words, such that they became ‘Americanized’. He chose s over c in words like defense, he changed the re to er in words like center, he dropped one of the Ls in traveler and u in words like colour or favour. He also changed tongue to tung. Another one feature or American English is calling the whole by a part. For example, Americans call al birds of prey hawks.

       There is another one element of English vocabulary. It’s slang, which takes great part of American speech. In 20 century there was an active change from slang to literary language. In recent time expressions of course, to take part, to get up, lunch had been slang. It’s necessary to say about the expression, that is slang by origin but it’s a part of all textbooks of English language. It’s the expression OK, which is the abbreviation of all correct.

At present in English there are several versions of a denial and an assertion: nope and yap from Canada, yea from America.

In 21 century the tradition of use familiar variant of first name continues: James Earl Carter became Jimmy Carter; William Jefferson Clinton became Bill Clinton.

Grammatical and Linguistics differences between the American English

and theBritish English.

1. there is a difference in application of tenses. Americans can use Past Simple instead of Present Perfect. Giving up Perfect Tenses in spoken language is an everyday occurrence. For example, the sentence ‘Did you see ‘Redheat’ with Arnold?’ seems correct to Americans but it’s better to say in Perfect ‘Have you seen...?’ or ‘Seen ‘Redheat’ yet?’ This happens because of émigrés, which spoke in languages that had no Perfect Tense
2. instead of the verb shall Americans use the verb will, which is displaced by gonna (spoken form of going to)
3. in American English there is also the verb do, which take place of the verb does. But this is in British English too. For example, there is the line from the song of ‘The Beatles’ – ‘She’s got a ticket to ride and she don’t care’. But the verb does is still literary form
4. in American English there is no should after verbs demand, insist, require, etc. For example, there is a phrase ‘I demanded that he apologize’ instead of ‘I demanded that he should apologize’ in British English
5. many irregular verbs such as to burn, to spoil are regular in American English.
6. there are differences in use of articles. For example, in American there is to/in the hospital but in British there is to/in hospital.
7. in the same expressions there is one preposition instead of another one. For example:
8. on the weekend/on weekend – at the weekend/at weekend;
9. on a street – in a street.
10. many stable expressions are changed in American English. For example, American says take a shower/a bath instead of have a shower/a bath. Don’t need to is used instead of needn’t.
11. adjectives slow and real are used as adverbs: ‘He likes to drive slow’; ‘She’s real nice’.

In spite of these differences, most of them aren’t normative.

      Although the differences between American English and British English are marked, there are not too many of them. Nevertheless, the number of them increases. So it’s necessary to clear up the question - which language do we study? The headmaster of Language Link said that general English appeared and it includes features of other languages. This language is neutral, easier to understand and handier.

       Now, I would like to show the differences in using lexics in American and British English.

       Many Russian linguists think that the right version is British English, namely Received Pronunciation. Right Basic English will help on with other versions of this language. It’s necessary to begin from British English because it’s the most full and wealthy. It’s more particular than American English.

                                              Black English.

       Linguists still don’t know where Black English came from. Some of them think that it is the independent language. Others call it the dialect – but Black English has its own versions. It’s not a slang because this English has its own named jives. Scientists call Black English Afro-American variety of English.

      There are several theories of origin of Black English. First of them tells about slaves, which were brought to the USA and spoke in west-African languages. These people developed primitive way to talk to white slavers and this language had been between English and African ones.

     The second out of these theories is about the dialects of the South of The USA, which might be the basis of Black English.

     The third out of these theories is sociolinguistic. During the centuries black people lived in inner cities and Black English appeared from these close communities.

Each of these theories has their own truth.

     Black English differs from American English. It has no American R after vowels. The words car, summertime sometimes are written as cah, summahtime. In this language interdental sound th is disregarded: the words brother, death are written as buvvuh, def. The end -ing is simplified to -in’. In Black English There is free stress.

These features aren’t distortion of English but standard of Black English.

      This language has double and triple denials. Ain’t may negate all of the tenses and numbers. Sometimes, it’s possible to understand what time is used only by a context. But scientists mark out 5 Present tenses.

Black English has Colored People’s time. CPT is an American expression referring to a stereotype of African Americans as frequently being late.

The vocabulary was made by several sources:

1. one of them is folklore 

1. another one is church. Many words and expressions appeared from church. Brother, sister, soul are the most important concepts in Afro-American culture.

1. another source is music. Black people from America enriched the world culture with huge number of musical trends and styles.
2. other source of vocabulary is sport, especially basketball. The NBA produces special slang, which is used by street basketball players.
3. the most substandard words appeared from criminal underworld. In inner cities black people had remade the English language in order to be unclear. They have used a word in the opposite meaning. For example, the word death (def) means cool, stupid means good.

       The numbers are used as special code, which is clear only for several persons. In California article for murder is one hundred eighty seventh so in that place the number 187 means killing. 411 is the telephone number of referral service, so the expression ‘Give me 411’ means ‘Give me information’.

       The wide spread feature of Black English is the using of informal names of cities. For example, Ney York has been named the Big Apple since last century. Sometimes instead of the name of a city its number is used.

      In spite of the fact that some people call Black English the dialect it’s a symbol of black race and many books have been written in this language.

                                        The role of Proverbs.

      English language has its own rules, which are different from many other languages. For example, Russian language is flexible; but it can keep English order sometimes. And we want to point your attention to the most difficult point as the right translation of the proverbs as they are having the different meaning in the understanding in different languages. Troubles of interpretation English sayings have always appeared. And translation of proverbs from one language to other one is very difficult.

For example:

There is English saying ‘The pot calls the kettle black’. The meaning of this expression is clear for Englishmen but not for Russians. But Russian version is unclear for Englishmen: Anyone’s cow may moo, but yours should keep quite.

Proverbs have always been a part of a culture. At any time they will be topical.

1. You cannot eat your cake and have it. - Нельзя одновременно съесть лепешку и иметь ее (дословный перевод).

Один пирог два раза не съешь (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: Make a choice. You mustn't have two things. You must have one or the other, not both. Do you know the English proverb: ”You cannot eat your cake and have it."

2. Custom is a second nature. - Привычка - вторая натура. В данном случае дословный перевод совпадает с русской пословицей.

Пословица в ситуации: A young woman wants her mother to move to town and live with her and her family. “If you live in town a bit longer, I'm sure you'll like it.” “No, I'm afraid I shan't get accustomed to town life. I like the woods and the river. Custom is a second nature, they say.”

3. A man can die but once. - Человек может умереть лишь один раз (дословно). Двум смертям не бывать, а одной не миновать. (русский эквивалент)

Пословица в ситуации: A father and his son were standing on the bank of a stream. The son jumped over it, but the father was afraid to. At last, murmuring, “A man can die but once,” the father jumped - and fell into the muddy water. But the young man quickly pulled him up onto the bank.

4. A cat in gloves catches no mice. - Кот в перчатках мышей не поймает(дословно).

Без труда не вытащишь и рыбки из пруда (русская пословица)

Пословица в ситуации: Mary wants her mother to make a nice cake, but she doesn't want to go to the shop to buy eggs and butter. “A cat in gloves catches no mice. There'll be no cake for you then,” says Mary's mother.

5. Murder will out. - Убийство раскроется (дословный перевод).

Шила в мешке не утаишь (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: “You know, Dad, when I was ten I didn't like geography and often got bad marks at geography lessons. So I tried to hide my day-book with bad marks in it.” “Why, Fred, do you think I didn't guess what you had done? Murder will out, after all.”

6. If the cap fits, wear it. - Если шапка подходит, носи ее (дословно).

На воре шапка горит.(русская пословица)

Пословица в ситуации: “Don't you speak to me in that manner!” said Mary.

“Do you think I took your book and lost it?” “Well, if the cap fits, wear it,”

answered Kate.

7. Deeds, not words. - Нужны дела, а не слова. (дословный перевод).

О человеке судят по его делам. (русская пословица)

Пословица в ситуации: “Mother! What does the proverb `Deeds, not words'

mean?” “It means that a person is known and judged more by his actions than

by what he says.”

8. Every dog has his day. - У каждой собаки свой праздник бывает. (дословный перевод).

Будет и на нашей улице праздник(русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: “I'm lucky today, your turn will come later on. Tomorrow our positions may be reserved.” “Yes, every dog has his day and good fortune comes once to all of us.”

9. A drowning man will catch a straw. - Утопающий за соломинку схватится (дословный перевод).

Утопающий хватается за соломинку (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: “The young man will lose his sight, I am afraid, but still he and his parents hope when he gets stronger we shall be able to restore it”, said the doctor. “A drowning man will catch at a straw,” his friend remarked.

10. There is no smoke without fire. - Нет дыма без огня.

Дословный перевод совпадает с русской пословицей.

Пословица в ситуации: “Who told you this? Mary? I can't believe that Paul could let his friends down,” said Betty. “Believe it or not as you like, but there is no smoke without fire,” answered Mike.

11. Pride goes before a fall. - Гордыня до добра не доводит (дословный перевод)..

Кто слишком высоко летает, тот низко падает (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: Mary boasted that she would be a scientist, yet she couldn't enter the institute. “Remember, pride goes before a fall,” her friend said to her.

12. The proof of the pudding is in the eating. - Чтобы узнать, каков пудинг, надо его отведать (дословный перевод).

Все проверяется на практике (русская пословица).

Обед узнают по кушанью, а ум по слушанью (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: “I think that our young friend John is taking a big risk by starting up business of his own.” “It's hard to say yet. He may make a success of it. After all the proof of the pudding is in the eating, isn't it?”

13. Neck or nothing. - Либо добьюсь, либо себе шею сверну (дословный

перевод).

Либо пан, либо пропал (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: He trained very much for the competition. “It would be neck or nothing,” he said. He would break the school record in boxing and set a new one.

14. Cut your coat according to your cloth. - Крои пальто в соответствии с материалом (дословный перевод).

По одежке протягивай ножки (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: The girl was poor and had to cut her coat according to her cloth.

15. Don't count your chickens before they are hatched. - Не считай цыплят, пока они не вылупились (дословный перевод).

Цыплят по осени считают (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: “Don't count your chickens before they are hatched,” said Mary. “A coward's proverb,” cried Mike gaily. “You lose half the fun, if you don't.”

16. Care killed the cat. - Забота убила кошку (дословный перевод)..

Заботы до добра не доводят (русская пословица).

Не работа старит, а забота (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: “Come, come,” said Tom, “stop this talk. Care killed the cat.”

17. Practise what you preach. - Поступай так, как проповедуешь (дословный перевод).

Слова не должны расходиться с делом (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: The moral of the proverb “Practise what you preach” is: behave in the same way as you advise others to behave. Do not recommend early rising if you yourself lie in bed till noon.

18. It is no use crying over spilt milk. - Бесполезно лить слезы над пролитым молоком (дословный перевод).

Слезами горю не поможешь (русская пословица).

Потерянного не воротишь (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: There was a long silence, then he said, “Well, I judge there's no use crying over spilt milk.”

19. The devil is not so black as he is painted. - Не так черен дьявол, как его рисуют (дословный перевод)..

Не так страшен черт, как его малюют (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: When Victor failed in the examination, life suddenly seemed very hard. But his father said that the devil was not so black as he was painted, and that Victor must try and take the examination again.

20. To make a silk purse out of the sow's ear. - Сделать шелковый кошелек из уха свиньи (дословный перевод).

Сделать человека (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: The boy was coarse and had bad manners. But he was good at heart. It was quite possible to make a silk purse out of that sow's ear.

21. Brevity is the soul of wit. - Краткость - душа ума (остроумия) (дословный перевод).

Краткость - сестра таланта (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: He always writes short letters, he believes that brevity is the soul of wit.

22. No news is good news.-Отсутствие новостей - хорошая новость (дословный перевод)..

Лучшая новость - отсутствие всякой новости (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: The doctor said, 'Then there's no news at all; and no news, they say, is good news.'

23. Don't trouble trouble until trouble troubles you?-Не тревожь беду, пока беда сама не потревожит тебя (дословный перевод).

Не кличь беду, сама придет (русская пословица).

Не буди лихa, пока лихо тихо (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: His heart felt heavy with the thought that something was about to happen. “Don't trouble trouble until trouble troubles you!' said Mary angrily. And at once he felt a little better.

24. East or West, home is best. - Восток ли, запад ли, а дома лучше всего (дословный перевод).

В гостях хорошо, а дома лучше (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: She was standing on the same bridge talking to Bob, whom she had not seen for five years. Well, East or West, home is best! She was happy to be at home again.

25. A good beginning makes a good ending. -Хорошее начало обеспечивает хороший конец (дословный перевод).

Доброе начало полдела откачало (русская пословица).

Лиха беда начало

Пословица в ситуации: The first time-period was over with the score 2:0. The coach was pleased with the result. A good beginning makes a good ending.

26. Great boast, small roast. - Много похвальбы, да мало жареного (дословный перевод).

Звону много, толку мало (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: Mr. Green was not a modest person. He liked to boast his rich house, his pretty garden, his clever children and many other things. Neighbors said about him: “Great boast, small roast.”

27. Don't cross a bridge till you come to it. - Не переходи моста, пока ты до него не добрался (дословный перевод).

Наперед не загадывай (русская пословица).

Не дели не убитого медведя (русская пословица).

Не говори «гоп», пока не перепрыгнешь (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: Don't worry about something before it has happened. Your fears may be groundless, for it may never happen. You mustn't cross a bridge till you come to it.

28. Bad news travels fast. - Плохая весть быстро передается (дословный перевод).

Худые вести не лежат на месте (русская пословица).

Плохая молва на крыльях летит (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: The proverb “Bad news travels fast” means that bad news nearly always reaches us more quickly than good news

29. Scratch my back and I'll scratch yours. - Почеши мне спину, тогда я твою почешу (дословный перевод).

Услуга за услугу (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: My new friend helped me home with my luggage and I asked her to stay with me until I found her a room. You know the saying “Scratch my back and I'll scratch yours.”

30. The rotten apple injures its neighbours. - Гнилое яблоко портит соседние яблоки (дословный перевод).

Паршивая овца все стадо портит (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: Nick's mother was strongly against her son's friendship with Pete. She was afraid that it would tell upon her son, who was a good pupil. “A rotten apple injures its neighbours,” she often said to him.

31. Hunger is the best sauce. -Голод - лучшая приправа (дословный перевод).

Голод - лучший повар (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: Oliver Twist and his little friends ate everything they were given. Hunger is the best sauce, you know.

32. Appetite comes with eating. -Аппетит приходит во время еды. Дословный перевод совпадает с русской пословицей.

Пословица в ситуации: “Appetite comes with eating,” my mother says always when I refuse to eat.

33. Appearances are deceitful. - Наружность (внешность) обманчива (дословный перевод). Дословный перевод совпадает с русской пословицей.

Пословица в ситуации: He is not so quiet as he looks. His appearance is deceitful.

34. What is done cannot be undone. - Что сделано, того не переделаешь (дословный перевод).

Сделанного не воротишь (русская пословица).

Что с возу упало, то пропало (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: “I am afraid, sir, that you have ruined a great career.” `I suppose that is so,” he answered with a sigh. “What is done cannot be undone.”

35. Catch the bear before you sell his skin. - Прежде поймай медведя, а потом продавай его шкуру (дословный перевод).

Не убив медведя, шкуры не продавай (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: Never sell the bear's skin until you have killed the bear.

36. Every cloud has a silver lining. - Всякое облако серебром оторочено (дословный перевод).

Нет худа без добра (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: Don't get upset. Every cloud has a silver lining.

37. First think, then speak. - Сперва подумай, потом говори (дословный перевод).

Слово не воробей, вылетит, не поймаешь (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: The favourite proverb of our teacher is “First think, then speak”. Sometimes he says: "To speak without thinking is to shoot without looking."

38. One good turn deserves another. - Одна хорошая услуга заслуживает другую (дословный перевод).

Долг платежом красен (русская пословица).

Услуга за услугу (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: He did me a good turn once, and I try to help him when I can. One good turn deserves another.

39. To tell tales out of school. - Разбалтывать (сплетничать) за стенами школы (дословный перевод).

Выносить сор из избы (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: “He's got into trouble.” “Tell us about it.” “I must not tell tales out of school.”

40. Two heads are better than one. - Две головы лучше одной (дословный перевод).

Ум хорошо, а два лучше (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: I want to know what you really think I should do. Two heads are better than one, you know, even mine is one of them.

41. Still waters run deep. - Тихие воды имеют глубокое течение (дословный перевод).

В тихом омуте черти водятся (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: "I don't understand the proverb `Still waters run deep' quite clearly. Can you explain it to me?" "The proverb has the meaning that the fact that a man says little does not mean that he does not think profoundly, while those who talk the most have no depth of feeling."

42. Don't halloo till you are out of the wood. - Не радуйся, пока не выбрался из лесу (дословный перевод).

Не говори «гоп», пока не перепрыгнешь (русская пословица).

Не радуйся раньше времени (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: Don't halloo till you are out of wood. You had better wait for the results of the experiment instead of boasting that you have done something wonderful.

43. Curiosity killed a cat. - Любопытство погубило кошку (дословный перевод)..

Любопытство до добра не доводит (русская пословица).

Много будешь знать, скоро состаришься (русская пословица).

Пословица в ситуации: “I am sorry,” he said, “I know I shouldn't have come.” “They say that curiosity killed the cat, but I never believed it when I was your age.”

                                 The Future of English

       The future of English as a global language will depend very largely on the political, economical, demographic and cultural trends in the world. The beginning of the 21st century is a time of global transition. According to some experts, faster economic globalization is going hand in hand with the growing use of English. More and more people are being encouraged to use English rather than their own language. On the other hand, the period of most rapid change can be expected to be an uncomfortable and at times traumatic experience for many people around the world. Hence, the oposite view, that the next 20 years or so will be a critical time for the English language and for those who depend upon it. The patterns of usage and public attitudes to English which develop during this period will have long-term effects for its future in the world.

       Language is perhaps the most important function of the human body – it allows us to get sustenance as a child, it allows us to get virtually anything we want as an adult, and it allows us many hours of entertainment through literature, radio, music, and films. This list (in order of least to most spoken) summarizes the most important languages in use today.

10 French

Number of speakers: 129 million

Often called the most romantic language in the world, French is spoken in tons of countries, including Belgium, Canada, Rwanda, Cameroon, and Haiti. Oh, and France too. We’re actually very lucky that French is so popular, because without it, we might have been stuck with Dutch Toast, Dutch Fries, and Dutch kissing (ew!).

To say “hello” in French, say “Bonjour” (bone-JOOR).

9 Malay-Indonesian

Number of speakers: 159 million

Malay-Indonesian is spoken – surprise – in Malaysia and Indonesia. Actually, we kinda fudged the numbers on this one because there are many dialects of Malay, the most popular of which is Indonesian. But they’re all pretty much based on the same root language, which makes it the ninth most-spoken in the world.

Indonesia is a fascinating place; a nation made up of over 13,000 islands it is the sixth most populated country in the world. Malaysia borders on two of the larger parts of Indonesia (including the island of Borneo), and is mostly known for its capital city of Kuala Lumpur.

To say “hello” in Indonesian, say “Selamat pagi” (se-LA-maht PA-gee).

8 Portuguese

Number of speakers: 191 million

Think of Portuguese as the little language that could. In the 12th Century, Portugal won its independence from Spain and expanded all over the world with the help of its famous explorers like Vasco da Gama and Prince Henry the Navigator. (Good thing Henry became a navigator . . . could you imagine if a guy named “Prince Henry the Navigator” became a florist?) Because Portugal got in so early on the exploring game, the language established itself all over the world, especially in Brazil (where it’s the national language), Macau, Angola, Venezuela, and Mozambique.

To say “hello” in Portuguese, say “Bom dia” (bohn DEE-ah).

7 Bengali

Number of speakers: 211 million

In Bangladesh, a country of 120+ million people, just about everybody speaks Bengali. And because Bangladesh is virtually surrounded by India (where the population is growing so fast, just breathing the air can get you pregnant), the number of Bengali speakers in the world is much higher than most people would expect.

To say “hello” in Bengali, say “Ei Je” (EYE-jay).

6 Arabic

Number of speakers: 246 million

Arabic, one of the world’s oldest languages, is spoken in the Middle East, with speakers found in countries such as Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Iraq, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, and Egypt. Furthermore, because Arabic is the language of the Koran, millions of Moslems in other countries speak Arabic as well. So many people have a working knowledge of Arabic, in fact, that in 1974 it was made the sixth official language of the United Nations.

To say “hello” in Arabic, say “Al salaam a’alaykum” (Ahl sah-LAHM ah ah-LAY-koom).

5 Russian

 Number of speakers: 277 million

You know Michail Gorbachev, Boris Yeltsin and many other world-known Russian political Leaders who at least tried to speak English, but their mother tongue is Russian. Many people in the world are proud that they speak  Russian.

6   Spanish

Number of speakers: 392 million

Aside from all of those kids who take it in high school, Spanish is spoken in just about every South American and Central American country, not to mention Spain, Cuba, and the U.S. There is a particular interest in Spanish in the U.S., as many English words are borrowed from the language, including: tornado, bonanza, patio, quesadilla, enchilada, and taco grande supreme.

To say “hello” in Spanish, say “Hola” (OH-la).

3 Hindustani

Number of speakers: 497 million

Hindustani is the primary language of India’s crowded population, and it encompasses a huge number of dialects (of which the most commonly spoken is Hindi). While many predict that the population of India will soon surpass that of China, the prominence of English in India prevents Hindustani from surpassing the most popular language in the world. If you’re interested in learning a little Hindi, there’s a very easy way: rent an Indian movie. The film industry in India is the most prolific in the world, making thousands of action/romance/musicals every year.

To say “hello” in Hindustani, say “Namaste” (Nah-MAH-stay).

2 English

Number of speakers: 508 million

While English doesn’t have the most speakers, it is the official language of more countries than any other language. Its speakers hail from all around the world, including New Zealand, the U.S., Australia, England, Zimbabwe, the Caribbean, Hong Kong, South Africa, and Canada. We’d tell you more about English, but you probably feel pretty comfortable with the language already. Let’s just move on to the most popular language in the world.

To say “hello” in English, say “What’s up, freak?” (watz-UP-freek).

1 Mandarin

Number of speakers: 1 billion

Surprise, surprise, the most widely spoken language on the planet is based in the most populated country on the planet. Beating second-place English by a 2 to 1 ratio, but don’t let that lull you into thinking that Mandarin is easy to learn. Speaking Mandarin can be really tough, because each word can be pronounced in four ways (or “tones”), and a beginner will invariably have trouble distinguishing one tone from another. But if over a billion people could do it, so could you. Try saying hello!

To say “hello” in Mandarin, say “Ni hao” (Nee HaOW). (“Hao” is pronounced as one syllable, but the tone requires that you let your voice drop midway, and then raise it again at the end.)

                                             Pidgin English.

       English also enters into a number of simplified languages that arose among non-English-speaking peoples. Pidgin English, spoken in the Melinesian islands, New Guinea, Australia, the Philippines, and Hawaii and on the Asian shores of the Pacific Ocean, developed as a means of communication between Chinese and English traders. The Chinese adopted many English words and a few indispensable non-English words and created a means of discourse, using a simple grammatical apparatus. Bкche-de-Mer, a pidgin spoken in the southern and western Pacific islands, is predominantly English in structure, although it includes many Polynesian words. Chinook Jargon, used as a lingua franca by the Native Americans, French, and English on the North American Pacific coast, contains English, French, and Native American words; its grammatical structure is based on that of the Chinook language. The use of pidgin is growing in Africa, notably in Cameroon, Sierra Leone, and East Africa.        

        The influence of the mass media appears likely to result in a more standardized pronunciation, more uniform spelling, and eventually a spelling closer to actual pronunciation. Despite the likelihood of such standardization, a unique feature of the English language remains its tendency to grow and change. Despite the warnings of linguistic purists, new words are constantly being coined and usages modified to express new concepts. Its vocabulary is constantly enriched by linguistic borrowings, particularly by cross-fertilizations from American English. Because it is capable of infinite possibilities of communication, the English language has become the chief international language.