Globalism and the Universal Language: The Lessons of the Past*

Abstract

The idea of one common language for all mankind appeared for the first time, in European thought, during the Renaissance. In the years immediately following the Second World War there was a strong and serious revival of interest in the possibilities of a universal language. Although the achievement of common language for all humanity may still seem far away, it may well no longer be a dream or a theoretical game of linguists. The rising status of English as an international language, especially in the era of contemporary Globalism, has put this old/new issue into yet another perspective..