Glottolog None | ||
Language family Indo-EuropeanGermanicWest GermanicAnglo–FrisianAnglicEnglishEuro English | ||
Euro English is a set of varieties of English used in Continental Europe and especially in the institutions of the European Union or among young mobile Europeans (such as in the Erasmus programme).
History
The term was first used by Carstensen in 1986 to denote the adoption of anglicisms in Europe.
The enlargement of the European Union diminished the influence of other working languages (German and French). The development of the Erasmus Programme created a new class of mobile Europeans who needed a lingua franca to communicate across Europe.
The question whether the appropriation of English by non-native speakers in Continental Europe is giving rise to a potential European variety of English has not yet been resolved. Mollin rejected Euro-English as a variety of English. According to Forche, many of the features suggested to be characteristic of Euro-English could be identified as learners’ mistakes, although there are some nativization tendencies. Future institutionalization could happen under the influence of young mobile Europeans.