# Is British a foreign language? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 12, 2003, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142 "2003-01-12T15:46:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 3:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/1 "2003-01-12T15:46:54Z")
I’m sure there will be opinions o’ plenty, but I’m hoping there is a factual answer as well. In another thread, somebody fabricated the phrase “2 aeroplanes” to generate more “proof” for the 11-letter-WTC-coincidence nonsense. I scolded him for resorting to “foreign language translations” in order to fabricate more “proof”. Although the scolding was proper, I’m wondering if I should have called British a foreign language. In the dictionary we have: ```auto Brit·ish *adj.* 1. a. Of or relating to Great Britain or its people, language, or culture. b.Of or relating to the United Kingdom or the Commonwealth of Nations. 2. Of or relating to the ancient Britons. *n.* 1. (used with a pl. verb) The people of Great Britain. 2. British English. 3. The Celtic language of the ancient Britons. ``` Is British a foreign language? ---
**Author:** ![raygirvan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac91a4/32.png) [@raygirvan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raygirvan)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 3:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/2 "2003-01-12T15:57:14Z")
No. The linguistic description of the situation is that “English” is the language: “British English” and “American English” are dialects (i.e. variants) of English. ---
**Author:** ![jjimm](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba8739/32.png) [@jjimm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jjimm)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/3 "2003-01-12T16:06:10Z")
“British English” (which IMO is a misnomer anyway, as there are so many variations of it) is a different dialect to “American English”. So from the POV of an American, I think it could be correctly seen as a “foreign dialect”, not a “foreign language”. Though I always think it’s a good idea to remember where the word “English” actually comes from. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/96bed5/32.png) [@Patty\_O\_Furniture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Patty_O_Furniture)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 4:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/4 "2003-01-12T16:10:44Z")
> [@](#): > > Though I always think it’s a good idea to remember where the word “English” actually comes from. A foreign country? ---
**Author:** ![Early\_Out](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/6f9a4e/32.png) [@Early\_Out](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Early_Out)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/5 "2003-01-12T16:25:19Z")
¿Que? ¿Que? ---
**Author:** ![sailor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a587f6/32.png) [@sailor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sailor)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/6 "2003-01-12T16:46:09Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Early Out \* > \*\*¿Que? ¿Que? \*\* [Basil Fawlty] Is that you, Manuel from Barcelona? [/Basil Fawlty] ---
**Author:** ![Monty](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/monty/32/47_2.png) [@Monty](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Monty)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 4:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/7 "2003-01-12T16:50:45Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by jjimm \* (bolding mine for the purpose of this post only, btw) > “British English” (which IMO is a misnomer anyway, as there are so many variations of it) is a different dialect \*\*to[/b[ “American English”. And what I’ve bolded here is a good example of a dialectism. In my dialect of English, one would say “different than” instead of “different to.” ---
**Author:** ![raygirvan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac91a4/32.png) [@raygirvan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raygirvan)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 4:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/8 "2003-01-12T16:59:17Z")
_jjimm “British English” (which IMO is a misnomer anyway, as there are so many variations of it)_ Point taken: by “British English” I meant “British Standard English”. Dialect is correct, anyway. Obviously the mystical effects behind 11-letter-WTC-coincidences speak US English, so it’s ridiculous to claim they work with foreign dialects. :rolleyes: ---
**Author:** ![rampisad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/858c86/32.png) [@rampisad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/rampisad)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/9 "2003-01-12T18:54:00Z")
Different **to** 😕 Different **than** 😕 Where I learned to speak **ENGLISH** we said Different **from** :smack: I guess they’re all wrong, or all right. All right? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@C\_K\_Dexter\_Haven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/C_K_Dexter_Haven)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/10 "2003-01-12T18:59:20Z")
My Writers’ Handbook (by George Alred et al), says: > [@](#): > > In formal writing, the **preposition** _from_ is used with _different:_ “The PC is _different from_ the Macintosh computer.” > > _Different than_ is acceptable when it is followed by a **clause** : “The job cost was _different than_ we had estimated it.” ---
**Author:** ![Celyn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/9dc877/32.png) [@Celyn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Celyn)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/11 "2003-01-12T19:03:43Z")
Haha - **rampisad** you beat me to it. re. “different FROM”. We must get these foreigners properly educated. :):)🙂 ---
**Author:** ![everton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ecb155/32.png) [@everton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/everton)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/12 "2003-01-12T19:03:51Z")
“Different from” is correct on either side of the Atlantic. ---
**Author:** ![Gjorp](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/c4cdca/32.png) [@Gjorp](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gjorp)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/13 "2003-01-12T21:07:56Z")
> [@](#): > > No. The linguistic description of the situation is that “English” is the language: “British English” and “American English” are dialects (i.e. variants) of English. As the old saying goes, ‘a language is just a dialect with an army’, but since the two armies are working together for now, the saying doesn’t go for the British and American dialects. The fact is, what a language is, is only what people say it is. That’s why Cantonese and Mandarin are called dialects of Chinese, even though a speaker of either could never understand someone speaking the other dialect. But, Norwegian and Swedish are considered separate languages, even though if someone of either dialect payed attention, they might be able to get the gist of what the other is saying. Actually, when the Americans and British were enemies, some patriots tried to develop a separate language by picking out the differences and spreading them. That’s why they ended up missing the u’s in words like ‘honour’ and ‘colour’. Maybe people would be considering the two separate languages by now if they had stayed enemies. So, my answer is, British English is a separate language when people start calling it a separate language. No one is doing that, yet, so it’s only a dialect. ---
**Author:** ![glee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b5a626/32.png) [@glee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/glee)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 9:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/14 "2003-01-12T21:56:05Z")
Posting as I do from the UK, I am confident that British is **not** a language. (We do have Welsh and various Gaelic options here you know!). English has been our language for thousands of years (although it’s gone through some changes - and the Norman invasion in 1066 came close to changing our national tongue to French. Merde!) So you can certainly say ‘British English’ and ‘American English’ if you want, but I think we have enough history (plus Shakespeare, Dickens etc) to request that you call it English when we speak it, and American English when you do. Allegedly a true story: this American tourist visits the Tower of London, and asks if it’s historic. “Yes Madam”, replies the Beefeater. “It’s 5 times older than some countries, actually.” But seriously folks - God bless America for popularising English through Hollywood and the Internet. It means I don’t have to learn a foreign language! ---
**Author:** ![raygirvan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/ac91a4/32.png) [@raygirvan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/raygirvan)\ **Post date:** [January 12, 2003, 10:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/is-british-a-foreign-language/148142/15 "2003-01-12T22:06:38Z")
_Gjorp Actually, when the Americans and British were enemies, some patriots tried to develop a separate language by picking out the differences and spreading them. That’s why they ended up missing the u’s in words like ‘honour’ and ‘colour’._ More or less. We’re talking Noah Webster, who partially documented American usage - and partially invented it. Interesting to think that US and UK English would probably be more similar nowadays if his rival Joseph Worcester had won the American ‘dictionary war’ in the mid-1800s.