Imperialism

There are numerous factors which lead to shift of a language in a community. In a country like Pakistan, where a person’s status is determined by his economic condition and to attain a better economic and social status , a person must get a better job and a good job is impossible without knowing English. Moreover, business transactions are all done in English, all the legal paper work is in English.So even if a businessman himself is not that much educated, he wants his children to learn English because of the all the benefits associated with it . Manan (2011)also highlights these factors:

2.2    Economic, social and political factor (Manan, 2011)

1-The dominant language is associated with social status and prestige

2-Obtaining work is the obvious economic reason for learning another language

3-The pressure of institutional domains such as schools and the media

In Pakistan also people are shifting their focus to English medium education because they also want to get the benefits others are reaping because of their proficiency in the English language. They want to enjoy a high social status and get good jobs. Moreover, all the higher education is in English, so it is considered a necessity by many.                                

Demographic factors

1-Language shift is faster in urban areas than rural

2-The size of the group is sometimes a critical factor

3-Intermarriage between groups can accelerate language shift (Manan, 2011).

Demographic factors are also responsible for the shift of language. With the advent of new technology and easy mobility in the country and outside the country, people need a common language to communicate in, which happens to be English for being the most popular language of the world. “At present, English has become the most dominant international language.”(Burchfield, 1985,p.160)

Attitudes and values

1-Language shift is slower among communities where the minority language is highly valued, therefore when the language is seen as an important symbol of ethnic identity its generally maintained longer, and vice versa(Manan, 2011).But such is not the case in Pakistan, unfortunately its national language, Urdu does not hold any superior status nor is it used for any official purposes, so it is losing its ground. According to Ghulam (2008), “Our country is in a state of linguistic confusion.”

Now  let  us  discuss  why  English  language  holds  a  superior  status in Pakistan. What does ‘Linguistic Imperialism’ mean and what are its consequences in Pakistan and the rest of the world?

In the book’ Linguistic Imperialism’, Robert Phillipson(1992) raises the point that English Language Teaching doesn’t happen in thin air, it is connected with politics and economy. Phillipson(1992) argues that the inner circle countries (where English is the native language) have used English to suppress the people of the formers colonies. It gives rise to discussions among scholars and educators with regard to the status of other languages speakers in the world. The responsibility lies with the policy-makers in the countries where these neo-colonial relationships exist to devise a plan in the language context which is suitable for them.