English (language)
English was the language originally spoken in England. It was also spoken over much of Earth. Though there were many speakers of English, it was not always the most common language. In the early 21st century, Mandarin was most widely spoken. (TV: Children of Earth: Day One) It was said to be easier for the Eurozone to know English than to teach the world other languages. (PROSE: Trading Futures)
The Doctor's favourite language was English. (AUDIO: ...ish) The First Doctor told Dodo Chaplet that he would teach her proper English after she said "okay." (TV: The Ark) Edward Waterfield, being from 1866, had to be explained that "okay" meant something was "good" or that it would be taken care of. (TV: The Evil of the Daleks)
The Celestial Toymaker asked Charlotte Pollard about possible code words to a puzzle he'd set for her: "Do you know how many four-letter words there are in the English language? How many in all languages? Approximately 400,000." (AUDIO: Solitaire)
Shanquis was terraformed by English-speaking humans. The terraforming device was left online after the humans on the planet died out, allowing anyone who spoke English to control the structure of Shanquis. (AUDIO: Bernice Summerfield and the Criminal Code)
The language was used both in Great Britain and in the United States of America, but each culture had their own variations of certain words or phrases. The letter 'Z' was pronounced "zee" in America and "zed" in Britain, (TV: Vengeance on Varos) while words like "grey/gray" and "checkerboard/chequerboard" had different spellings. (AUDIO: The Reaping, PROSE: Deceit) Additionally, the English and Americans had different words for the same thing, such as the "bumper" or "fender" of a car. (AUDIO: 1963: The Space Race)
After World War II, Winston Churchill began writing a history of the English-speaking peoples. The earliest volume was about the period of Julius Caesar's invasion of Britain in the 1st century BC. (AUDIO: Living History)
When Doña Arana heard the Androgum Shockeye speak in Seville in 1985, she recognised his words as English. (TV: The Two Doctors)
Tegan Jovanka's father William Jovanka used to say that "if" was the most powerful word in the English language. (TV: Castrovalva; AUDIO: Psychodrome)
By the 50th century, phonetic spelling was common in English. For instance, "Emergency Exit" was spelled "Emergensee Eggsit" and "Service Elevator" was spelled "Servis Ellyvater". (AUDIO: Revenge of the Swarm)
| British word/phrase | American word/phrase |
|---|---|
| Z (zed) | Z (zee) |
| Bumper | Fender |
| Lift | Elevator |
| Grey | Gray |
| Chequerboard | Checkerboard |
