English, a language that originated 500 years ago on a cold island with a population of a few million is now spoken by over a billion people across the globe. But how did a small, insignificant language off the coast of europe take over the globe within only a few centuries? The answer: Linguistic Colonialism.
At the time of Shakespeare, English had barely spread throughout the British isles, but by the start of the 20th century the British Empire held 412 million people, 23% of the world population at the time. The very first British colony was set up in the early 16th Century is eastern Ireland. Fast forward to today and out of the Irish population of several million, only 40,000-80,000 people still speak Irish as a native language; just a small example of the English language’s exponential growth through colonialism. During this time of colonial rule the Empire did everything in its power to solidify its rule; the most significant of those ways was language.
One of the most effective methods with which the British Empire promoted the use of language was education. By presenting native families with the opportunity of a brighter future through schooling the empire was quickly able to raise English proficiency and literacy rates within the Empire. One example of this is the island of New Zealand. Native children were sent to Christian, English schools and forbidden to speak their native tongues. As of 2013 only 3.7 percent of the New Zealand population speak Māori. You might think that since the independence of the nation the speaking population of Māori might have seen a resurgence. However British colonial rule had been the norm in New Zealand too long for the language to make a proper return.
To Summarize, British colonial rule effectively replaced the native languages of numerous nations and peoples in the name of conquest and centralization.
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