From colonial rule to Christchurch.
Human beings have always moved. Because of the influence of the global media today, now the movement of people is more obvious and comes into regular discussions.
When the Europeans reached the Americas, or Australia, or New Zealand, the local populations of those lands got alarmed. With time the local population was decimated, even when it put up whatever resistance it could put up. Too bad there was no media to cover the story of the native population’s struggle.
In today’s world, like in yesterday’s world, people move for two reasons: first, for economic reasons, and second, for their own survival, when there is a war or unrest in the country they are living in. And where do they go? They go to places that are secure and affluent. The migrants choose their destination based on two criteria: how easy it is to go there i.e., physical movement to the new country, and that there is minimum language barrier to settle in.
Keep these two criteria in mind and you can tell who will go where.
Nicaragua. People from Nicaragua would like to go south to a more affluent Spanish-speaking country, and the more enterprising among them would like to go to North, to USA, to get absorbed in the big Spanish speaking community there.
Mali. People from Mali would like to go to another neighboring French-speaking country, or go to France.
Angola. People from Angola would like to go to Portugal, but they will settle for South Africa because it is right next door.
And you see the pattern: the colonial rule of Africa, Asia, and the Americas has given people of those lands exposure to the language of their colonial masters, and when given a chance the migrants from these countries go to the most prosperous country speaking that language.
So, European-descent people of USA, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, should blame the British Empire for the large number of English-speaking migrants they see in their countries.
This is it for today. Hope to see you next time.
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