Are Americans proud of English?

With the way some people freak out over any indication that the language is shifting or evolving, you’d think so.

I’ve heard a lot of Americans become upset at the mention of languages other than English being spoken in the US, but I’m not sure if that’s the same as pride. I’ve also spoken to a few Americans who like English, and who are interested in the history behind it, but again I’m not sure if that’s the same thing as being proud of it.

Not especially. Most Americans do want to be spoken to in English though. There’s a certain percentage of citizens that feel offended when a different language is spoken within our borders.

I can tell you that I don’t appreciate it when Britons refer to our language as American. I know there are many differences between British English and American English, but for some reason it rubs be the wrong way to hear our version referred to as just “American”.

Since there is no true native tongue and no national language in America I think we are growing accustomed to hearing many languages a day depending on where you live. Just a few blocks away from where I live I can’t tell you what store is what because it is all in Russian and down from there it is all in Korean.
Now….If you find yourself in the American Bible Belt and you are anything other than a missionary and you are speaking another language, it is possible that someone might steal from you, take advantage of you and or lead you down a dirt road to be robbed. Word to the wise….In America, stick to the coasts and great lakes. The middle is a strange place.

I am English and I can’t say I’m proud to be an English speaker. I feel that many English speakers are lazy compared to other language speakers. We seem to feel that because many non English speakers can speak English from an early age that we don’t have to learn others to be able to communicate when in other countries, we are arrogant enough to assume that everyone is happy to speak to us in English.

Now, of course I’m really generalising here. Plenty of English speakers can speak other languages and I have a lot of respect for them. I am one of the guilty ones, I can speak little bits of a variety of languages but nothing fluently. When in other countries I do try to learn as much of the native language as possible but I really wish that, at least in the UK, learning a foreign language fluently was compulsory at school.

“I love Americans, but not when they try to talk French. What a blessing it is that they never try to talk English.” – H.H. “Saki” Munro

I think a person can feel pride in their skill of a language but not necessarily pride in the actual language. I didn’t develop it so why would I feel pride in it. I do take some pride in America’s history because not all of it was bad but there are things that are not admirable. We’ve had our shiny star moments and our bury our heads in shame moments. It is not exclusive to America. Many nations can say the same. The only thing that language has to say about our country is who was here and the largest influence.

“Why can’t the English learn to set
A good example to people whose
English is painful to your ears?
The Scotch and the Irish leave you close to tears.
There even are places where English completely
disappears. In America, they haven’t used it for years! ”
Professor Henry Higgins, My Fair Lady

I think America can look on its particular form of English with some pride.

It is important to separate that they do not speak UK English. Much like French Canada doesn’t speak the French they speak in France. (and there are many other colonies I could point to in Africa and you can say what you like about their English or their French.)

America has a great heritage of its own when it comes to its written literature and spoken word in plays. Every right to be proud. I just wish their education system wasn’t in such a mess and I worry about the future of the language and preservation and appreciation of it’s treasures.

Dude. Like 3 days ago I found Bill Bryson’s “The Mother Tongue” at a used book store for 4 bucks….I got it and have barely put it down. It is fascinating. I used to think “I wanna speak a COOL LANGUAGE, like ARABIC! Or…whatever!” But English is amazing….it is a conglomeration of so much shit, and has changed for so many reasons and in so many ways over the past year, ten years, hundred years, thousand years. It’s such a….bounty…of a language. We have so many options for so many words and forms and yada yada. Yeah. American English is cool shit. @Pandora I don’t feel “proud” of it like, “this language is my brainchild!” I feel proud of the fact that I can speak a neat language and am perfectly fluent in it. So many people want to be fluent in English, and we take it for granted that we are.

I a have certain affection for American additions to the language. Like “copacetic”, “gerrymander” and “picayune”.

Like, well, put, @deni , dude. ;o)

@deni, that book is so incredible! I’ve had it for years and given it to several friends. It has given me also more pride in American English, and is responsible for much of my love of books on language.

@GracieT Yeah I think more people should read it, and Bill Bryson in general. He is awwwwweeeeeeeesome. I will definitely pass it around my circle of friends lol

They should be. Like everyone else. Most of the people in Britain who have a problem with American English are retired or about to retire or ignorant.

From a linguistics point of view there’s only one English language, but dozens of variations, as there are in French and in German. The differences are sometimes funny, but to the younger generation it’s no big deal. They travel and enjoy meeting people. Every variation/dialect is correct and coexisting peacefully with each other. My son studies in Vienna and he picked up at least 100 new words during his first weeks. One of the most successful French films ever is http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bienvenue_chez_les_Ch'tis and believe me the two variations of French in this film sound further apart than the English spoken in Oxford and Dallas.

Every speaker of any variation of any language can be proud. Texans, Scots, Australians. And everyone does contribute to new vocabulary. Now with English being the global language even non-native speakers start to contribute as the recent English example of the word earworm clearly proved, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earworm

Ever had an earworm?

And, yes, Bill Bryson is awesome. I love all his books.