The English can be under no illusion that the language of the same
name is exclusively theirs. The small matters of other nations in the 【M1】__________
British Isles, and of the superpowers across the Atlantic, makes clear 【M2】__________
that it is joint property. But these countries—along with Canada,
Australia and other Anglophone peoples—must at some point come to
terms with the fact that, even collectively, its language no longer 【M3】__________
belongs to them. Of the estimated one billion people speak English, less 【M4】__________
than half live in those core English-speaking countries.
Every day, the proportion of English-speakers born outside the
traditional Anglosphere grew. Perhaps 40% of people in the European 【M5】__________
Union speak English, or about 180 million—vast more than the 【M6】__________
combined population of Britain, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.
In India, calculations range from 60 million to 200 million. Most such
estimates make it the second-biggest Anglophone country in the world.
English-speakers pride themselves in the spread of the language, 【M7】__________
and often contribute that to an open, liberal-minded attitude whereby it 【M8】__________
has happily soaked up words from around the world. In the coming
century, though, English will do more than to borrow words. In these 【M9】__________
non-Anglophone countries, it is becoming not just a useful second
language, but a native one. Already it is easy to find children in
northern Europe who speak as though they come from Kansas, the
production of childhoods immersed in subtitled films and television in 【M10】_________
English, along with music, gaming and YouTube.
【M10】
production—product
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