Do you think that there will ever be one language to unite the humans on this pl

1. 72

   Darrell Robertsposted 12 years ago

   Do you think that there will ever be one language to unite the humans on this planet?
   
   I think it would be nice to have on language of the humans.  If cultures could put their egos aside and move forward to create on language so that communication is clear among our species.

   replyreport
2. 78

   TIMETRAVELER2posted 12 years ago

   No, I don't think that will ever happen.  Right now there are more than 5,000 different languages spoken in the world, all of which are the result of history and culture.  Those things will never change, and thus the great variety of languages we have will continue.  This is both good and bad:  good because diversity is enriching and bad because this situation makes communicating very difficult.

   replyreport
   1. 72

      Darrell Robertsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I do not agree, I think in the distant future there will be a global language.  I think other languages will be preserved as well.

      replyreport
3. 72

   paul pruelposted 12 years ago

   No. I don't think it that there will be one language to unite the humans on this planet unless our Creator will decide it again. It happened already during the Biblical period - The Fall of Babylon - when God noticed that people have spoken the same language, He immediately decided to separate one to another by changing their language spoken to different languages.
   
   Assuming that all humans will use one language - there will be problem to exist. I am a Filipino - would you like to use my mother tongue Pilipino language  - if you were American, English, Arabic people, Hindi, Chinese, German and other nationalities?

   replyreport
   1. 70

      ttagpineposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      No disrespect intended, but wasn't it because the Babylonians were trying to build a tower to Heaven? So God changed everyone's languages, so they wouldn't be able to communicate with each other. So the people couldn't finish the tower.

      replyreport
   2. 72

      Darrell Robertsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I would keep my native language but I will speak the global language with  who ever does not speak my native tongue.  I really do not like being in a room when people are speaking some language that I do not know. I consider it impolite. Best wishes

      replyreport
4. 64

   SportsBetterposted 12 years ago

   Not in my lifetime.  Maybe, once we have world government it will head in that direction.

   replyreport
   1. 72

      Darrell Robertsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Maybe not in mine either.

      replyreport
5. 62

   Bob Zermopposted 12 years ago

   Well, I think even if we eventually develop a language that could be understood by everyone, the regional languages would definitely survive. I've always viewed language (and food!) as an inextricable part of culture, and I think it'd be a sad thing to lose that. That said, it would be nice to not have to use Google Translate...

   replyreport
   1. 72

      Darrell Robertsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I love Google translate. I also agree the local language should survive.  I love different languages, I just get tired of not understanding fully what the other person is saying.

      replyreport
6. 67

   conradofontanillaposted 12 years ago

   As the main factor, language is not enough to unite humans on this planet for peace. For the aim of making one global market language can serve as a means of communication. read more

   replyreport
7. 59

   Bob Green Innesposted 12 years ago

   Yup, I'm an optimist!  And I would suggest that the present situation comes as close as we ever have to one language.  I suggest that this is because the English language is such a floozie in adopting words from many cultures.  That makes our spelling rules useless - but that's fixable.  If the US continues to shoot itself in the foot by not addressing its economic problems, that prognosis might have to change but I'll keep my fingers crossed!  If we can ignore the idiots running the joint, the internet will draw us together.

   replyreport
   1. 72

      Darrell Robertsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      Hmm, Maybe we should have the computer create the language, since humans have a hard time surpressing their egos. Best wishes

      replyreport
8. 73

   lone77starposted 12 years ago

   @Darrell, I used to think as you do.
   
   It sounds nice to have one language and one government, but you need only look at monopolies to see what would happen -- selfishness and abuses.
   
   Competition between countries leads to a form of democracy and equality. Democracy isn't the best form of government (and that's why the American founding fathers chose a republic), but the freedom to choose is what makes it better than the tyranny of a one-world anything.
   
   Anyone putting their ego aside is a great thing. That's why differences are good. If everyone were alike, then ego would have no regulator -- nothing to mirror its ugliness. Differences help us see whether or not we are subduing our egos or giving in to them.
   
   I love the diversity of humanity -- the languages, the cultures, the art, the differences in opinion.
   
   Selfishness (ego) is at the heart of every problem. Having only one language or one government would only mask the problem of ego.
   
   And I used to think that government should help those who need help. But now, I see that legislated compassion leads only to tyranny and corruption. Always! And that is happening more and more in America. Compassion needs to come from the individual. America was built on that kind of egolessness and individual compassion. Now, the Orwellian double-speak has turned this concept on its head, making Government the new God (while Corporate Party elite pull the strings from behind the curtains).

   replyreport
   1. 72

      Darrell Robertsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

      I am not saying to get rid of the other languages.  I am saying to creat a level playing field so people could communicate better.  The heads of the UN could in theory come up with a solution. Best wishes

      replyreport
9. 67

   Rod Marsdenposted 12 years ago

   An attempt was made some time ago to create a language suitable for all Europeans. It didn't take. The English language is the closest thing to a universal language. As for communication being clear among our species, I don't know if that would be a good thing or not.

   replyreport
10. 84

    mattforteposted 12 years ago

    There will never be only one language - because there are already so many.
    No single language is ever going to 'unite' the people of the world. It will take a lot more than speaking the same tongue.
    
    That said - there already is a "universal" language: English.
    No, not everybody can speak it (yet).
    No, it isn't the most spoken language in the world (Mandarin).
    But it is already taught in almost every country of the world - that alone means something.
    It is the second most spoken language in the world.
    Most importantly, we have the world wide web. This is the central hub of human intelligence and communication. It's almost a collective consciousness. And English clearly dominates here. Yes, there is plenty of presence of other languages, but the disparity is huge.
    
    Since languages aren't sentient beings, no one language is going to rise up and decide to rebel - taking dominance over the English language. Instead, the current influence will simply continue to spread.
    
    The only thing that could change this is some crazy apocolyptic scenario where English dominated countries collapse...and even then it'd be difficult.
    
    Now, as far as having clear communication among our species...it isn't unreasonable to believe we may someday have a sort of universal translator technology. We already have phones that can understand us, and automated translation services on the web (even if they are rough translations). One thing people are good at doing, is improving technology. I actually find it more difficult to believe these *won't* evolve into a universal translator, than to believe that it will.
    Then - you will have what you desire.

    replyreport
    1. 72

       Darrell Robertsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       I agree Englis is the dominat language.  It would be nice to have a language that includes more languages.  People rely on technology too much. When the technology breaks people panic, some forget their brain.  Best wishes

       replyreport
11. 0

    Garifaliaposted 12 years ago

    There already is and it's English. Now whether all people will one day speak only one language, well I don't think so. That would presuppose rule under one body and that will probably not work well either. I've been studying the US where I grew up and other nations (especially my mother nation) and I found that where there were fewer people with a single identity, the people lived more harmoneously.
    
    I believe that if nature/God meant for people to be exactly the same they would have been and would have spoken the same language straight from the start. While our intentions of being united as one mass human nation may be well meaning, it is quite difficult to accomplish. The greatest example of that is the US.

    replyreport
    1. 72

       Darrell Robertsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Hmm, I think it would be nice for the global language to include inmput from other nations as well, as a sign of respect.  Best wishes

       replyreport
12. 83

    kathleenkatposted 12 years ago

    No.
    
    Historically, languages have diverged, but never converged. Just think of all the different dialects of English; seeds of a new language.
    
    That's not to say we can't all learn one language. Computer programming, for example, is free from the confines of any one spoken language.

    replyreport
13. 0

    Ghost32posted 12 years ago

    Obviously not.  Just a glance at the English of my childhood vs. the language of today--nothing "foreign", but some newly developed--include:
    
    Rap computerese rodeo lingo smack CB oilpatch trucker martial arts prison slang biker iPad iPod I bet by God most of us sound way odd.
    ----------------
    And a whole lot more.

    replyreport
    1. 72

       Darrell Robertsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       I could see your point.  I do not agree.  I think when people realize that one language would help the efficieny of daily transacions, then a global language will emerge. Best wishes.

       replyreport
14. 63

    Globetrekkermelposted 12 years ago

    The possibility is there as globalization is no longer a trend  but  a necessity for the economic  survival of a country.It may not happen soon but one homogenous language for the entire world may not be far fetched.Think of the Philippines where primarily English is generally spoken,written and understood by majority of Filipinos.The call center industry became a major industry in the Philippines because of the Filipinos proficiency in the English language.Now, the call center employees in the Philippines are also trained in other languages as an adjunct asset for their marketablity.Onother  factor that contributes to a possible creation of one language for the whole world is the ease of travel nowadays.People pick up a language when they travel places. My French was honed through my frequent travel in France. There are times I mix English,Tagalog and French in one sentence and even the accent I was told more than once that I have an English accent even when I am talking in Tagalog or my work colleagues have commented of my Filipino accent when speaking English.Bring that into the mix and  the possibility of a new language maybe created and understood by the whole world.

    replyreport
    1. 72

       Darrell Robertsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       The reasons that you have stated seems plausable in my eyes.
       Best wishes.

       replyreport
    2. 63

       Globetrekkermelposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Thank you Darrell Roberts. Just a rudimentary theory.

       replyreport
15. 63

    bizzymomposted 12 years ago

    No, I don't think so, because there are many ethnocentric societies that would not be willing to give up their language to use another.

    replyreport
    1. 72

       Darrell Robertsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Point noted.  The global language should consider all nations, so no one coutry would walk around with some grand ego, and other coutries could appreciate the language more. Best wishes.

       replyreport
16. 84

    tonymead60posted 12 years ago

    History has proved that it is not man's language that is the problem; it is man's greed and lust for power that will always prevent harmony from prevailing.

    replyreport
    1. 72

       Darrell Robertsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Cannot argue with that one. Best wishes

       replyreport
17. 80

    Attikosposted 12 years ago

    I hope not. There are already too many globalizing factors enabling wannabe authoritarians. Our safety lies in diversity, decentralization, and dispersion of power, the more the better. Politically, a universal language would be just another weapon to advance an agenda of control for ambitious institutions and leaders.

    replyreport
    1. 72

       Darrell Robertsposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       I dai agree, the saftey of the human race is more importan than the safety of one individual nation.  The human race needs to learn how to live in harmony. With one global language we could communicate much better, reducing confusion. Best wishes

       replyreport
    2. 80

       Attikosposted 12 years agoin reply to this

       Darrell, when I say "our safety," I don't mean that of my nation alone. We all, worldwide, would be put in the greatest danger by uniformity of culture, economy and government. Authoritarianism would be unavoidable. Diversity is far better.

       replyreport
18. 63

    beadreamer247posted 12 years ago

    Well, first of all English is already widely recognized as a world language. But don't underestimate the amount of people who speak Spanish. It is a strong language as well, spoken all over South America and a few places in Europe. French is a fairly strong language as well.
    Different languages developed naturally and even the English language that is spoken in several countries differs in sound and vocabulary somewhat. When you realize that - it sounds to me more unlikely that there will every be a true universal language. And I believe we should keep things the way they are. Languages are interesting and have a reason. And besides that, almost every language in the world has dialects within the country. Me being from Germany, I can tell you that I can barely understand the Bavarians, but they speak German! I can also not understand a dialect spoken way up north at the coast called 'Plattdeutsch"....it's German. And we should keep it that way. Why killing a cultural  thing when we are already loosing so many other things?

    replyreport
19. 57

    Beege215eposted 12 years ago

    replyreport