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The Development of the Theory of World Englishes

In our modern world there are more non-native speakers of English than native speakers. This is because there is a growing necessity of people to acquire English as a second language for different purposes. As a result of this growing spread of English, new English varieties have risen all over the world. These are commonly called ‘World Englishes’ which suggests the several variations of English spoken in different countries (Seargeant, 2012)
As new ‘Englishes’ develop new theories about their formation, similarities and differences arise around the world. English is no longer seen as a unique structure but as a multicultural and plural concept. Hence, the Theory of World Englishes has been developed. According to Seargeant (2012: 6) the theory of World Englishes is “…used to refer to the general discipline that examines the nature and use of English worldwide or of English in globalised contexts”. Thus, it is vital to consider the cultural issues that influence the contexts of those who want to acquire English as a second language. This helps to understand English variations and improves communication in the world. Therefore, this assignment will firstly explain the development of the Theory of World Englishes, then describe its present and future applications and finally evaluate the cultural impacts on speakers of world Englishes.
Firstly, it is relevant to provide a clear explanation of the development of the theory of World Englishes. Historically, the concept of ‘World Englishes’ as a discipline can be dated from 1978, when two conferences were carried out by linguistics Larry Smith and Braj Kachru. On these conferences they focused on the diversity of English worldwide, the use of English language in distinct contexts and some linguistic and non-linguistic issues related to English around the world

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