English language in Europe
Knowledge of English in the EU
The English language in Europe, as a nat-
ive language, is mainly spoken in the United
Kingdom (England, Scotland, Wales and
Northern Ireland) and the Republic of Ire-
land. Outside of these countries, it has a spe-
cial status in Jersey and Guernsey (two of the
three Crown Dependencies), in Gibraltar (one
of the British overseas territories), Malta and
Cyprus (two former British colonies). In other
parts of Europe, English is spoken mainly by
those who have learned it as a second lan-
guage, but also, to a lesser extent, natively by
expatriates from the English speaking world.
The English language is the official lan-
guage of Gibraltar and one of the official lan-
guages of Wales, Republic of Ireland, Malta,
Guernsey, Jersey, the Isle of Man and the
European Union.
13% of EU citizens speak English as their
native language. Another 38% of EU citizens
state that they have sufficient skills in Eng-
lish to have a conversation.[1]
History of English in
England
English is descended from the language
spoken by the Germanic tribes, the Angles,
Saxons, and Jutes. According to the Anglo-
Saxon Chronicle, around 449 AD, Vortigern,
King of the Britons, issued an invitation to
the "Angle kin" (Angles, led by Hengest and
Horsa) to help him against the Picts. In re-
turn, the Angles were granted lands in the
southeast. Further aid was sought, and in re-
sponse "came men of Ald Seaxum of Anglum
of Iotum" (Saxons, Angles, and Jutes). The
Chronicle documents the subsequent influx
of "settlers" who eventually established seven
kingdoms: Northumbria, Mercia, East Anglia,
Kent, Essex, Sussex, and Wessex.
These Germanic invaders dominated the
original Celtic-speaking inhabitants. The dia-
lects spoken by these invaders formed what
would be called Old English, which was also
strongly influenced by yet another Germanic
dialect, Old Norse, spoken by Viking invaders
who settled mainly in the North-East. Eng-
lish, England, and East Anglia are derived
from words referring to the