Is it true that english is the most universal language?

Question

So why is it rude for a tourist to attempt to speak it to the locals when travelling in a country whose first language is not english, even though the tourist's mother tongue is also not english?

Answer 1

I think, English is most common at this time.

But, however, the most widespreading is Chinese :-)

Answer 2

It's rude because they shouldn't expect others to know English.

English is NOT the universal language. There's no such language. Many people in many nations do not speak English, and it's disrespectful and arrogant of others to believe that everyone should know English.

Linguistic diversity is a good thing. It is a large part of cultural identity. Attempting to speak in the other person's language shows that you respect them and their culture.

Answer 3

I think English is the like the default language of the world, like Times New Roman is for Word. Not everyone thinks to try other fonts.

And the universal language is actually math. You can write a complicated math problem and it can be understood by any mathematician in any country, without translation.

Answer 4

It is the world's default language, but speaking to locals who don't speak English can cause miscommunications and misunderstandings so it is best to speak the locals' language instead, where you will need to get materials to learn them.

Answer 5

That depends on what you mean by universal.  In terms of native languages, the most number of people speak Mandarin as their first language with over 800 million.  That is followed by Spanish (322 million) and then English (309 million).

In terms of total number of speakers, the ranking is:

Mandarin

Arabic

Hindi

English

Spanish

So either way you look at it, English is not the most widely spoken language in the world.

As for traveling, it always helps to attempt to speak in a native language when in a foreign country even if it's just a few words.  It shows respect and, well, can just get you further.

Answer 6

I hope that it is, since it is the only one I know.   lol

I have traveled to a half dozen or so countries, and have found that they do speak a lot of English, this was in Mexico, Greece, Spain, Italy, France, and even Turkey.

speak whatever you can to be understood, that is what language is all about anyway.

good luck..