April 27th, 2011 
Nick 
There is no denying that English Language has established itself as the most prominent global language in the world. It has especially associated itself with the developed countries of the world. The language is in fact the biggest example of globalization. Some of the linguistics argue that English has gone so much ahead to dominate present day world with little regard for other minority languages.
The spread of English Language can be recounted in three major eras of its development. The imperial expansion of Britain is the first era, during which most of the European super-powers spread their influence over different parts of the world. During this period, English found the phenomenal expansion of the British Empire as the most convenient method to reach different corners of the world. The other countries that expanded their global influence during this period, but were not able to match the reach of Britain were Portugal, Spain and France.
The second era consists of the period of technological revolution, which took place two parts, the first being the initial industrial revolution led by United States and Britain, and the second being the electronic revolution led by the United States.
And the third era is the recent period of globalization. All these three eras in the development of English Language are related to each other. For instance, the era of electronic revolution led to the development of the new-age media, Internet, which led to the creation of e-mail, e-business and e-commerce, which combined to create the third era of globalization.
The development of the third era of globalization is in the process of leading English to emerge as the major language in different fields including technology, science and trade.
English Language is believed to be born in the 5th century from three different tribes of Germany. These tribes were known as the Saxons, Angles and Jutes. Around this period the language spoken in Britain was Celtic. Recent discoveries in England have found a manuscript from the 5th century A.D. that contains the first words of the language.
English was later influenced by a number of other languages including Latin, Norse, Danish, German, Greek, Arabic, Sanskrit, Hindi, Russian, Italian, Dutch, Malay, Sanskrit, Spanish, Farsi and Portuguese. The list can keep on going, but the first seven languages contributed mainly to the language.
Invention of the printing press saw the language spread faster to different parts of the world. The press introduced English as a learned language to the world. And, when the English colonized different parts of the world, the language was introduced to the people of these regions in a practical form. The spread of the language further eased the efforts of the British Empire to reach farther and deeper into the world. The long duration of the rule of the Empire is another reason which saw the language penetrate deep into different cultures.
Even after the end of the colonial rule, English Language continued to flourish in those countries as a second language. And, the creation of the Commonwealth of Nations saw English taking-up the status of the official language of these countries.
