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Commonwealth English is a recently-coined collective term for the perceived standard Dialect s of the English Language used in the Commonwealth Of Nations 1 and many ex-Commonwealth countries— Former British Nation s where English is at least a common Second Language . The term therefore applies to those English dialects which are linguistically close to standard English as it is spoken in the British Isles , in contrast with American English . Formerly, the term British English was often taken also to include many of these dialects. The term 'Commonwealth English' can therefore be applied to:
Canadian English, however, does not fit well with the others in this category, as the dialect has been heavily influenced by US culture, specifically news media, advertising and broadcasts. This pervasive cultural influence is particularly strong since a very large percentage of Canada's population lives and works within fifty miles of the US border. There is no settled answer to question of whether Canadian English should be included among the dialects collectively labelled 'Commonwealth English'. The term 'Commonwealth English' has been used as a deliberate attempt to recognise that the 'Standard English' of the British Isles , as distinguished from American English , is just as much owned by those who use it elsewhere in the Commonwealth as by those who use it in Britain. As well as illustrating a general trend towards Political Correctness , this distinction is politically important particularly in those former British nations which are no longer member states of the Commonwealth, though their cultural links continue. The term 'Commonwealth English' is rarely used colloquially. Its main application is when drawing a cultural (and somewhat technical) distinction between American English and English as it is spoken elsewhere. British or Commonwealth English is also frequently referred to colloquially as the Queen's (or '''King's''') '''(own) English''' by speakers worldwide, often in a disparaging comment on an Americanism . NOTES # There are a number of other Commonwealth nations which are not listed here but also have English as either the primary language or an official language. Examples include Malta and Mozambique (Mozambique is a Commonwealth member, but uses Portuguese as its main language of communication). # Although Hiberno-English (Irish English) is listed as Commonwealth English, the Republic Of Ireland is not a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, although Northern Ireland ''is'' a member, being part of the United Kingdom . # Although Hong Kong English is listed as Commonwealth English, since 1997 Hong Kong has not been a member of the Commonwealth of Nations, but a Special Administrative Region of China . REFERENCES
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