02/12/2008
Thomas Bécart is amused by the discovery on the internet of a version of the on-line encyclopaedia Wikipedia "in 'simplified English', a language that is not quite a language, although it has more than 11,000 articles. A form of English that, as its name indicates, is more accessible, preferably comprised of less than 1,000 words .... The use of a simplified language is nothing new. As far as English is concerned, several versions actually exist: 'simplified English', developed for the needs of the aeronautical industry; plain English ( a form of English that goes straight to the point, promoted by American administration); 'Globish', contraction of 'global' and 'English', simplified, but not formalised; 'Voice of America English' (practiced on the American radio station of the same name) and finally 'basic English', introduced in 1930 by the linguist Charles K. Odgen who had a universalistic ambition, seeking to take into account any semantic contents with .... 850 words!"
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