English is advancing. Does this mean the demise of our beautiful Dutch? Or is it not going so fast?
We asked Professor Johan de Caluwe, associated with Ghent University and co-author of the recently published “Atlas of the Dutch Language”. And first of all he wants to clear up a big misunderstanding. “Many people think that Dutch is threatened because we use more and more English words,” he knows. “But that’s not true. Because no single language is lost due to the inclusion of foreign words. In fact, the fact that we record strange words testifies to the vitality of Dutch. Because it allows you to name everything you want to name. A language that refuses to record foreign words would therefore be worse than one that does. It is simply impossible to come up with a word for every possible loan word, which must then also be accepted by everyone. “
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The power game
Yet we must recognize that English is the biggest competitor for our beloved Dutch. Not because we occasionally stir some English words such as “computer” or “brainstorming” through our Dutch sentences, but because it is becoming increasingly acceptable to speak full English in certain social domains. You can now see that happening in education, for example. More and more courses are completely in English. “The moment you speak full English, Dutch cannot adapt,” says De Caluwe. And since also the languages meet one survival of the fit test subject to English, as more and more social domains (such as the government, health care, science, etc.) are given up to English – may be compromised.
“These are disruptive times: the angulation is going very fast at the moment”
“These are disruptive times: the angulation is going very fast at the moment. In fact, there is currently a continuous game of power between Dutch and English. And three factors play a role in this. First of all, the range that can be split into the communication range and the quality range. In terms of communication reach, English wins: with it you can reach many more people. In terms of the quality range, Dutch has an advantage, because for most people writing, reading and speaking is much better in Dutch than in English. The second factor is the cultural-historical identity. Here too, Dutch is to the advantage, because from a cultural-historical point of view we have much less with English. And the third factor is prestige. You see more often that people find it prestigious to do things in English. Universities and schools, for example, pat themselves when they give English lessons. ”
Where does that go?
The big question is of course where that goes. “What follows is pure speculation,” De Caluwe emphasizes. “But I think we are heading for a generalized bilingualism.” In other words: it is becoming commonplace that we will soon speak Dutch and English fluently. And the moment a Dutch or Flemish person speaks the English language fluently, more and more information will gradually be offered exclusively in English. “And then there comes a time when parents no longer find it difficult to speak Dutch with their children.” And that is the final blow. Because if a language is no longer passed on to the next generation, it will die.
Identity
De Caluwe also has good news for all avid fans of Dutch. “That will take a long time.” Because what you should not overlook is that when we speak Dutch, we also transfer a bit of our identity. For example, you can often derive from the tongue or the word use of people where they come from or how old they are. “We cannot communicate that yet with English. So we first have to build a new identity in English. Only when a new language offers that are you willing to give up the old language. “
Anglicanization is much faster in the Netherlands than in Flanders. “That is because the Flemish people have had to fight hard for Dutch and certainly do not want to give up that easily,” thinks De Caluwe. “For them, Dutch is more a tool for social emancipation.” For years, the government in the Flemish provinces refused to recognize Dutch as an official language and continued to communicate French with the Flemish. “Only since 1930 can students in Flanders study at a Dutch-speaking university.”
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Dutch is not a monument
It may go slowly: the distant future of Dutch is not bright. But De Caluwe cannot be disturbed by this. “You should not see the Dutch language as a monument,” he says. In fact, Dutch is just one way to express yourself, and as it gradually emerges that there are more effective ways to do that: then so be it. “If you speak English, new opportunities arise. If you compare Dutch with a bicycle, English is the electric bicycle: you get much further with it. ”Yet there is every reason to closely monitor the rapid angulation that is now unfolding particularly in the Netherlands (see box). keep an eye on. “We have to be careful that it does not go too fast. Look, at my university (Ghent University, ed.) There is communication in English and Dutch. So every mail I receive is in Dutch and in English. That’s no problem. ”People who have a good command of English can choose to read the mailing in English. And those who prefer to communicate in Dutch, opt for the alternative version. “It will be different if the working language is English in a meeting. Because in such a meeting there are always people who can speak English very well and people who have more difficulty with that. The latter then remain silent. ”In that scenario, the angulation prevents people from reaching their full potential. And that is a problem. “In fifty years’ time – if everyone is perfectly bilingual – that will no longer be a problem. But now we have to be careful that we do not go too fast with the angels and everyone can keep up. ”
It goes well!
Are there any other developments besides the rapidly emerging English that we might have to worry about? De Caluwe really can’t think of anything. “I think that Dutch has never been as good as it is now. We have an enormous and growing vocabulary and the language is used in thousands of domains – from gardening to astronomy – and it is also used very creatively. ”He attributes two developments to our language: the rise of new media and a “spectacular informalisation”. “If you came home from work in the 1960s, you could choose from two TV channels. You always read the same newspaper and you chat with the neighbors. Now you can gain much more knowledge and communicate with many people via your computer, telephone and the internet. ”This way you automatically come into contact with more words and writing styles, which you may also use again yourself. “And then there is that other trend: the spectacular informalization of manners. You see it on TV, but also on Twitter and Facebook: you say everything you say privately in public. ”Some people then say: Dutch is deteriorating. Nonsense, De Caluwe believes. Because what we now throw on Twitter, we also ventured fifty years ago during a drink with friends. “Actually, you only see what was said before, but not written.” De Caluwe also sees this informalisation in the newspapers. “The science supplement of my newspaper used to be very serious. Now this is very informal: journalists write it down as they would tell their friends. ”In short: Dutch is developing and that shows vitality.
For the time being, therefore, we do not have to count Dutch as one of the endangered languages. “I don’t know any Dutch-speaking parents who currently choose not to raise their children in Dutch. That means that this generation still gets Dutch and so we immediately build a bridge to the 22nd century. Because the life expectancy of the children who are now born is between 90 and 100 years. ”Until 2117, we are in good shape.
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