More and more people
realize that every educated person should know a foreign language. The
most popular language now is English. English is a world language. It’s
the language of progressive science and technology, trade and cultural
relation, commerce and business. It’s the universal language of
international aviation, shipping and sports. It is also the major
language of diplomacy. Hundreds and hundreds of books, magazines and
newspapers are printed in English and are read all over the world. 75%
of the world’s mail and 60% of the world’s telephone calls are in
English. Half of the world’s scientific literature is written in English
too. English is spoken by more than 350 million people. It is the
official language of the UK of the USA, of Australia and New Zealand.
English is used as one of the official languages in Canada, the Republic
of South Africa and the Irish Republic. It’s also spoken as a second
language by speakers in many parts of Asia and Africa. The number of
second language speakers may soon exceed the number of native speakers.
In Russia English is very popular: it is studied at schools, colleges,
universities, and sometimes even at nurse schools. Learning a
foreign language is not an easy thing. It is a long and slow process
that takes a lot of time and patience. But to know languages today is
absolutely necessary for everyone. I want to know foreign language
because I have always been interested in foreign countries and their
cultures. You know I think that who doesn’t know a foreign language,
doesn’t know his own language.
