TRANSLATE FROM / TO ENGLISH

Services of translation from / into English in our translation agency are performed by certified professional translators of English language.

We provide translation from / into English for both enterprises, including state organizations, and for private individuals as well. Our services involve all types of written / oral translation from / into English, including simultaneous interpretation.

SOME FACTS

English language, member of the West Germanic group of the Germanic subfamily of the Indo-European family of languages. Spoken by about 470 million people throughout the world, English is the official language of about 45 nations. It is the mother tongue of about 60 million persons in the British Isles, from where it spread to many other parts of the world owing to British exploring, colonizing, and empire-building from the 17th through 19th cent. It is now also the first language of an additional 228 million people in the United States; 16.5 million in Canada; 17 million in Australia; 3 million in New Zealand and a number of Pacific islands; and approximately 15 million others in different parts of the Western Hemisphere, Africa, and Asia. As a result of such expansion, English is the most widely scattered of the great speech communities. It is also the most commonly used auxiliary language in the world. The United Nations uses English not only as one of its official languages but also as one of its two working languages.

There are many dialect areas; in England and S Scotland these are of long standing, and the variations are striking; the Scottish dialect especially has been cultivated literarily. There are newer dialect differences also, such as in the United States, including regional varieties such as Southern English, and cultural varieties, such as Black English. Standard forms of English differ also; thus, the standard British (“the king's English”) is dissimilar to the several standard varieties of American and to Australian, Canadian, New Zealand, and Indian English.

History of English

Today's English is the continuation of the language of the 5th-century Germanic invaders of Britain. No records exist of preinvasion forms of the language. The language most closely related to English is the West Germanic language Frisian. The history of English is an aspect of the history of the English people and their development. Thus in the 9th cent. the standard English was the dialect of dominant Wessex. The Norman Conquest (11th cent.) brought in foreign rulers, whose native language was Norman French; and English was eclipsed by French as the official language. When English became again (14th cent.) the language of the upper class, the capital was London, and the new standard (continued in Modern Standard English) was a London dialect.

It is convenient to divide English into periods—Old English (or Anglo-Saxon; to c.1150), Middle English (to c.1500; see Middle English literature), and Modern English; this division implies no discontinuity, for even the hegemony of French affected only a small percentage of the population. The English-speaking areas have expanded at all periods. Before the Normans the language was spoken in England and S Scotland, but not in Cornwall, Wales, or, at first, in Strathclyde. English has not completely ousted the Celtic languages from the British Isles, but it has spread vastly overseas.

ENGLISH: a language of United Kingdom, United States of America, Australia and lots of other countries.
SIL code: ENG
ISO 639-1: en
ISO 639-2: eng

Population 55,000,000 first language speakers in United Kingdom (1984 estimate). Population total all countries 341,000,000 first language speakers (1999 WA), 508,000,000 including second language speakers (1999 WA).

Region Also spoken in 104 other countries including American Samoa, Andorra, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Aruba, Australia, Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bermuda, Botswana, British Indian Ocean Territory, British Virgin Islands, Brunei, Cameroon, Canada, Cayman Islands, Cook Islands, Denmark.

Dialects COCKNEY, SCOUSE, GEORDIE, WEST COUNTRY, EAST ANGLIA, BIRMINGHAM (BRUMMY, BRUMMIE), SOUTH WALES, EDINBURGH, BELFAST, CORNWALL, CUMBERLAND, CENTRAL CUMBERLAND, DEVONSHIRE, EAST DEVONSHIRE, DORSET, DURHAM, BOLTON LANCASHIRE, NORTH LANCASHIRE, RADCLIFFE LANCASHIRE, NORTHUMBERLAND, NORFOLK, NEWCASTLE NORTHUMBERLAND, TYNESIDE NORTHUMBERLAND, LOWLAND SCOTTISH, SOMERSET, SUSSEX, WESTMORLAND, NORTH WILTSHIRE, CRAVEN YORKSHIRE, NORTH YORKSHIRE, SHEFFIELD YORKSHIRE, WEST YORKSHIRE.

Classification Indo-European, Germanic, West, English.
Comments 60% lexical similarity with German, 27% with French, 24% with Russian. National language. Dictionary. Grammar. SVO; prepositions; genitives after noun heads; articles, adjectives, numerals before noun heads; question word initial; word order distinguishes subject, object, indirect objects, given and new information, topic and comment; active and passive; causative; comparative; consonant and vowel clusters; nontonal. Deciduous forest. Island, plains, hills. Industrial, fishermen, craftsman. Christian. Bible 1382-1989.

Also spoken in:
American Samoa Language name ENGLISH
Population 1,248 first language speakers in American Samoa, foreign born (1970 census), 15,050 mainly second language speakers, representing 75% of the native born population.
Comments Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Anguilla Language name ENGLISH
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Antigua and Barbuda Language name ENGLISH
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Aruba Language name ENGLISH
Dialects ARUBA ENGLISH.
Comments The third most important language. Bible 1382-1989.


Australia Language name ENGLISH
Population 15,682,000 in Australia (1987), 95% of population (1980 WA).
Dialects AUSTRALIAN STANDARD ENGLISH, ABORIGINAL ENGLISH, NEO-NYUNGAR (NOONGA, NOONGAR, NOOGAR).
Comments Minor regional dialect differences. Neo-Nyungar is the community dialect of the Nyungar people. National language. Dictionary. Bible 1382-1989.


Bahamas Language name ENGLISH
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Barbados Language name ENGLISH
Population 13,000 (1995).
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Belize Language name ENGLISH
Population Second language speakers: 55,998 in Belize (1991 census).
Comments Used in education, government, and business. National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Bermuda Language name ENGLISH
Population 58,800 in Bermuda (1989 estimate).
Dialects BERMUDAN ENGLISH.
Comments Colloquial English may not be a creole but a regional variety of uncreolized English. National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Botswana Language name ENGLISH
Alternate names SEKGOA
Comments International trade, medium of western influences, language of instruction from fifth grade, written language, official purposes, as second language. Official language. Taught as a subject from the beginning of primary school as a required subject. Officially becomes the language of instruction in Standard 5. Standard 7 exams are written in English. Medium of instruction. Newspapers, magazines, radio programs, TV. Bible 1535-1989.


British Indian Ocean Territory Language name ENGLISH
Comments The indigenous population no longer resides in the islands. Current residents include members of the USA military, a small detachment of British officials, and support staff, mainly of Mauritian and Philippine origin. Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


British Virgin Islands Language name ENGLISH
Population 2,000 (1998).
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Brunei Language name ENGLISH
Population 8,000 in Brunei. 16% of ethnic Chinese speak English as first language. Probably other first language speakers.
Comments Government, education. Used increasingly by educated speakers as first or second language. National language. Newspapers, TV. Bible 1535-1989.


Cameroon Language name ENGLISH
Comments Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Canada Language name ENGLISH
Population 17,100,000 mother tongue speakers in Canada, or 60% of the population (1998 Statistics Canada). 820,000 mother tongue speakers in Quebec (1995 Statistics Canada); plus another 1,500,000 in Quebec whose first or second language is English (1995 Statistics Canada).
Dialects NEWFOUNDLAND ENGLISH.
Comments National language. Bible 1382-1989.


Cayman Islands Language name ENGLISH
Population 9,200 (1993).
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Cook Islands Language name ENGLISH
Population 683 in Cook Islands (1966 UN report).
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Dominica Language name ENGLISH
Dialects DOMINICAN ENGLISH.
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Eritrea Language name ENGLISH
Comments Language of higher education and many technical fields. National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Ethiopia Language name ENGLISH
Population 1,986 mother tongue speakers, 169,726 second language users (1998 census).
Comments Language of higher education, many technical fields, and international communication. Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Falkland Islands Language name ENGLISH
Population 1,991 in Falkland Islands (1993 Johnstone).
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Fiji Language name ENGLISH
Population 4,929 Europeans in Fiji (1976 census). An additional 10,276 or 1.8% of population (1976 census) are part-European, and speak English and Fijian.
Comments Also used by many urban Chinese (4,652 in 1976), Rotuman, occasionally by Indians, rarely by Fijians (P. Geraghty 1981). Main language of commerce, education, government. There are also reports of a Fijian Pidgin English. National language. Newspapers, radio programs. Bible 1535-1989.


Gambia Language name ENGLISH
Comments Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Ghana Language name ENGLISH
Population Second language speakers: 1,000,000 (1977 Voegelin and Voegelin).
Comments Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Gibraltar Language name ENGLISH
Population 3,300 in Gibraltar (1993 Johnstone).
Dialects YANITO.
Comments Yanito is spoken by most Gibraltarians among themselves. It is a dialect of English with a strong Spanish influence, with over 500 words coming from Genoese (Ligurian) and Hebrew. Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Grenada Language name ENGLISH
Dialects GRENADIAN ENGLISH.
Comments Post-creole English with French Creole influences (M. Alleyne). National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Guam Language name ENGLISH
Population 28,800 in Guam (1987).
Comments USA military and dependents. National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Guyana Language name ENGLISH
Dialects GUYANESE ENGLISH.
Comments Spoken as first language by some Blacks and some Hindustanis. National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Honduras Language name ENGLISH
Population 9,000 first language speakers in Honduras.
Comments Bible 1535-1989.


India Language name ENGLISH
Population Second language speakers: 11,021,610 (1961 census).
Comments Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Ireland Language name ENGLISH
Population 2,600,000 in Ireland (1983 estimate).
Dialects SOUTH HIBERNO ENGLISH, NORTH HIBERNO ENGLISH.
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Israel Language name ENGLISH
Population 100,000 in Israel (1993).
Alternate names ANGLIT
Comments Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Jamaica Language name ENGLISH
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Kenya Language name ENGLISH
Population Mainly second language speakers.
Comments Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Kiribati Language name ENGLISH
Population 338 in Kiribati (1978 census).
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Lebanon Language name ENGLISH
Comments Has been used to some extent since the founding of the American University of Beirut in 1866. Many English language publications. Not spoken on the street or in Lebanese homes. Bible 1535-1989.


Lesotho Language name ENGLISH
Comments Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Liberia Language name ENGLISH
Population 69,000 or 2.5% of the population are Americo-Liberian (1993).
Dialects LIBERIAN STANDARD ENGLISH.
Comments Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Malawi Language name ENGLISH
Population 16,000 in Malawi (1993).
Comments Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Malaysia (Peninsular) Language name ENGLISH
Comments Bible 1535-1989.


Malta Language name ENGLISH
Population 2,400 speakers in Malta (1993 Johnstone).
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Marshall Islands Language name ENGLISH
Comments Bible 1535-1989.


Mauritius Language name ENGLISH
Population 3,000 in Mauritius (1993 Johnstone).
Comments Used in secondary school, courts, for road signs. Not widely known. Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Micronesia Language name ENGLISH
Population 3,540 first language speakers in Micronesia, foreign born (1970 census).
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Midway Islands Language name ENGLISH
Population 2,256 in Midway (1975 WA).
Comments National language. 99% USA military. Bible 1535-1989.


Montserrat Language name ENGLISH
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Namibia Language name ENGLISH
Population 10,941 in Namibia (1991 census).
Comments Not understood or spoken by everyone. Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Nauru Language name ENGLISH
Population 564 first language speakers, 7,254 including second language users (1979 Government figures).
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Netherlands Antilles Language name ENGLISH
Comments Post-creole English is the dialect used (Alleyne). The third most important language in Netherlands Antilles. Bible 1382-1989.


New Zealand Language name ENGLISH
Population 3,213,000 in New Zealand (1987), 90% of the population.
Comments National language. Bible 1382-1989.


Nigeria Language name ENGLISH
Population Second language speakers: 1,000,000 (1977 Voegelin and Voegelin).
Comments Used in government, education. Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Niue Language name ENGLISH
Population Second language speakers in Niue: 2,082.
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Norfolk Island Language name ENGLISH
Population 1,678 in Norfolk Island (1980 Government report).
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Northern Mariana Islands Language name ENGLISH
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Pakistan Language name ENGLISH
Comments Mainly second language speakers in Pakistan. Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Palau Language name ENGLISH
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Papua New Guinea Language name ENGLISH
Population 50,000 in Papua New Guinea (1987), 1.5% of the population.
Comments Official language. Used in schools. Bible 1535-1989.


Philippines Language name ENGLISH
Population 32,802 in Philippines (1990 census). 52% of the population said they could speak it as a second language (1980 census).
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Pitcairn Language name ENGLISH
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Puerto Rico Language name ENGLISH
Population 82,000 mother tongue speakers (1995), 376,371 second language users (1970 census).
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Rwanda Language name ENGLISH
Population Mainly second language speakers.
Comments There may be more users of English than of French. Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Seychelles Language name ENGLISH
Population 1,601 in Seychelles (1971 census).
Comments Principal language of the schools. Official language. Bible 1382-1989.


Sierra Leone Language name ENGLISH
Comments Used in administration, law, education, commerce. Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Singapore Language name ENGLISH
Population 227,000 speakers, 8.9% of population, 729,000 second language users (literate in English) in Singapore, 28.5% of population (1985 estimate).
Comments Ethnic groups which use English: Chinese 154,000, 68%; European and Eurasian 34,000, 15%; Indian 32,000, 14%; Malay 6,000, 3%. Chinese varieties and Tamil also used at home. National language. Bible 1382-1989.


Solomon Islands Language name ENGLISH
Comments National language. Bible 1382-1989.


Somalia Language name ENGLISH
Comments Used more in the north. Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


South Africa Language name ENGLISH
Population 3,500,000 in South Africa (1991 Christos van Rensburg), 9.1% of the population (1995 The Economist).
Comments The main means of communication in urban areas. Many second generation people from India, Portugal, Germany, and Greece speak English as first language. Official language. Bible 1382-1989.


Sri Lanka Language name ENGLISH
Population 97,000 first language speakers in Sri Lanka (1962).
Comments Bible 1535-1989.


St. Helena Language name ENGLISH
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


St. Kitts-Nevis Language name ENGLISH
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


St. Lucia Language name ENGLISH
Dialects ST. LUCIAN ENGLISH.
Comments There is an emerging English vernacular on St. Lucia, in a certain rural area. It is significantly restructured, heavily French creole-influenced, English lexicon (Paul Garrett 1998). National language. Bible 1535-1989.


St. Pierre and Miquelon Language name ENGLISH
Population 188 in St. Pierre and Miquelon (1967 census).
Comments Bible 1535-1989.


St. Vincent and the Grenadines Language name ENGLISH
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Swaziland Language name ENGLISH
Comments Taught in all government and private schools. National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Tanzania Language name ENGLISH
Population Second language speakers in Tanzania: 1,500,000 (1977 Voegelin and Voegelin).
Comments Used by some Asian residents as mother tongue. Taught in secondary school and university. Bible 1535-1989.


Tokelau Language name ENGLISH
Comments Used in schools. National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Tonga Language name ENGLISH
Comments Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Trinidad and Tobago Language name ENGLISH
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Turks and Caicos Islands Language name ENGLISH
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


U.S. Virgin Islands Language name ENGLISH
Population 8,414 mother tongue speakers in U.S. Virgin Islands (1970 census).
Comments National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Uganda Language name ENGLISH
Population Second language speakers: 1,000,000 (1977 Voegelin and Voegelin).
Comments Used in primary schools, law courts. Official language. Newspapers, radio programs. Bible 1535-1989.


USA Language name ENGLISH
Population 210,000,000 first language speakers in USA (1984 estimate). 8,400,000 USA residents with no one 14 years old or older who speaks fluent English; 38% or 7,700,000 households headed by immigrants.
Dialects BLACK ENGLISH.
Comments There are many regional dialects. Official language. Bible 1382-1989.


Vanuatu Language name ENGLISH
Population 1,900 in Vanuatu (1995), 1.1% of the population.
Comments First language speakers are from the United Kingdom. National language. Bible 1535-1989.


Wake Island Language name ENGLISH
Population 1,730 on Wake Island (1987).
Comments National language. 99% USA military. Bible 1535-1989.


Western Samoa Language name ENGLISH
Comments Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Zambia Language name ENGLISH
Population 41,434 in Zambia (1969 census).
Comments Spoken as mother tongue by Europeans mainly. A small minority of Zambian Africans speak it as a mother tongue. Used as a second language. The only language of Parliament. Official language. Bible 1535-1989.


Zimbabwe Language name ENGLISH
Population 375,490 in Zimbabwe (1969 census).
Comments Spoken by most Europeans and an increasing number of Africans. Used in all or most education. Official language. Newspapers. Bible 1535-1989.