Modern trends of
“digital languages”
Modern technologies such as (a longer time ago) letters, phone and fax and today of course on-line services, emails, social networks and global interconnectivity have a clear impact on our languages. In addition human mobility and migration have an
impact. Here are some general phenomenons of languages today:
■ English as a global language
■ Integration of new words from other languages (i.e. English terms for computers and IT)
■ Icons, short phrases (i.e. fyi – for your interest), email-language, greetings,
smileys which all add “international” digital features to our languages, especially to written languages
■ Focus on “big languages” such as Arabic, Chinese, English, Spanish etc. with the danger of “smaller”
languages to eventually disappear