Euro English

Euro English, is a proposed variety of English, that may be emerging in continental Europe, though its existence as a distinct variety remains debated. Much like British English or Irish English, it has been described as a possible regional variety, though it is not currently recognised by the ISO or the Glottolog.^[1][2][3]

Following the establishment of the European Union, English became the most spoken language in Europe.^[4] The shift in favour of English was the result of the Enlargement of the European Union. English was the second most common language for the new members.^[5] In addition to this, the Erasmus Programme, the Schengen Area, and the customs union created a group of mobile young people who needed a lingua franca to communicate across Europe. English filled that role.^[6][7][8]

In 2006, many academics rejected the idea that Euro English existed as an independent variety of English.^[9][10]

In 2012, a study on Erasmus students, found that there was still not enough evidence to conclude Euro English constituted an independent variety.^[11] The linguist Forche would write: '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.'^[12]

In 2017, the Unicode Common Locale Data Repository Project had defined "en-150" for Euro English.^[13]

Some academics argue that the UK's withdrawal in early 2020 could allow the other Romance languages to have more of an influence on a Euro English.^[14]

In 2021, the linguist Mannoni claimed that the English used in European Union law is a hybrid language distinct from British English.^[15]

Today, Euro English mostly reflects British/Irish English. At the institutional level, the European Union primarily employs British/Irish English as its standard written form. Official style guides specify British/Irish spelling and usage (for example, labour rather than labor, defence rather than defense).^[16] In 2019, a study of German and Swedish teachers found that they would not welcome the use of a unified Euro English.^[17]

However, there is some speculation that the variety may evolve. Some speakers may drop the third person singular suffix (-s): he often call meetings. Others use the progressive aspect with stative predicates: I'm coming from Spain instead of I come from Spain. Some give words a plural with a final s: informations and competences. However, it is unclear whether these will be widely adopted.^{[2][18][19][3]}

• African English
• Indian English
• American English
• English as a lingua franca
• Glossary of European Union concepts, acronyms, and jargon
• International English

• Forche, Christian R. (2012). "On the emergence of Euro-English as a potential European variety of English – attitudes and interpretations". Jezikoslovlje. 23 (2): 447–478.
• Mannoni, Michele (2021). "Rights Metaphors Across Hybrid Legal Languages, Such as Euro English and Legal Chinese". International Journal for the Semiotics of Law. 34 (5). International Association for the Semiotics of Law: 1375–1399. doi:10.1007/s11196-020-09814-6. PMC 8019294. PMID 33840914.
• Mollin, Sandra (2006). Euro-English: Assessing Variety Status. Tübingen: Gunter Narr Verlag. p. 6. ISBN 382336250X.

• English in the European Union – Worlds of English (2/4), Open University
• S.D. (30 September 2011). "Euro-English: Blasting the bombast". The Economist. London.
• Ramsay, Anne (2001). Eurojargon: A Dictionary of the European Union. Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers.
• Hans, Biró (2005). Englisch für die EU : Spezialwörterbuch für Steuern, Verwaltung und Wirtschaft (2., überarbeitete und erweiterte ed.). LexisNexis. ISBN 3-7007-3213-9.
• English Style Guide: "A handbook for authors and translators in the European Commission" – executive branch of the European Union.^[1]
• Interinstitutional Style Guide—used across several institutions of the European Union, European Economic Area, and the European Free Trade Association.^[2]