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In
this lesson you will learn about the different English accents in
the United States| Learning objectives | ||
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| English in the United States | ||
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What is the official language of the United States? English? No. The United States does not have an official language. Surprised? The United States does not have an official language, but English is spoken by about 82% of the population as a native language. English (specifically, American English) is the language used for legislation, regulations, executive orders, treaties, federal court rulings, and all other official pronouncements. The variety of English spoken in the United States is known as American English; together with Canadian English it makes up the group of dialects known as North American English. On May 18, 2006, the Senate voted on an amendment to an immigration reform bill that would declare English the national language of the United States. The immigration reform bill itself, S. 2611, was passed in the Senate on May 25, 2006, and now has to go back to the House of Representatives in conference to make sure amendments are agreed upon. Many individual states and territories have adopted English as their official language.
 California, on one hand, agreed to allow the publication of state
documents in other languages to represent minority groups and
immigrant communities. Languages, such as Spanish, Chinese, Korean,
Tagalog, Persian, Russian, Vietnamese and Thai appear in official
state documents, and the Department of Motor Vehicles publishes in
47 languages.English is the official language of the states colored in dark blue. It is one of multiple official languages in the states colored in light blue. Several states and territories are officially or de facto bi- or trilingual: Hawaii (English and Hawaiian) (1978) Louisiana (English and French legally recognized, although there is no official language) New Mexico (English and Spanish de facto) Maine (English and French de facto) American Samoa (Samoan and English) Guam (Chamorro and English) Northern Mariana Islands (English, Chamorro, and Carolinian) Puerto Rico (Spanish and English) The state of New York had state government documents (i.e., vital records) co-written in the Dutch language until the 1920s, in order to preserve the legacy of New Netherlands, though England annexed the colony in 1664. Native American languages are official or co-official on many of the US Indian reservations and pueblos. In Oklahoma before statehood in 1907, territory officials debated whether or not to have Cherokee, Choctaw and Muscogee languages as co-official, but the idea never gained ground. In New Mexico, although the state constitution does not specify an official language, laws are published in English and Spanish, and government material and services must be made accessible to speakers of both languages. This is part of the provisions in the 1848 Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo. The issue of bilingualism also applies in the states of Arizona and Texas, while the constitution of Texas has no official language policy. Arizona passed a proposition in the November 7, 2006 general election declaring English as the official language. But historical bilingual representation existed in the Southwest states. In 2000, the census bureau printed the standard census questionnaires in six languages: English, Spanish, Korean, Chinese (in traditional characters), Vietnamese, and Tagalog. On May 18, 2006, the United States Senate voted to make English the national language of the United States. According to the bill, written by Sen. James M. Inhofe (R-Okla.), the federal government would no longer provide multilingual communications and services, except for those already guaranteed by law. Shortly after the approval of the Inhofe amendment, the Senate voted for another bill by Sen. Ken Salazar (D-Colo.), according to which English is the "common unifying language of the United States", but mandated that nothing in that declaration "shall diminish or expand any existing rights" regarding multilingual services. Neither of the bills were signed into law. The English-only movement seeks to establish English as the only official language of the entire nation. Bibliography “Languages of the United States.” wikipedia.org. 7 Nov. 2007. Wikipedia. 7 Nov. 2007 <Languages of the United States>. |
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