• The English language can be found worldwide: it’s recognized and taught on every continent, and interestingly, it has a much greater prevalence than that of any other universal language, like French, Latin or Greek. • One interesting aspect of this worldwide language is that today we see many local cultures, and these include those in Nigeria, Papua New Guinea, the Caribbean and Singapore, already creating divergences in how they use traditional words and grammar. • Plus, we also see an increased influence of AfricanAmerican English and Spanglish in the United States; so one begins to wonder what the face of English will be in years to come. • English, as any other language, is a living and dynamic system, and it transforms according to the way its speakers use it. • In Kenya, both Swahili and English are official languages. But in Nairobi and other urban areas we’re seeing a creole slang known as Sheng. Sheng has strong ties to Kenyan pop culture and this slang has emerged as a means for young people to communicate in code. In Sheng, for example the word for trousers is longi, which is derived from the English word long. • in fact, China is the largest English speaking country. • As we are moving toward a trend of people using English as their second language, we will see that English will continue to develop in a similar manner as before, but new dialects, slang, words and perhaps even linguistic variations will evolve.
