This Cambridge Elements aims to offer a comprehensive account of the remarkable and unprecedented spread of English as a global language by taking historical, sociolinguistic, and pedagogical perspectives. It opens with a diachronic approach illustrating the historical evolution of English in the past 500 years or so and portraying its transformation from a national language to one characterised by varieties all around the world, whether by choice or by force. The discussion is complemented by a synchronic approach presenting a qualitative and quantitative overview of the present-day role, function, and status of English as a global and multilingual franca.
