The differences which exist today between American and British spelling are largely the results of the efforts of one man – Noah Webster. Webster’s The American Spelling Book was first published in 1783 and its influence was enormous. It sold millions of copies when published. Webster wanted to reform spelling drastically but he knew that he would have difficulty getting people to accept too many changes. He contented himself with modifications, which he thought might be very likely to be accepted. Webster believed that superfluous, unpronounced letters should be dropped from many words. Because of Webster’s influence, Americans write color instead of colour, judgment instead of judgement and check instead of cheque. Webster’s spelling probably caught on because it made much more sense to people than old spelling. British spelling retains the older forms. The British have always been a bit slower in accepting change. American spelling has been adopted in countries where Americans influence has been greater, for example, in the Philippines and Japan. In spite of such differences between English and American spelling, an American in England needs to learn only a comparatively small number of words to be able to communicate with the residents with no fear of confusion.
Archive for category HISTORY
Though English is the official language of the United States of America, it differs in some respects from the English spoken in England. Sometimes this difference has been exaggerated by those who wished to emphasize the difference – cultural, social and political – between Britain and the United States. The British, in particular, seem to enjoy thinking that British English is superior. The British can rightly claim that it was the British Empire that was responsible for the spread of English in the first place. The Americans, however, claim that it was the economic and political power of the United States that has helped maintain its importance in the world as an international language.
The remarkable fact about American English is not that it differs from British English, but that it is still too close to the parent language. The years 1970 to 1860 in America saw a tremendous influx of German and Irish immigrants. From 1865, even greater numbers of Scandinavians, Slavs and Italians settles in United States. It might be expected that the opposite happened. The immigrants adopted English the way they heard it. The English language in America absorbed the new influences without changing its own course of development.
An American on arriving in England for the first time might be confused by words with which he is familiar, but which are used in ways unfamiliar to him. For example, the porter would refer to his baggage as luggage. He would take the tube instead of the subway, he would see lorries on the road instead of trucks and he would have to use lifts in the hotel instead of elevators. He might travel in a motor car. He would have to clean his windshield instead of his windscreen. He would also have to open the hood not the bonnet of the car to check the battery. His pronunciation of certain words might also be different but he should still be able to make himself understood.
Worth & History of Money
Nov 14
A miser once buried a box of gold coins in a hole in is garden. Every now and then, he would dig up his treasure, count the coins then bury them again. One night, his neighbor saw him doing it. When the miser went to town, he stole the gold coins. The miser was heartbroken. One of his good friends consoled him. “Take a pile of stones tomorrow and bury them in the garden. Pretend that they are your gold coins. After all, when you had them, you never used them.”
This fable illustrates very clearly the real nature of money. Dollar notes and coins are almost worthless in themselves. They are only valuable because they can help us acquire things. Nowadays, money is only symbolically valuable. Long ago the transfer of wealth involved the transfer of concrete objects like land, houses, animals or precious metals. Nowadays, it has largely become a simple movement of paper. Most of us receive our income by cheque which we deposit in the bank. We then used credit cards or cheques to pay for our other purchases. Some countries like Japan are moving rapidly towards becoming a ‘cashless’ society. All transactions are completed without the individual even laying eyes on a single yen of cold cash!
Until the seventh or eighth century B.C., money did not exist. Trade was built on the barter system. A blacksmith for example, might trade a knife for a supply of wheat or milk. But the barter trade was not always convenient. To start with, there must be a double coincidence. The man who wanted the knife had to have the grain which the smith wanted. Barter trade must have been very time-consuming. It was also not possible to split some goods, for example, it is not possible for a tailor to sell a half a coat. Before long people long realized they would have to find something which everybody recognized and which could be used to barter instead of the actual product. Mediums of exchange soon began to appear. Leather was commonly used in the beginning because unlike grain or meat, leather could be kept indefinitely. Other items which have served for a time as legal tender are tobacco, gunpowder, and glass beads. In Western cultures, cattle became a favored standard of exchange at a very early date. The words capital and chattel come from head of cattle. But the use of cattle presented its own problems. Cattle needed to be fed and housed. Besides, not all cows are equal in size and appearance. It was only a matter of time before people realized they would have to look for mediums which needed less upkeep, were less bulky and at the same time, durable. The use of metals such as silver and gold offered certain advantages. They were easy to upkeep and store. Precious metals were valuable for decorative use. Gold and silver had been used for a long time for jewelry and other ornaments. People were happy to keep them. The supply of these metals, while large enough to serve its purpose, was not so large that the metals became worthless.
In times of peace one seldom hears of the United Nations but whenever the possibility of armed conflict occurs, this organization appears frequently in the news. In actual fact, the peace-keeping function is only one of the functions of the United Nations. The ideals of the United Nations is expressed in the introduction to the United Nations Charter.
‘We the peoples of the UN, determined to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war, which twice in our lifetime has brought untold suffering to mankind, and to reaffirm in the fundamental rights, in the dignity and worth of the human person, in the equal rights of men and women and of nations large and small, and to establish conditions under which justice and respect for the obligations arising from treaties and other sources of international law can be maintained, and to promote social progress and better standards of life in larger freedom, and for these ends, to practice tolerance and live together in peace with one another as good neighbors, and to unite our strength to maintain international peace and security, and to ensure by the principles and institutions of methods, that armed force shall not be used, save in the common interest, and to employ international machinery for the promotion of economic and social advancement of all peoples, have resolved to combine our efforts to accomplish these aims.’
The United Nations took many years to form. When so many nations and minds are involved it is not easy task to find consensus. The first group of representatives of member states met and signed a declaration on New Year’s Day in 1942, the USSR, the UK, the USA, France and China and a majority of other members ratified the Charter. Thus the UN officially came into existence and that date is celebrated as United Nations Day internationally.
What then are the essential functions of the UN? The functions of the United Nations are to maintain international peace and security; develop friendly relations among nations; co-operate internationally in solving economic, social, cultural and human problems; and promote respect for human rights and fundamental freedom. In theory, no member nation is more important than another. Every member has the same rights and obligations. All member nations have pledged out not to use force or the threat of force against other nations. All members have pledged to support UN-approved actions and not support any nation which the UN is taking action against. All members have to contribute financially to the operating costs of the UN. While many members might feel that the powers and therefore the effectiveness of the UN are limited, they continue to support the organization for the ideals that it represents in an ever-changing tumultuous world.