Why is English not the official language of England?
58 countries list English as an official language — but not the UK. The world’s lingua franca or second language is not, technically, the ‘official’ language of its birthplace.
The de facto official language of the United Kingdom is English,[3][4] which is spoken by approximately 59.8 million residents, or 98% of the population, over the age of three.[1][2][10][11][12] An estimated 700,000 people speak Welsh in the UK,[13] an official language in Wales,[14] and the only de jure official language in any part of the UK.[15] Approximately 1.5 million people in the UK speak Scots — although there is debate as to whether this is a distinct language, or a variety of English.[5][16]
If the vast majority of UK citizens speak English, why is not the official language?
The linguistic history of the United Kingdom is complex. Until the 19th century the English language was not seen as a unifying force — majorities in Ireland, Scotland and Wales did not speak it while various kings also struggled.
In fact, the increasing domination of English outside England lead to political tension. In Ireland the number of native Gaelic speakers then declined dramatically during the nineteenth century. In 1800 about half the native population spoke…
