The word English is used to describe the language, people, goods and customs that evolved on the British island of England. This island is just north of the rest of Europe, across the British Channel. It is part of the United Kingdom, which also includes Scotland, Wales and the island of Ireland.

The English language is the most used language in the modern world. It is the official language in 53 countries and the first-language of 300-400 million people. It is estimated that 200-400 million people speak English as a second language.http://www.ethnologue.com/show_language.asp?code=eng Since English is spoken around the world it is often considered a world language, something that is often referred to as lingua franca. English ranks third in the top used languages, after Chinese and Spanish.http://www.ethnologue.org/ethno_docs/distribution.asp?by=size

The language, people, goods and customs of England have a diverse history. This island kingdom has been sovereign since The Battle of Hastings in 1066, but before that it was repeatedly overrun by people of different languages and customs. Just before 1066, the language and culture of Normandy had heavy sway in England. This is still evident in modern phrases in common use today. The phrases put concepts in old English words and in Norman French words. Example: Make your will and testament.http://www.merriam-webster.com/help/faq/history.htm

Other peoples who overran the island of England and left their influence to be felt in the English language were the Angles, the Saxons, the Vikings and the Romans. Most linguists credit the German roots of Anglish and the French roots of the Norman language as the foundations of the English language.http://www.merriam-webster.com/help/faq/history.htm

The sounds and spellings of English did not become standardized until the 1500s. They were standardized by the preferences of a few scholars, so spellings often do not resemble the spellings of words in the languages of origin for the words. This revolution in spelling and pronunciation was largely brought about by the invention of the printing press.http://www.merriam-webster.com/help/faq/history.htm