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Monday, October 31, 2011

English and Language Borrowing

English has exerted an unprecedented amount of influence over other languages worldwide.  English has also borrowed from other languages.  For example, in the beginning days of the formation of England the language was heavily influenced by Latin, mainly through Old French.

The growth of England and the United Kingdom during and after the industrial revolution set English up to yet another path of influence with the unprecedented growth and success of the United States.  As industrialization and technology spread to other continents and non-English speaking countries they started to adopt many English words.  Most of these words found their way into other languages and are adapted to assimilate linguistically into the host language.  Brazil is no exception.  In fact, the more a country imports technology and industrialization, the more they tend to borrow from English.

In Brazil the word for billboard is "Outdoor" (pronounced "Ouchydoor").  The word for pick-nick is "peekineeky".  "Hot dog" is "hotchydoggy".  "Tennis shoes" is "tenis" and bascketball is "basquetchy".  The list goes on and on.  Note that the Portuguese language borrows heavily from English, but English does not borrow from the Portuguese language.  With the exception of the word "dodo" (came from the Portuguese word doudo) and I can't think of any Portuguese word that became part of the English everyday vocabulary.  Most Americans are aware of "piranha" (pirana), carnauba wax, and caipirinha, but these are names, not words.

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