Почему в контакте на английском языке: Как поменять язык ВКонтакте?

Как изменить язык в Контакте. Вход на русском, английском, украинском

У вас изменился язык в ВК? Для этого может быть много причин. Мы расскажем, как в ВКонтакте поменять язык на любой необходимый.

Язык может поменяться в ВК в результате, например шутки, как это было 1 апреля 2012 года, когда Павел Дуров решил всем поставить вместо русского так называемый «Дореволюцiонный» язык. В итоге множество пользователей социальной сети были в панике.

А может Вам нужно познакомить своих заграничных друзей с этой социальной сетью или хотите приобщиться к советской стилистике языка. В любом случае есть несколько вариантов того, как изменить язык в Контакте.

С помощью меню «Мои Настройки»

• Переходим в меню «Мои настройки».
• Прокручиваем в самый вниз, там Вы увидите пункт «Региональные настройки».
• Кликаем на выпадающее меню «Язык» и выбираем нужный нам язык.
• Затем нажимаем «Изменить».

Выбираем пункт меню «Мои настройки»

Кликаем по выпадающему меню «Язык»

Выбираем нужный язык и нажимаем «Изменить»

Выбираем язык внизу страницы

Есть и другой вариант того, как сменить язык в Контакте.

• Опускаемся в самый низ страницы. Лучше это делать на какой-нибудь странице, которая не содержит длинных списков новостей, сообщений или друзей, например на странице «Мои заметки».
• Нажимаем на надпись «Русский».
• Выбираем один из предложенных языков.
• Если нужно выбрать другой иностранный, то нажимаем на надпись «Unofficial languages», и кликаем по любому нужному языку. Но будьте осторожны, чтобы потом смогли самостоятельно изменить язык на русский, ведь все надписи будут на иностранном.

Прокручиваем колесико мышки вниз

Нажимаем на надпись «Русский»

Выбираем нужный язык или нажимаем на «Unofficial languages»

Здесь сразу можно увидеть на скольких языках доступен ВКонтакте.

Официальные, помимо русского:

• украинский язык;
• английский язык;
• а также эксклюзивные – советский и дореволюционный языки.

Также в неофициальных, но поддерживаемых находятся:

• китайский язык;
• японский язык;
• испанский;
• французский;
• немецкий и многие другие.

Сколько языков в Контакте доступно еще, можно увидеть на иллюстрации ниже.

Здесь можно выбрать один из поддерживаемых языков

Поставить русский язык с любого другого

Эта тема заслуживает отдельного разговора. Если у вас установлен другой язык, например какой-нибудь совсем непонятный – китайский или арабский, а вы хотите узнать как ВКонтакте сделать русский язык, Вам следует помнить, что пункт

«Мои настройки» находится в левом блоке меню под логотипом социальной сети, и является последним пунктом основного списка меню, прямо над чертой.

Далее следует помнить, что в «Моих настройках» выпадающее меню «Язык» является первым снизу. Поэтому, нажав на него, Вы всегда сможете выбрать и сменить ВКонтакте язык на русский.

В любом случае следует очень внимательно относиться к изменению языка этой социальной сети, особенно на всякие экзотические, так как перевести язык в Контакте на русский обратно потом может оказаться довольно проблематично.

Если ничего не помогает

Если вход на русском языке не осуществляется ни одним из описываемых выше способов, можно попробовать поменять

кодировку браузера, так как она могла сбиться. Для этого нужно перейти в настройки браузера и выбрать пункт «Кодировка», где поменять кодировку на Кириллицу (Windows-1251), присущую социальной сети Вконтакте.

Для браузера Firefox это действие выполняется таким образом:

Меняем кодировку браузера Firefox

Также можно зайти Вконтакте через другой браузер (Opera, Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Safari), возможно язык сайта изменится.

В заключение добавим, что меняя язык интерфейса социальной сети на иностранный, можно выучить несколько слов этого языка, так как мы примерно знаем, где и какие слова находились в русском интерфейсе.

А вот видео, показывающее как поменять язык Вконтакте:

Автор: Евгений Винокуров

Как поменять язык вконтакте на телефоне?

Если вам понадобилось изменить язык, который используется в социальной сети вконтакте, то сделать это не сложно. Доступно большое количество языковых расширений.

Ниже вы найдете пошаговую инструкцию. Итак, поехали. Как поменять язык вконтакте.

Оглавление:

1. Как поменять язык Вконтакте на английский
2. Как поменять язык в вк через приложение на телефоне
3. Видео урок: как поменять язык вконтакте
4. Заключение

Как поменять язык Вконтакте на английский

Идем на свою страницу, и переходим в настройки.

Здесь находим раздел «Язык», и нажимаем на ссылку «Изменить».

В списке выбора вам нужно нажать на пункт «English». Другие языки доступны по ссылке «Other languages».

Изменения будут применены, и весь интерфейс на сайте будет теперь в выбранной раскладке.

С другими языками процесс аналогичен. Найдите в списке нужный вариант, и выберите его. Чтобы вернуть русский, просто щелкните на него в вариантах выбора.

Как поменять язык в вк через приложение на телефоне

В том случае, если вы заходите вконтакт через браузер, просто повторите процедуру описанную ниже. А если через приложение, то используйте следующий способ.

Интересная особенность. Если вы попытайтесь найти в настройках приложения раздел, отвечающий за смену языка вконтакте, то у вас ничего не получится. Его там просто нет. Как быть?

Нужно сменить язык системы, установленной на вашем телефоне.

Если речь идет о смартфоне на базе андроид, то открываем раздел «Настройки». Затем «Язык и ввод».

В списке выбираем английский, либо любой другой язык.

Пробуйте зайти в приложение — язык будет изменен.

Видео урок: как поменять язык вконтакте

Заключение

Читайте также:

При необходимости, проведите смену языка в вк любым из предложенных способов.

Вопросы?

Вам помогла эта информация? Удалось решить возникший вопрос?

Понравилась статья? Пожалуйста, подпишитесь на нас Вконтакте!

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Загрузка… 90000 Why English 90001 90002 90003 What 90004 is 90005 Official English? 90006 90007 90008 It’s NOT «English Only» 90009 90008 Having English as our official language simply means that for the government to act officially, or legally, it must communicate in English. It means the language of record is the English language, and that no one has a right to demand government services in any other language. 90009 90008 Official English would also reinforce America’s historic message to new immigrants — that we expect them to learn English as the first step in their assimilation — and that we are committed to ensuring that all Americans share in the economic, social and political benefits of having a common language.90009 90008 90009 90008 90002 Why English Should Be the Official Language of the United States? 90007 90009 90008 by K.C. McAlpin 90009 90008 90004 [W] hen men can not communicate their thoughts to each other, simply because of difference of language, all the similarity of their common human nature is of no avail to unite them in fellowship. — 90005 St. Augustine in «The City of God,» circa 420 AD [1] 90009 90008 90003 Introduction and Historical Background 90006 90009 90008 As St.Augustine’s 5th century observation illustrates, the role language plays as a bridge or a barrier between peoples has been known for centuries. When the Saint was writing during the twilight days of the Western Roman Empire, Latin was the tongue that made Rome’s rule over its vast collection of tribes and peoples possible. 90009 90008 Although the Western half of the Roman Empire collapsed not long after St. Augustine’s death, thanks to the Roman Church’s monopoly on education, the linguistic unity the Empire ushered in persisted in the Western Mediterranean and Europe for another thirteen hundred years through wars, plagues, and political upheavals, down to the modern era.Until Francis Hutcheson first started teaching his classes in the local Scots-English dialect at the University of Glasgow in 1730, anyone enrolling in a university from Lisbon to St. Petersburg had to be fluent in Latin because all classes and exams were conducted in the classic tongue. 90009 90008 Thus, when we read that Dutch-born theologian Erasmus traveled to England where he conversed with and befriended Sir Thomas Moore in the early 16 90035 th 90036 century, and that they each traveled to Rome and talked to the Pope, it was Latin they used to communicate.It may be more than an accident of history that the rise of European nationalism which so devastated Europe in successive wars throughout the 19 90035 th 90036 and 20 90035 th 90036 centuries, coincided with Latin’s disappearance as the lingua franca of Europe’s educated elite. 90009 90008 What we can say for sure is that throughout history, empires and nation states exercising political dominion over disparate linguistic groups have sought to unite their territories with a common language. Often this has meant the systematic suppression of minority languages ​​and the imposition of a dominant tongue.At other times the imperative manifested itself in a more benign policy of official multilingualism. But the goal was always the same — to forge a linguistic bond between dissimilar peoples and facilitate efficient communication, administration, a degree of cultural unity, and thereby strengthen the state’s power against outsiders. 90009 90008 90003 History of English as the Common Language of the United States 90006 90009 90008 Viewed in the context of European empires and nation states the United States is an anomaly.Except for scattered German-speaking settlements, the thirteen colonies that comprised its original territory were overwhelmingly English-speaking. John Jay, first president of the Continental Congress and a co-author of The Federalist Papers observed that one of the American colonists ‘great strengths was that they were «one united people» that were «speaking the same language.» 90009 90008 English’s role as the nation’s unifying and virtually universal tongue did not go unchallenged. Nineteenth Century territorial expansion and conquest — especially the acquisition of vast sparsely-populated territories as a result of the Louisiana Purchase and the U.S. Mexican War — added significant French- and Spanish-speaking minorities to the population. But policies like mandating English in schools and requiring English for public office, as well as the influx of English-speaking settlers succeeded in absorbing these groups into the larger English speaking community over time. 90009 90008 English’s role as the national tongue was challenged again by the great wave of immigration from mostly non-English speaking European countries during the last decade of the 19 90035 th 90036 century and first two decades of the 20 90035 th 90036 century.The rapid growth of the non-English speaking population and the tendency of new immigrants to settle among those speaking the same tongue, created large and flourishing linguistic ghettos in many northern industrial cities and the critical mass necessary for English to be virtually displaced as the common language of the local population. These enclaves gave rise to foreign-language newspapers, churches, synagogues, schools, and numerous community organizations. 90009 90008 Yet once again the country succeeded in meeting the challenge of linguistic assimilation into America’s English-speaking community.It was able to do this for four main reasons. First, the prevailing, almost universal view of American intellectuals and cultural elites at the time was that learning English was essential. It was necessary both for the successful assimilation of new immigrants and to enable these newcomers to join unions, fend for themselves, and free themselves from the power of the industrial magnates. Institutionally the impulse was expressed in things like the Settlement House Movement in which civic associations, churches, and progressive activists taught English as well as American government, traditions and civic culture to new arrivals.Conceptually it found expression in the ideal of the ‘melting pot’ society in which dissimilar ingredients melted to form a more uniform whole. The task was made easier by the fact that the immigrant flow was far more linguistically diverse then, and no one language dominated as Spanish has in recent decades. 90009 90008 Second, government policy favored English. Scant public resources were devoted to accommodating the linguistic needs of the new immigrants. The prevailing government view was expressed by political leaders like Theodore Roosevelt and Woodrow Wilson who made no bones about immigrants ‘responsibility to learn English, assimilate, and reassign their political loyalty to their adopted country.90009 90008 Third, although many immigrants failed to adapt and eventually returned to their native countries, the large majority who remained were determined to learn English or make sure their children did. They were eager to adopt a new identity as Americans, and cast off the social, class, and ethnic identities that had barred or limited upward mobility in their homelands. 90009 90008 But the decisive blow to the linguistic balkanization of the country was the decision in the early 1920s to sharply curtail immigration.That cut the flow of new arrivals to a trickle. Deprived of new additions, the large, non-English speaking ghettos of Italians, Germans, Poles, Jews, Ukrainians, and other mostly Eastern European nationalities ceased to grow. As time passed successive generations learned English in public school, joined the armed forces or took jobs in government or business. As they gained affluence they married or moved outside their communities. It did not happen overnight, but eventually the old ghettos faded away.Most of what remains today are cultural rather than linguistic markers, i.e. foods, architecture, festivals and religious affiliations. 90009 90008 In the 1970s, however, things began to change. Propelled again by unprecedented mass immigration from non-English speaking countries, English’s place as the unifying and almost universally spoken language in the United States began to erode. Whereas in 1980 some 11 percent of U.S. residents spoke a language other than English at home, by 2007 that figure leaped to 20 percent, representing 55.4 million people. More ominously for the nation’s linguistic unity, of those 55.4 million, 62 percent, or 34.5 million people spoke a single language at home, Spanish. 90009 90008 The rapid increase in the non-English speaking population has once again created large linguistic ghettos and the critical mass necessary for English to be virtually displaced as the common language of the local population. 90009 90008 These demographic trends and the reemergence of linguistic diversity and linguistic -cultural segregation have been reinforced and facilitated by other trends.One has been a decided shift in the attitudes of American intellectuals and cultural elites away from assimilation into the prevailing American culture and the ideal of the ‘melting pot,’ toward ‘multiculturalism’ and its closely related manifestation in multilingualism, in which maintaining group identity is the overriding goal. Metaphorically the competing ideal is described as the ‘salad bowl’ in which different ingredients are mixed, but instead of blending retain their separate identities and distinctiveness.90009 90008 This shift in elite opinion was accompanied by a gradual but pronounced reversal in government policy. Whereas before the 1970s government policy had discouraged multilingualism, by 2000 it had changed to one in which the use of foreign languages ​​is encouraged and even demanded. Today for example the U.S. Department of Justice uses the threat of civil rights prosecution to force state and local government agencies to provide services in multiple languages. 90009 90008 Another change occurred in education policy starting in the early 1970s.The 1968 Bilingual Education Act required schools to give special help to children lacking English language ability. The new approach the Act called for was to teach such children core subjects in their native language while giving them supplemental help learning English. This was promoted as a way to help children keep from falling behind their peers while they strove to learn English, and was called bilingual education. In the words of the law’s sponsor, U.S. Senator Ralph Yarborough of Texas, its purpose was «not to create pockets of different languages ​​throughout the country … but to make these students fully literate in English.»Federal money was appropriated and although the federal government never mandated bilingual education, many states passed strict laws requiring bilingual education in their public schools for several years. 90009 90008 Despite the expenditure of hundreds of billions of dollars, these programs failed to teach English effectively and ultimately lost support from natives and immigrants alike. The attitude of many Hispanic parents toward bilingual education was best expressed by South Texas ranch foreman Ernesto Ortiz who said, «My children learn Spanish in school so they can grow up to be busboys and waiters.I teach them English at home so they can grow up to be doctors and lawyers. » 90009 90008 In 1975 Congress amended The Voting Rights Act to mandate the provision of foreign language ballots in political jurisdictions in which certain thresholds were met. Because knowledge of English was required for naturalization, the justification used was to help remedy the unequal access to education experienced by certain minority language groups. Thus American Indian, Spanish, and Asian languages ​​were included, but not others such as Middle Eastern, African, or Eastern European languages.90009 90008 An example of the government bureaucracy’s bias in favor of multilingualism occurred early in the implementation of the bilingual ballot laws. Counter-intuitively, and with little credible justification the Census Bureau chose to include citizens who describe themselves as speaking English «well» in the group of citizens needing language assistance to vote. By doing so, Census Bureau bureaucrats were able to triple the number of jurisdictions subject to the law. 90009 90008 Supporters of bilingual ballots said the provisions were only temporary remedial measures.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. So Congress renewed them for the third time in 2007, extending the so-called temporary measures for another 25 years. 90009 90008 Under pressure from various ethnic interest groups and advocates, government agencies increasingly act on their own and without specific authorization to provide signage, translations, and interpreters in foreign languages, especially Spanish.So, for example, the Social Security Administration makes information available online not only in English, but in sixteen other languages. 90009 90008 The Equal Opportunity Employment Commission (EEOC) provided more evidence of the bureaucracy’s ideologically-driven determination to transform the U.S. into a multilingual / multicultural utopia, even at the expense of fundamental civil rights. In 2002 the EEOC filed suit against the owners of a single, family-owned drive-in restaurant in Page, Arizona, charging them with «national origins» discrimination for implementing an English-on-the-job policy to stop some of their Navajo employees from sexually harassing other Navajo employees in the Navajo language.In true rogue fashion the EEOC continues to file such lawsuits notwithstanding the fact that the courts have ruled repeatedly that employers have the right to have such workplace policies and have told the EEOC that its actions are «ultra vires,» i.e. outside the scope of its legal authority. 90009 90008 Nonetheless the widespread and often unauthorized about face in the direction of government language policy did not satisfy multilingual advocates. In тисяча дев’ятсот дев’яносто дев’ять a high-ranking Health and Human Services (HHS) Department official in the Clinton Administration held a private meeting with a number of multi-lingual advocacy organizations who wanted to force health care providers to provide interpreter services and translations for non-English speaking patients.The meeting led to a letter signed by sixteen advocacy groups urging HHS to «strengthen and enhance» its language policy guidance to require health care providers to provide language assistance to patients regardless of the size of the language group involved. 90009 90008 The legal theory put forward by the interest groups was to equate language with a person’s national origin, and thereby make the failure to provide multilingual services a violation of federal civil rights law. It did not matter that the attempt to equate national origin with language under the 1964 Civil Rights Act had been rejected in numerous court decisions at the federal and state level for thirty years.The groups wanted action. 90009 90008 What they got exceeded their expectations. On August 11, 2000., President Clinton signed Executive Order 13166 (E.O. 13166) which claimed to merely «interpret» existing civil rights law instead of creating new law, which is exactly what E.O. 13166 did. The order applied the disputed «language equals national origin» formula to all recipients of federal funds including federal, state, and local government agencies, government contractors as well as to medical providers such as doctors and hospitals participating in the Medicaid or Medicare programs.90009 90008 E.O. 13166 gave ideologically-minded government bureaucrats an extraordinarily powerful new tool to advance their multicultural agenda, notwithstanding the opposing views of the vast majority of U.S, citizens, or the Order’s suspect legal authority. 90009 90008 The wholesale change in the prevailing views of intellectual elites and government policy was greatly assisted by technological advances. 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.90009 90008 Yet there could hardly be an example in a democratic society of a more unpopular policy being imposed on the majority by a willful, ideologically-driven, minority. Not surprisingly it has led to popular resistance. 90009 90008 90003 The Rise of the Official English Movement 90006 90009 90008 S.I. Hayakawa, a Canadian-born naturalized U.S. citizen of Japanese descent and former professor of English and president of San Francisco State University, who was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1976, is widely acknowledged as the «father» of the official English movement in the U.S. In 1981, alarmed by the drift toward linguistic balkanization and segregation he saw taking place in his home state of California, the Senator introduced the first official English legislation ever introduced in the U.S. Congress — a constitutional amendment declaring English the official language of the United States. The Senate failed to take up the legislation, but after retiring from the Senate in 1983, Senator Hayakawa continued the battle and co-founded the first national organization dedicated to making English the official language of the U.S. 90009 90008 The Senator’s action capitalized on growing concerns in the public at large. When he introduced his amendment only five (5) states had made English their official language of government. But beginning in the 1980s, successive citizen petition campaigns succeeded in passing official English laws by overwhelming margins despite determined opposition from business, political, and media elites. More and more states joined the bandwagon until by 2009 thirty-one states, or 62 percent of the total had adopted official English laws of various descriptions.90009 90008 The widespread move to adopt official English laws spread to cities and counties. In 2006 the city of Hazleton, Pennsylvania, made national headlines following its adoption of an official English ordinance. The city’s action inspired a flurry of copycat efforts by cities, towns, and counties across the country. 90009 90008 A similar manifestation of the public’s opposition to the government’s undeclared policy in favor of multilingualism was the movement to get rid of bilingual education programs, long considered a sacred cow in the field of education, notwithstanding their thirty-year record of failure.The movement started in 1 996 when a group of Hispanic immigrant parents in Los Angeles, outraged that their children were being placed in Spanish language classrooms year after year, organized a boycott of a Los Angeles County elementary school. 90009 90008 The boycott attracted national attention and led Silicon Valley entrepreneur Ron Unz to bankroll a petition campaign that succeeded in putting a referendum on the California ballot in 1998. Proposition 227 called for the elimination of bilingual education programs and replacing them with assisted English-immersion style classrooms.Despite opposition from the two major political parties, newspapers, unions, business leaders, religious leaders, ethnic interest groups, and a lavishly-funded media campaign to defeat it, Proposition 227 passed with a landslide 60 percent of the vote. 90009 90008 Overnight the nation’s largest state, home to over 27 percent of the country’s foreign- born population, had resolved to eliminate bilingual education. Rising test scores for non-English speaking school children transferred to English immersion style classrooms convinced even some former opponents, and California’s example was followed by Arizona in 2000, and Massachusetts in 2002 where similar measures passed by even greater margins.90009 90008 But a statewide referendum to eliminate bilingual education in Colorado failed by 49 percent to 50 percent in 2002 following a multi-million dollar media campaign by opponents. They warned that if the referendum passed, majority white suburban school districts would be overrun by non-English speaking Hispanic children. The opposition’s race-baiting campaign and misleading TV ads were so egregious they were condemned by the state’s major newspapers, even though the newspapers opposed the measure.90009 90008 At the national level, legislation to make English the official language of the U.S., has been introduced in every Congress since Senator Hayakawa first introduced his amendment. Proponents succeeded in passing bills in the House of Representatives in одна тисяча дев’ятсот дев’яносто шість and in the Senate in 2006 and 2007. But each time the legislation failed to be taken up by the other chamber before Congress adjourned. 90009 90008 90003 What Official English Means 90006 90009 90008 Making English the official language simply makes it the standard language of government operations and says that whenever government acts in its official capacity, i.e. with legal authority, it has to use English. It would not prevent government from using other languages ​​whenever there is a general public interest in doing so. So exceptions would include things like teaching foreign languages; printing documents or taking actions necessary for national security; foreign relations; the promotion of commerce, tourism, and international trade. Protecting public health and safety would be exempted, for example, in the distribution of information to warn people about the dangers of diseases like HIV / AIDS, etc.An official English law also would have no effect on how the Census Bureau gathers information, or on actions that protect the rights of victims of crimes or criminal defendants, or on many other common sense needs government has to use other languages. 90009 90008 On the other hand, if properly implemented, official English laws would bar driver’s license exams in multiple languages, taxpayer-paid interpreter services in civil lawsuits, foreign-language signs in government offices, and numerous other instances in which no public interest is being served for the wider community.90009 90008 90003 Opposition Arguments 90006 90009 90008 Dismayed by the overwhelming success of official English initiatives and bans on bilingual education, opponents of official English have tried to counter with a variety of arguments including harsh rhetoric and outright distortion. 90009 90008 Initially the opposition sought to downplay the size of the problem, citing data to prove the United States is overwhelmingly monolingual and asserting that immigrants are indeed learning English.But recent Census data and the common day-to-day experience of ordinary Americans has undermined those arguments. 90009 90008 So opponents have turned to distortions and inflammatory rhetoric. For example official English laws are unfairly accused of criminalizing the use of other languages, not only when used informally by government officials, but also when used by people in their private conversations. Such characterizations are false. None of the 31 states with official English laws already on the books prohibit the use of other languages ​​by private individuals or businesses, or for many legitimate public needs.Yet opponents continue to make such unfounded charges. 90009 90008 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. So for example Alabama, which has a constitutional amendment making English the official language that specifically directs state officials to «take all steps necessary to insure that the role of English as the common language of the state of Alabama is preserved and enhanced,» nonetheless continues to offer driver’s license exams in thirteen other languages.90009 90008 Despite this, official English opponents continue to spread totally unfounded fears — especially in non-English speaking communities — about the impact of official English. 90009 90008 A more subtle form of the same distortion is frequent use of the term «English only» by the media and others to characterize official English laws. In addition to being false, the description conveys a sense of linguistic exclusivity that is entirely alien to the leadership of the official English movement, many of whom like the late Senator S.I. Hayakawa, are multilingual first generation immigrants. 90009 90008 Opponents also have resorted to the age-old strategy of ad-hominem attacks, demonizing supporters of official English, using guilt by association and similar smear tactics. Senate Democratic Majority Leader Harry Reid even went so far as to say on the Senate floor that he thought an official English amendment being offered by Republican Senator James Inhofe of Oklahoma, who speaks fluent Spanish, was «racist,» notwithstanding the fact that 11 of Reid’s Senate Democratic colleagues later voted for it.90009 90008 Polls show that the American people do not buy Senator Reid’s characterization. When asked if official English is a form of racism or bigotry, the public disagrees 84 percent to 10 percent. 90009 90008 90003 Why We Need Official English 90006 90009 90008 The history of linguistically divided societies is not a peaceful one. As an anonymous philosopher is reputed to have said, religion and language are the two great dividers of mankind. In the past decade countries as diverse as Belgium, Canada, Sri Lanka, Kenya and the Ukraine have been torn by linguistic-cultural conflict that often resulted in murderous inter-communal violence.90009 90008 Today the United States is one of the few countries in the world without at least one official language. Fifty-four countries located mainly in Africa, Asia, and the Caribbean, have made English an official language including 27 that have designated English as their sole official language. Many of those countries were created with numerous language groups within their boundaries and have deliberately chosen English as a neutral ground in the hope of avoiding inter-communal strife and conflict.As educator and author E.D. Hirsch notes, «… multilingualism enormously increases cultural fragmentation, civil antagonism, illiteracy, and economic-technological ineffectualness.» 90009 90008 In contrast, unless it takes intentional steps to preserve its linguistic unity and immigration continues at current levels, the U.S. may be the only nation in history that deliberately transforms itself into a linguistically divided society. De-facto government policies that encourage multilingualism and discourage immigrants from assimilating into a common American culture, means that United States policy makers are effectively abandoning the formula that enabled it to become the most successful, multi-ethnic country in the history of the world, and replacing it with a balkanized model of society that endangers social cohesion and national unity wherever it exists.90009 90008 As the late Barbara Jordan, a former Congresswoman and civil rights leader who chaired the U.S. Commission on Immigration Reform observed, «Cultural and religious diversity does not pose a threat to the national interest 90004 as long as public policies insure civic unity 90005 (emphasis added). Such polices should help newcomers learn to speak, read, and write English effectively. » 90009 90008 Making English the official language would have the practical effect of stipulating that while government could act in other languages, for its actions to be legally binding and authoritative, they would have to be communicated in the English language.It also would clarify that whenever a conflict in meaning occurs between laws, regulations, or government communications in more than one language, the English language version is the authoritative meaning. 90009 90008 Adopting official English would align federal government agencies with other government institutions like the armed services and the federal court system, which for practical reasons have decided to conduct official business in English alone. 90009 90008 It would also save money.Providing translations and interpreter services in even a handful of the 322 languages ​​now spoken in the U.S. adds significantly to the cost of government operations. The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) estimated the cost of providing language assistance services was as much as $ 1 to $ 2 billion annually. But OMB says its estimate may not reflect the full cost, because government agencies are not required to account for the cost of such services. A more accurate estimate might be derived from Canada: a country roughly one tenth the size of the U.S. in terms of population, which spends an estimated $ 1 billion annually to provide translation and interpreter services it needs to conduct government business in two official languages. 90009 90008 Barring translations and interpreters for standard government services also would encourage immigrants to learn English. This would not only save the government money in the short run, it would help immigrants to become self-sufficient by improving their job skills and raising their income. Research shows immigrants with a low degree of English fluency earn only half as much as those with moderate fluency and only a third as much as those who are highly fluent.So encouraging immigrants to learn English strengthens the economy, boosts tax revenue, and helps the U.S. remain competitive in the global economy. Government policy that provides incentives rather than disincentives for immigrants to learn English is a «win-win» situation for both the United States and the immigrant. 90009 90008 Symbolically, declaring English our official language would send this important message to new arrivals: if you aspire to avail yourselves of all the opportunities in this society, you have a responsibility to learn English as your very first priority.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. 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. 90009 90008 But the most important reason to make such a decision is to respond to the overwhelming will of the American people, 87 percent of whom, according to the most recent poll, want to make English the official language of the United States.This desire cuts across all lines and reflects a degree of unanimity not known to exist on any other major public policy issue. 90009 90008 To preserve our incredibly successful ‘melting pot’ society and protect the opportunity the United States offers to people from every country on earth, it is time to make English the official language. 90009 90008 90009 90008 K.C. McAlpin 90009 90008 ProEnglish 90009 90008 90009 90008 Further Reading: 90009 90008 90004 Language in Thought & Action 90005, 4 90035 th 90036 Ed., S.I. Hayakawa, Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, New York, 1978 90009 90008 90004 Cultural Literacy; What Every American Needs to Know 90005, E.D. Hirsch, Random House, New York, 1988 90009 90008 90004 Americans No More; The Death of Citizenship 90005, Georgie Anne Geyer, The Atlantic Monthly Press, New York, 1996. 90009 90008 90004 Forked Tongue; The Politics of Bilingual Education 90005, Rosalie Pedalino Porter, Basic Books, Inc., New York, 1996. 90009 90008 90004 The Disuniting of America; Reflections on a Multicultural Society 90005, 2 90035 nd 90036 Ed., Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr., W.W. Norton Company, New York, 1998 90009 90008 U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Educational Statistics; English Literacy and Language Minorities in the United States, August, 2001 90009 90008 U.S. Office of Management and Budget, Report to Congress: Assessment of Total Benefits and Costs of Implementing Executive Order No. 13166: Improving Access to Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency, March 14, 2002. 90009 90008 «A Human Capital Concern: The Literacy Proficiency of U.S. Immigrants, «Education Testing Services, March 2004 90009 90008 90004 American Immigrant; My Life in Three Languages ​​90005, Rosalie Pedalino Porter, Transaction Publishers, New Brunswick (USA), 2011 90009 90220 90008 90004 City of God 90005, Book XIX, Chap.7, St. Augustine, 413-426 AD 90009 90008 The Naturalization Act of 1906 signed into law by President Roosevelt, required immigrants to learn English in order to become naturalized citizens. 90009 90008 U.S. Census, American Community Survey Reports, «Language Use in the United States: 2007,» p.3, issued in April 2010. 90009 90008 Executive Order 13166 signed by President Bill Clinton, August 11, 2000., requires federal fund recipients and federal agencies to use a four-part test to determine when the provision of foreign language translation and interpreter services are mandatory. Violators are subject to penalties and or civil rights prosecution. 90009 90008 An April, 2007 McLaughlin & Associates poll of 1,000 likely voters (margin of error +/- 3.1 percent), and 300 likely Hispanic voters (margin of error +/- 5.6 percent), found an identical 88 percent of both groups in favor of placing limited English proficient children in English-immersion style classrooms. 90009 90008 Quoted in 90004 Straight Shooting; What’s Wrong with America and How to Fix It 90005, John Silber, Harper & Row, New York, 1989, p. 25. 90009 90008 Immigration and Nationality Act of 1952 Sec. 312 [8 U.S.C. 1423] (a) «No person … shall … be naturalized as a citizen of the United States … who can not demonstrate (1) an understanding of the English language, including an ability to read, write, and speak words in ordinary usage in the English language: «90009 90008 Defined as either 5 percent of the total number of citizens within in a state or county who fall in one of the protected language classes, or 10,000 such citizens whichever is less.90009 90008 Letter from Paul Seigel, Chief, U.S. Department of Commerce, Bureau of the Census, Education and Social Stratification Branch, Population Division, (February 4, 1985). 90009 90008 U.S. General Accounting Office, Briefing Report to the Honorable Quentin N. Burdick, U.S. Senate, Sept., 1986, Bilingual Voting Assistance: Costs of and Use During the Nov.1984 General Election. 90009 90008 A March 2006 Zogby International poll of 1,007 likely voters found 63 percent favored printing ballots in English alone, while 35 percent favored bilingual ballots.90009 90008 May 13, 1999, San Francisco, California, Thomas E. Perez, Director of the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) for the Department of Health & Human Services, holds private meeting with representatives of various advocacy groups including the Mexican Legal Defense and Education Fund (MALDEF), the National Immigration Law Center, Chinese for Affirmative Action, etc. 90009 90008 Letter dated July 13, 1999. to Thomas E. Perez, Director of the Office for Civil Rights (OCR) for the Department of Health & Human Services.90009 90008 It is self-evident that the language someone speaks does not equate with national origin. French or Spanish for example are the principal languages ​​of dozens of countries. Conversely a native of India could speak any one of dozens of different tongues. 90009 90008 Fearful that a new administration would rescind E.O. 13166 the Justice Department ordered federal agencies to begin their implementation within 120 days — warp speed by government standards. They need not have worried.Soon after President George W. Bush was sworn into office in January, 2001. his administration signaled that it would not revoke E.O, 13166, which remains in effect today. 90009 90008 A Rasmussen Reports poll (margin of error of +/- 3 percent) of 1,000 adults in May 2010, for example, found 87 percent of respondents favored making English the official language of the U.S. 90009 90008 In 2001 the Supreme Court vacated 90004 Sandoval v. Alexander 90005, the solitary case that had upheld the language equals national origin formula.But federal courts in the 4 90035 th 90036 and 9 90035 th 90036 Circuits subsequently protected Executive Order 13166 from direct legal challenge by subjectively and inconsistently applying Department of Justice procedural objections to avoid a trial. 90009 90008 A common example of this technology is the ubiquitous bank automatic teller machine (ATM) that offers services in multiple languages. 90009 90008 Senator Hayakawa died in тисяча дев’ятсот дев’яносто дві at the age of 85. 90009 90008 U.S. English, co-founded by Sen.Hayakawa and John H. Tanton. Tanton and three former U.S. English board members later founded ProEnglish, an organization that also advocates for official English. 90009 90008 Hawaii, Illinois, Louisiana, Massachusetts, and Nebraska. 90009 90008 Federation for American Immigration Reform (www.fairus.org): See Immigration Facts / State & Local Data / California, Aug. 30, 2011. 90009 90008 A common falsehood is that official English will outlaw the use of other languages ​​in private conversations.90009 90008 The two largest national organizations specifically organized to advocate for official English, ProEnglish and US English, are both chaired by bilingual and trilingual, first-generation immigrants. 90009 90008 At least 85 percent of UN member states. 90009 90008 Unfortunately, this has not always solved the problem as recent inter-communal conflict in some East African countries demonstrates. 90009 90008 90004 Cultural Literacy 90005, E.D. Hirsch, 1988. 90009 90008 Testimony to Congress, June 28, 1995.90009 90008 U.S. Office of Management and Budget, Report to Congress: Assessment of Total Benefits and Costs of Implementing Executive Order No. 13166: Improving Access to Services for Persons with Limited English Proficiency, March 14, 2002. 90009 90008 Education Testing Services, A Human Capital Concern: The Literacy Proficiency of U.S. Immigrants, March 2004. U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Educational Statistics; English Literacy and Language Minorities in the United States, August, 2001..90009 90008 Rasmussen Reports poll (margin of error of +/- 3 percent) of 1,000 adults, May, 2010. 90009 90008 A Harvard University poll of 2,923 young adults, ages 18-24, in March, 2007 (margin of error +/- 3 percent) found 72 percent favored making English the official language of the U.S., including majorities of Hispanics and Asians. A McLaughlin & Associates national survey of 300 Hispanic voters in April, 2007 (margin of error +/- 5.6 percent) found 62 percent favored making English the official language of the U.S. 90009 90008 90009 90008 90009 .90000 Why Learn English? These top 10 reasons will convince you why! 90001 90002 90003 Why learn English when it’s so difficult and time-consuming? When other languages ​​(e.g., Chinese) are spoken by billions of other people? When you do not live in an English-speaking country? 90004 90003 These 10 very important reasons will help explain the reasons mastering English is still a very valuable investment of your time, energy and resources. 90006 90004 90008 1. First, this global language lets you communicate with others 90009 90003 You already know that English will be helpful for you to communicate with someone from the United States, Great Britain, Australia or Canada, but that’s just a small percentage of the people who speak English.90004 90003 There are actually more people who speak English as a second language than all mother-tongue English speakers combined. 90006 90004 90015 90003 If three people from Mexico, Thailand and Lebanon meet in a bar, what language will they most likely communicate in? It’s probably not going to be Chinese. Chances are much more likely they will speak in English. It is estimated that more than 1.4 billion people speak English as a second language. 90004 90003 English is like a key or special currency.It unlocks the doors all over the world so you can communicate with people from all different countries. 90006 90004 90008 2. Why learn English? It’s entertaining! 90009 90003 There are more movies, films and books written in English than in other languages. Although some of these works are translated, dubbed or subtitled, many are not or there is quite a delay with the translation. If you can speak English, you get to enjoy the latest releases before they are translated. 90006 90004 90026 90003 Like listening to English music? In terms of popular music, music from British and American musicians and bands are frequently broadcast around the world.It’s a lot more entertaining and fun when you can also understand the meaning of the lyrics and cultural references in the songs. 90004 90003 English opens up a world of fun and entertainment to those who can understand it, and who does not want more enjoyment in their life? 90006 90004 90008 3. Why learn English? Increase your culture awareness 90009 90003 Language and culture are closely related and learning English will help you to also learn about the culture of the countries where English is spoken.According to Wikipedia, as of 2012 English is the official language of 88 sovereign and non-sovereign states. English is spoken in this is largely a result of so many of these countries as a result of Great Britain’s colonial expansion between the late 16th and early 18th centuries. 90004 90003 Language can help open peoples ‘personal horizons. It can help people become closer by allowing them to interact, get to know one another and learn about their cultural differences and different ways of living.This can help make the world a better place, where people can better understand and respect the differences among others. 90006 90004 90008 4. Why learn English? To travel the world 90009 90041 90003 Toothbrush? check. 90006 Plane ticket? check. 90006 Passport? check. 90006 English phrasebook? check. 90004 90003 English is predominately the language used for international travel. It will be very useful if you wish to visit the United States, Great Britain, Canada, New Zealand, South Africa and other English-speaking countries.That’s not all. As noted above, English is spoken by many people as a first or second language all over the world. So no matter where you travel-even to non-English speaking countries-it is highly likely that some of the locals will speak English. 90004 90003 At airports, train stations, hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions, safety information and instructions are commonly provided in English. So if you do not speak the local language you will be able to get around and learn about the historical and cultural sites you see during your travels.You will also feel safer and more confident knowing English if you do not know the local language. 90004 90003 Not only will English help you get around but it will also make it easier for you to interact with other travelers. This can make traveling more enjoyable and rewarding. 90006 90004 90008 5. Why learn English? Go pro! Improve your professional opportunities 90009 90003 Employment is another reason why you should learn the language. English remains the single most important language for conducting business.If you’re looking for a good job, it is likely that speaking English will greatly improve your chances for employment. 90004 90003 Within multinational companies and between international companies, memos, emails, business meetings and phone calls will frequently be conducted in English. If you are looking for a career in the medical sciences, computer science, and technology fields, English is indispensable. 90004 90003 English is also an official working language for many international organizations such as the United Nations, European Union, NATO and the World Bank.90006 90004 90008 6. Moolah (why learning English is golden) 90009 90065 90003 Not only can English help you get a job, it can help you get a better salary compared to if you can not speak the language. Workers who speak English can bring in more business and communicate with more clients and customers. Who does not want to make more money? And, if you do not care about the money, give it to charity;) 90006 90004 90008 7. Why learn English? Get endless access to free Information 90009 90003 In the information age, knowing English will allow you to access vast amounts of information through the Internet, at absolutely no charge! According to a 2013 study by W3Techs, almost 55% of the websites that are visited the most are in the English language.In addition, it is estimated that 36% of the internet’s 200 million users can communicate in English. In terms of volume, there are more web pages in English than any other language. You will have countless opportunities to obtain free information on a multitude of different topics. 90004 90073 90008 8. Why learn English? Expand knowledge through English-language education 90009 90003 The United States alone has approximately 4,495 universities where students can study and there are many other universities in other English-speaking countries.Knowing how to speak English opens the door for students to study abroad, either to get a degree, do research or study even just for a semester. 90006 90004 90008 9. Why learn English? Make new friends and professional relationships 90009 90003 Looking for new friends? English is a great way to meet new people, especially those from other countries. The internet has opened a world of opportunities to get to know people all over the world. It’s easy to meet and develop friendships with new friends by chatting or doing language exchanges or simply leaving comments on your favorite blogs.90004 90083 90003 Many people who speak different languages ​​have found the love of their lives and life-long friends through English. Who knows, it could happen to you too! 90006 90004 90008 10. Finally, if you learn do not forget to pay it forward 90009 90003 Once you learn English, you will have a valuable ability that you can use to help others. For example, if you have children, you will be able to practice the language with them or help them with their homework. 90004 90008 Why learn English? Share your reasons with us! 90009 90003 Those are probably the most popular reasons for learning English but there are many others.Please feel free share your own reason (s) for learning English below. 90006 90004 90003 90004 90003 90006 Return to homepage from Why Learn English page. 90004 .90000 90001 Contact 90002 90003 90004 90005 90006 Personnel 90007 90008 90009 90004 90005 90006 Phone Number 90007 90008 90009 90004 90005 90006 Email 90007 90008 90009 90004 90005 90006 Office 90007 90008 90009 90028 90003 90030 90005 Department Chair 90008 90005 Mark Bennion 90008 90035 90030 90005 90008 90005 208.496.4368 90008 90035 90030 90005 90008 90005 [email protected] 90008 90035 90030 90005 90008 90005 Rigby 108 90008 90035 90028 90003 90056 90005 Department Secretary 90008 90005 Kierstin Holland 90008 90035 90056 90005 90008 90005 208.496.4361 90008 90035 90056 90005 90008 90005 [email protected] 90008 90035 90056 90005 90008 90005 Rigby 180 90008 90035 90028 90003 90056 90005 Composition Directors 90008 90005 Anne Papworth 90008 90035 90056 90005 208.496.4393 90008 90035 90056 90005 [email protected] 90008 90035 90056 90005 Smith 358 90008 90035 90028 90003 90056 90005 English Academic Society 90008 90005 Emily Grover 90008 90005 Jason Williams 90008 90035 90056 90005 90008 90005 208.496.4462 90008 90005 208.496.4406 90008 90035 90056 90005 90008 90005 [email protected] 90008 90005 [email protected] 90008 90035 90056 90005 90008 90005 Rigby 105 90008 90005 Rigby 118 90008 90035 90028 90003 90056 90005 Language & Letters Advising 90008 90005 Hours: MF 8 am-5pm 90008 90035 90056 90005 90008 90005 208.496.9860 90008 90035 90056 90005 90008 90005 [email protected] 90008 90035 90056 90005 90008 90005 Chap 106 90008 90035 90028 90003 90056 90005 Internship Directors 90008 90005 Elaine Hawker 90008 90035 90056 90005 90008 90005 208.496.4385 90008 90035 90056 90005 [email protected] 90008 90035 90056 90005 Rigby 106 90008 90005 90008 90035 90028 90003 90056 90005 Outlet 90008 90005 Jack Harrell 90008 90035 90056 90005 208.496.4383 90008 90035 90056 90005 [email protected] 90008 90035 90056 90005 Rigby 302 90008 90035 90028 90003 90056 90005 English Study Abroad Tour 90008 90005 Robert Bird 90008 90005 Darin Merrill 90008 90005 Dan Pearce 90008 90035 90056 90005 90008 90005 208.496.4369 90008 90005 208.496.4390 90008 90005 208.496.4395 90008 90035 90056 90005 90008 90005 [email protected] 90008 90005 [email protected] 90008 90005 [email protected] 90008 90035 90056 90005 90008 90005 Rigby 312 90008 90005 Rigby 314 90008 90005 Rigby 321 90008 90035 90028 90247.90000 Why Are Web Addresses in English? 90001 90002 The short answer: Web addresses are in English because the people who developed the standards for web addresses were, for the most part, English-speaking Americans. 90003 90002 The longer answer: In the earliest days of the internet, the only way to connect with a remote computer was to provide its unique IP address, a long string of digits such as 165.254.202.218. But in 1983, as the number of computers on the network continued to grow, the University of Wisconsin developed the Domain Name System (DNS), which maps numeric IP addresses to more easily remembered domain names like howstuffworks.com. 90003 90002 In 1990, British scientist (and English speaker) Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web, and by 1992 року, more than one million computers were connected, most of them in the United States [source: Computer History Museum]. In 1994 the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), a standards organization made up of representatives from several U.S. government agencies, published a set of standards for web addresses, which it called Uniform Resource Locators, or URLs [sources: Berners-Lee, Internet Society, Ishida].90003 90002 To make web addresses easy to read, write, type and remember, the IETF restricted URLs to a small number of characters, namely the uppercase and lowercase letters of the English (or Latin) alphabet, the digits 0 through 9 and a few symbols [source: Berners-Lee]. The allowable characters are based on the American Standard Code for Information Interchange, better known as the US-ASCII character set, which was developed in the United States and first published in тисяча дев’ятсот шістьдесят три.90003 90002 This all worked out fine for English-speaking countries, but as of 2009 more than half of the 1.6 billion internet users worldwide spoke a language with a character set other than the English (or Latin) alphabet [source: Whitney]. To understand what using the web is like for those individuals, imagine that you have to navigate the web using only Arabic. The content on your favorite sites is still in English, but the web address for every site you use is made up of completely unfamiliar characters that may not even be found on your keyboard [source: Ishida].That scenario, in reverse, is essentially what the Internet experience has been like for web users who read and write using not only another language, but an entirely different alphabet or set of characters. (Visit a website like Egypt’s el-balad.com, for example, and the distinction between the site content, which is entirely in Arabic, and the web address, which uses only English characters, becomes immediately clear.) 90003 90002 Given the growing number of non-English users online, it may come as no surprise that English web addresses are no longer the law of the land.In 2009 ICANN, the US-based nonprofit organization that regulates domain names on the internet, approved the use of Internationalized Domain Names (IDNs), meaning that web addresses would be able to contain non-English characters like Chinese, Korean, Arabic or Cyrillic script [sources: Arthur, ICANN]. 90003 90002 90015 Related Articles 90016 90003 90002 90015 Sources 90016 90003 90022 90023 ASCIICodes.us. «ASCII Codes.» (August 10, 2014 року) http: // www.asciicodes.us/ 90024 90023 Arthur, Charles. «Internet regulator Icann approves web addresses in multiple languages» Oct. 30, 2009. (August 9, 2014 року) http://www.theguardian.com/technology/2009/oct/30/icann-approves-idn-web-addresses-language 90024 90023 Beam, Christopher. «The Secret Messages Inside Chinese URLs.» The New Republic. May 1, 2014. (August 10, 2014 року) http://www.newrepublic.com/article/117608/chinese-number-websites-secret-meaning-urls 90024 90023 Berners-Lee, Tim, et al. «Uniform Resource Locators.»Internet Engineering Task Force. December 1994. (August 10, 2014 року) http://www.ietf.org/rfc/rfc1738 90024 90023 Computer History Museum.» Internet History — 1990s. «(August 10, 2014 року) http: / /www.computerhistory.org/internet_history/internet_history_90s.html 90024 90023 ICANN. «Internationalized Domain Names.» (August 9, 2014 року) https://www.icann.org/resources/pages/idn-2012-02-25- en 90024 90023 Internet Society. «IETF and the Internet Society.» (August 10, 2014 року) http://www.internetsociety.org/internet/what-internet/history-internet/ietf-and-internet-society 90024 90023 Ishida , Richard.»An Introduction to Multilingual Web Addresses.» W3C. Jan. 13, 2005. (August 9, 2014 року) http://www.w3.org/International/articles/idn-and-iri/ 90024 90023 Olsen, Kelly. «Internet Set To Add Web Addresses In Non-English Characters.» Huffington Post. Oct. 26, 2009. (August 10, 2014 року) http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2009/10/26/international-domain-name_n_333449.html 90024 90023 Whitney, Lance. «Web addresses may adopt non-English characters.» CNET.com. Oct. 26, 2009. (August 10, 2014 року) http://www.cnet.com/news/web-addresses-may-adopt-non-english-characters/ 90024 90043 .