by Roger Prather

Created on: November 20, 2008

In the 1600s, boats full of Englishmen began arriving on the continent of North America. For some, coming to North America was a religious pursuit. For others, the journey was driven by profit. In any case, during the following century, the eastern seaboard of North America became a center of commerce and culture. A new, unique society had developed and on July 4, 1776, that society formally declared its intentions of being a separate, free state. This new free state, or rather, United States, embarked on an experiment in self-government that continues to this day. This experiment revolves around the complimentary concepts of freedom and openness - freedom of trade, ideas, and movement - openness of government, society, and borders. This experiment could not have been as successful as it has been were it not for the final of these concepts: open borders. The contribution that immigrants have made to American society are immeasurable. However, that same success could not have been met were it not also for the solidarity in culture and purpose that drives the United States, and that solidarity and culture is due in large part to one major factor: the English language.

After the United States won its independence from Britain, it was necessary for this new nation to begin forging its own legal and cultural path. But what does a new nation have to rely upon as it embarks on this new endeavor? It relied on the extensive path already laid over thousands of years by the culture it came out of, the culture of England. This fact is borne out most importantly in American law. As newly appointed American judges began deciding American cases, they almost exclusively relied on the legal precedents of English courts. As the new American Congress began contemplating legislation that needed to be passed, it relied heavily on concepts developed by the English House of Commons. So from the very beginning, the governance of trade, diplomacy, and crime was expressed in terms of English precedent. And how better to express an English concept than with the English language?

Perhaps it can be said that English became the default language of the United States. The U.S. won its independence from England after all, and in its beginning was a fairly homogeneous landscape in terms of language. But with that foundation, every major act or endeavor of American ingenuity has been expressed and carried out in English. From "We hold these truths to be self evident" to "Four score and seven

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