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GLOBAL COMMUNICATION: BEWARE OF ASSUMPTIONS!
– Gina “Giulia” Merola
If you assumed that English was going to become the main language of the globalization era, you might be surprised…
Yes, the idea of using one language for the myriad of cultures existing on our planet is not a new concept. Individuals have been trying to find a unified tool of communication for centuries. For instance, around 1300, Dante Alighieri, with its revolutionary work, De Vulgari Eloquentia (Djité [2], 2006) tried to unify Italy's hundreds of dialects into one simple language for the masses compared to the more complex and élitarian Latin. Dialects in Italy, though, exist to this day.
Nowadays the globalization phenomena foster language diversity. Fluxes of people are constantly moving around the globe following unpredictable currents of migrations. This evolution in a multicultural demography is the source of a continuous language shift. For the above reasons, companies eager to ride the wave of free trade should consider that "global reach or the ability to cross both geographical and cultural borders is something that should presumably include knowledge of and sensitivity to linguistic diversity." (Kelly-Holmes[1], 2006)
Companies seeking international development cannot lack this sensitivity, which might cause ambiguity, incomprehension and consequent obstacles to the company's potential growth. Corporate communication, both on an internal level (within the company's offices located in different countries) and an external one (towards its consumers) has to embrace language diversity. Internal communication, in this contest, defines any sort of language interaction a given company has with branch offices located in a different country. English native speakers should not assume or expect that the business jargon they commonly use can be understood and correctly interpreted by non-native English speakers. As an Italian-born citizen living in an English speaking country and working for an Italian company, I experience instances of communication loss due to misuse of the English language. A simple example is the use of common acronyms that do not translate into the message-receiver mother tongue. Although it might seem shocking, the expression "FYI" is not universally and automatically recognized. Additionally while references to American sports is utilized in corporate America, they might have a negative impact on translations for international companies. Here is a good example:
The assumption that paper can universally mean newspaper is incorrect. It is unlikely that people living abroad, unless particularly interested in American football, would know the Chicago football team, the Bears. Idiomatic expressions such as "turning the double play" cannot be part of corporate business communication, and as seen in the above example, complex phrasal verbs can easily be misunderstood.
Given that English is the language of conversational business, one might assume that English is also the lingua franca on the internet. However, a study conducted by Professor Holmes at the University of Limerick shows that "while English performs a limited hyper-central function on commercial websites, its prevalence is outweighed by other languages (…). The main challenge to the hyper-centrality of English appears to come from smaller languages, which are showing up more frequently in the profile of websites offered by global brands. It is the central languages, particularly of Europe, that are being noticed everyday on the commercial internet website." Holmes noted: "when I began looking at these [global brands'] websites, McDonald's had no website in Arabic at all, however, within a few months, that situation had changed, and the McDonald's Arabia site had appeared (www.mcdonaldsarabia.com). While global brands see the internet as the key to 'conquer' different cultures and markets, they should also realize that one of the effect and condition sine equa non of globalization is language diversity.
In conclusion, "language choice and use in multilingual contexts show individuals and communities to be very active agents, whose language practices reveal an incredible capacity to empower themselves where and when it matters most." And most of all "primitive man or speech community, monolingual and monocultural at the core, with ordinary and predictable language and social behaviours is a dying species" (Djité[2], 2006)
If you assumed that English was going to become the main language of the globalization era, you might be surprised…
Yes, the idea of using one language for the myriad of cultures existing on our planet is not a new concept. Individuals have been trying to find a unified tool of communication for centuries. For instance, around 1300, Dante Alighieri, with its revolutionary work, De Vulgari Eloquentia (Djité [2], 2006) tried to unify Italy's hundreds of dialects into one simple language for the masses compared to the more complex and élitarian Latin. Dialects in Italy, though, exist to this day.
Nowadays the globalization phenomena foster language diversity. Fluxes of people are constantly moving around the globe following unpredictable currents of migrations. This evolution in a multicultural demography is the source of a continuous language shift. For the above reasons, companies eager to ride the wave of free trade should consider that "global reach or the ability to cross both geographical and cultural borders is something that should presumably include knowledge of and sensitivity to linguistic diversity." (Kelly-Holmes[1], 2006)
Companies seeking international development cannot lack this sensitivity, which might cause ambiguity, incomprehension and consequent obstacles to the company's potential growth. Corporate communication, both on an internal level (within the company's offices located in different countries) and an external one (towards its consumers) has to embrace language diversity. Internal communication, in this contest, defines any sort of language interaction a given company has with branch offices located in a different country. English native speakers should not assume or expect that the business jargon they commonly use can be understood and correctly interpreted by non-native English speakers. As an Italian-born citizen living in an English speaking country and working for an Italian company, I experience instances of communication loss due to misuse of the English language. A simple example is the use of common acronyms that do not translate into the message-receiver mother tongue. Although it might seem shocking, the expression "FYI" is not universally and automatically recognized. Additionally while references to American sports is utilized in corporate America, they might have a negative impact on translations for international companies. Here is a good example:
| Original statement made by an American speaker based in Chicago | Meaning perceived by an Italian-born English speaker (English spoken as second language) |
| "Ok Stefano, I am not going to bring the client the paper every day, because I can get sales from him thanks to the fact that he is a Bear's fan. I will be turning the double play because with one call I will get him and his other partner hooked up with our product -got that?" | OK Stefano, I am not going to bring the client a piece of paper every day, because I can receive sales from him thanks to the fact that he likes bears. I will play twice with him because with one call I will catch him and his other partner hanged up with our product-do you have that? |
The assumption that paper can universally mean newspaper is incorrect. It is unlikely that people living abroad, unless particularly interested in American football, would know the Chicago football team, the Bears. Idiomatic expressions such as "turning the double play" cannot be part of corporate business communication, and as seen in the above example, complex phrasal verbs can easily be misunderstood.
Given that English is the language of conversational business, one might assume that English is also the lingua franca on the internet. However, a study conducted by Professor Holmes at the University of Limerick shows that "while English performs a limited hyper-central function on commercial websites, its prevalence is outweighed by other languages (…). The main challenge to the hyper-centrality of English appears to come from smaller languages, which are showing up more frequently in the profile of websites offered by global brands. It is the central languages, particularly of Europe, that are being noticed everyday on the commercial internet website." Holmes noted: "when I began looking at these [global brands'] websites, McDonald's had no website in Arabic at all, however, within a few months, that situation had changed, and the McDonald's Arabia site had appeared (www.mcdonaldsarabia.com). While global brands see the internet as the key to 'conquer' different cultures and markets, they should also realize that one of the effect and condition sine equa non of globalization is language diversity.
In conclusion, "language choice and use in multilingual contexts show individuals and communities to be very active agents, whose language practices reveal an incredible capacity to empower themselves where and when it matters most." And most of all "primitive man or speech community, monolingual and monocultural at the core, with ordinary and predictable language and social behaviours is a dying species" (Djité[2], 2006)
[1] Multilingualism and commercial language practices on the internet by Helen Kelly-Holmes, department of Languages and Cultural Studies, University of Limerick, Ireland, 2006.
[2] Shifts in linguistic identities in a global world by Paulin G. Djité, chair of the division of Languages and Linguistics of the University of Western Sidney, 2006.
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Latest page update: made by airawan
, May 24 2007, 9:23 PM EDT
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