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𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡: 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝'𝐬 𝐛𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐠𝐞?

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𝐄𝐧𝐠𝐥𝐢𝐬𝐡: 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝'𝐬 𝐛𝐢𝐠𝐠𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐠𝐞?

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There are "just" about 370 million native English speakers in the world, which compared to the 1.1 billion native Mandarin speakers doesn't seem like a whole lot. Still, English is considered the biggest language in the world. How is this possible?

ɴᴀᴛɪᴠᴇ ʟᴀɴɢᴜᴀɢᴇ: ᴛʜᴇ ʟᴀɴɢᴜᴀɢᴇ(ꜱ) ʏᴏᴜ ᴡᴇʀᴇ ᴛᴀᴜɢʜᴛ ᴀᴛ ʙɪʀᴛʜ, ᴀʟꜱᴏ ᴄᴀʟʟᴇᴅ "ᴍᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ᴛᴏɴɢᴜᴇ".
ꜱᴇᴄᴏɴᴅ ʟᴀɴɢᴜᴀɢᴇ: ᴏᴛʜᴇʀ ʟᴀɴɢᴜᴀɢᴇꜱ ʏᴏᴜ ʜᴀᴠᴇ ʟᴇᴀʀɴᴇᴅ ɢʀᴏᴡɪɴɢ ᴜᴘ (ᴜꜱᴜᴀʟʟʏ ᴛʜʀᴏᴜɢʜ ꜱᴄʜᴏᴏʟ).

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𝐁𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐬 & 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐠𝐞 

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𝐁𝐢𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐬 & 𝐬𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐝 𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐚𝐠𝐞 

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Mandarin is the biggest native language
Yes, if we only count the native speakers of each language, Mandarin is the biggest language by far (followed by Spanish)!

But as a whole, there are more people on this planet that can speak and understand English than there are people who speak and understand Mandarin.

How so?

Some countries use English as a second official language.
→ can you name a few?

In many countries, English is taught in school at an early age, sometimes even in kindergarten.
→ when did you start learning English in school?

Some learn English from watching shows, listening to music, social media or playing games.
→ did you pick up any English through popculture?

English: Native(370 million) + Secondary(978 million) = 1.3 billion!
Mandarin: roughly 1.1 billion speakers (native + secondary)

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𝐌𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐋𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐚 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐚

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𝐌𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐮𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐋𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐚 𝐅𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐚

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When we say that English is the biggest language in the world, this is up for discussion. But English is also known as "the international language", and we can confidently say that it is the biggest Lingua Franca in the world, which is an indisputable fact.

What is a Lingua Franca?
Any language that is used for communication between people who do not share the same native language, is a Lingua Franca.

Example: Lingua Franca - yes or no?

YES - If a Polish speaker and a Norwegian speaker use English to communicate, they are using a Lingua Franca.

NO - If an English speaker and a Norwegian speaker use English to communicate, they are NOT using a Lingua Franca.

→ Do you have an example of a time you used English (or a different language) as a Lingua Franca?

Indisputable: Fact. unable to be challenged or denied.

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𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰!

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𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐤𝐧𝐨𝐰!

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Take 5 minutes to discuss these questions with your partner. Remember to list down your answers so that you are able to share with the group!

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𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧

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𝐆𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐩 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐮𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧

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Can you think of a specific situation where you think using a Lingua Franca would be necessary to use?

Why do you think English is the biggest Lingua Franca? (Think: historical reasons, modern times...)

Do you have an example of a language other than English that you think is popular to use as a Lingua Franca across the globe?