P let’s look back 6

W orking Language
A lingua franca (LF) is a working language 
used by different populations to communicate 
when they do not share a common language. 
It is also called a bridge language, venicular 
language or unifying language. Generally, a 
lingua franca is a third language that is distinct 
from the native language of both parties involved 
in the communication, sometimes for commercial 
reasons («trade languages»), but also for diplomatic 
and administrative convenience, and as a means 
of exchanging information between scientists and 
other scholars of different nationalities.
The use of LF may be almost as old as language 
itself. Certainly, they have existed since antiquity. 
The term originates with one such language, 
Mediterranean LF. Latin and Greek were the LF of 
the Roman Empire.
Arabic was another early LF to develop because 
of the sheer size of the Islamic Empire dating back 
to the 7th Century. Arabic also served as the LF 
of science and diplomacy in the 1200’s because 
at that time, more books were written in Arabic 
than in any other language. Still in some European 
languages (including Georgian), there are some
9 Read the article again. Which of the following 
bits of information is not given (NG) in the text?
1. Lingua Franca is a single language for traders 
from all around the world. _
2. A greater amount of books in XIII century were 
written in the Arabic language. _
3. Before Malay, people used Arabic in Southern 
Asia. _
4. Isaac Newton’s book was published after his 
death.
5. Still, there are some lingua francas in different 
places. _
6. Nowadays, all the pilots communicate in their 
own lingua franca. _
Scale Up

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Arabic words as admiral, algorithm or aubergine.
Malay was the LF of Southeast Asia and was 
used by Arab and Chinese traders there prior to 
the arrival of the Europeans. Once they arrived, 
people like the Dutch and British also used Malay 
to communicate with the native peoples.
In fact, in it’s time distinct spheres used to 
have distinct LF, for example, Latin - in science. 
In 1687, Isaac Newton published his “Mathematic 
Principals Of Natural Philosophy” in Latin. 
English interpretation was published only 42 
>ears later after his death.
Today, LFs play an important role in global 
communication as well. Examples of LFs remain 
am erous, and exist on every continent. The most