Global status of English | What is the global status of English for global communication? | loserark

 

The global status of English for global communication:

English is the mostly frequently used language for communication with people from different countries. At present, English  is used as a international language, global language, and lingua franca. 

According to Neeley (2012), Today 1.7 billion people speak English at a useful level . Among them there are 400 million native speakers (Crystal, 2003, P.67), 600 million speak English as a second language, and 600 million speak as a foreign language. More than 80% of communication in English is held between non-native speakers of English (Crystal, 2003). 

Similarly, Graddol (2006) projects that in the next 10-15 years, the number of English speakers is likely to reach a peak of around 2 billion.