British English
British English is a term used to distinguish the form of the
English language used in the
British Isles from forms used elsewhere. It includes all the varieties of English used within the Isles, including those found in
England,
Scotland,
Ireland, and
Wales. The term is used especially by those outside the British Isles, as well as by linguists and lexicographers; British people themselves generally use the term 'Standard English' or merely 'English'.
As with English as spoken around the world, the English language as spoken in the
United Kingdom and
Ireland is governed by convention rather than formal code: there is no equivalent body to the Acadmie franaise, and the authoritative dictionaries record usage rather than prescribe it.
Encyclopedia
British English is a term used to distinguish the form of the
English language used in the
British Isles from forms used elsewhere. It includes all the varieties of English used within the Isles, including those found in
England,
Scotland,
Ireland, and
Wales. The term is used especially by those outside the British Isles, as well as by linguists and lexicographers; British people themselves generally use the term 'Standard English' or merely 'English'.
As with English as spoken around the world, the English language as spoken in the
United Kingdom and
Ireland is governed by convention rather than formal code: there is no equivalent body to the
Académie française, and the authoritative dictionaries record usage rather than prescribe it. As a result there is significant variation in grammar, usage, spelling, and vocabulary. In addition, vocabulary and usage change with time; words are freely borrowed from other languages and other strains of English, and neologisms are frequent.
While there is a meaningful degree of uniformity in formal written English in the UK and Ireland, the forms of spoken English used vary considerably more than in most other areas of the world where English is spoken. Dialects and accents vary not only between the nations of the British Isles, for example in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, but also within these countries themselves. The written form of the language, as taught in schools, is the same as in the rest of the English-speaking world , with a slight emphasis on words whose usage varies amongst the different regions of the UK. For example, although the words "wee" and "little" are interchangeable in some contexts, one is more likely to see "wee" written by a Scottish or Northern Irish person than by an English person.
For historical reasons dating back to the rise of
London in the 9th century, the form of language spoken in London and the
East Midlands became standard English within the Court, and thus the form generally accepted for use in the law, government, literature and education within the British Isles. To a great extent, modern British spelling was standardised in
Samuel Johnson's
A Dictionary of the English Language , although previous writers had also played a significant role in this and much has changed since 1755.
The widespread usage of English across the world is partly attributable to the former power of the
British Empire, and this is reflected in the use of British written forms in many parts of the world. The most common form of English used by the British ruling class is that of south-east England . This form of the language is associated with Received Pronunciation , which is still regarded by many people outside the UK as "the British accent". However, even RP has evolved quite markedly over the last 40 years.
From the second half of the 20th century to the present day, the preeminence of the English language has been augmented by the economic, military, political and cultural dominance of the United States in world affairs. Nevertheless, the British Isles retains a major cultural influence, in particular on the English used, as a first or additional language, in many
Commonwealth countries and former British colonies .
See also
- American and British English differences
References
- Bragg, M. 'The Adventure of English', Sceptre. ISBN 0-340-82993-1
