A.P. Minyar-Beloroutcheva Lomonosov Moscow State University

1. A.P. Minyar-BeloroutchevaLomonosov Moscow State University ENGLISH AS THE ACADEMIC LINGUA FRANCA OF THE TWENTY FIRST CENTURY

2. ENGLISH AS THE ACADEMIC LINGUA FRANCA The inevitability of English to be an academic lingua franca of the twenty first century was prepared by the previous development of science and technology of Great Britain and the USA.

3. English took the role earlier played by Latin in Europe Language is the barometer of academic power

4. The Industrial Revolution with its three waves enriched the English vocabulary with new technical terms that were coined on the basis of Classical languages Started in Britain at the end of the 18th century with the innovations of James Watt, Robert Stevenson, continued in the 19th centuries with the discoveries of Michael Faraday, and having reached the 21st century with its digital manufacturing, the Industrial Revolution gave relevance to the English language fostering the emergence of academic distinctive expressions and stylistic norms.

5. To keep pace with the achievements of the day the researchers of different countries had to learn English as early as the 19th century

6. Having picked up the academic baton from its former Metropolitan country the US reached new heights in science and technology to be the model for the researchers of the rest of the world, thus making English the academic lingua franca.

7. Today the scientists and scholars of different cultures are holding conferences, writing academic works and discussing academic issues in English.

8. The usage of English as the academic lingua franca of the 21st century can guarantee the advance of humankind and make the dream of the Tower of Babel builders come true who believed that the world could be better if everyone on Earth spoke one universal language.