The British Empire is one of the main reasons why English has become a global language. English is today a lingua franca in international politics, business, science and technology. Though it has a dominating role, we cannot forget about numerous other languages used around the globe, including in the English-speaking countries.

In today’s world, it’s hard to find a homogeneous country where only one language is used. The majority of people know at least two languages. Such people are called bilingual. There are countries with two or even more official languages, such as Canada, New Zealand, India or Switzerland. People in those countries are either bilingual or multilingual.

In recent years, there has been more focus on multilingualism – knowledge of more than two languages.