what is the real english.

Historical origins

In the early 18th century, English spelling was not standardized. Differences became noticeable after the publishing of influential dictionaries. Current British English spellings follow, for the most part, those of Samuel Johnson’s Dictionary of the English Language (1755), whereas many American English spellings follow Noah Webster’s An American Dictionary of the English Language of 1828.

Webster was a strong proponent of spelling reform for reasons both philological and nationalistic. Many spelling changes proposed in the US by Webster himself, and in the early 20th century by the Simplified Spelling Board, never caught on. Among the advocates of spelling reform in England, the influences of those who preferred the Norman (or Anglo-French) spellings of certain words proved decisive. Subsequent spelling adjustments in the UK had little effect on present-day US spelling, and vice versa. While in many cases American English deviated in the 19th century from mainstream British spelling, on the other hand it has also often retained older forms.

The spelling systems of Commonwealth countries and Ireland, for the most part, closely resemble the British system. In Canada, however, while most spelling is “British”, many “American” spellings are also used. Additional information on Canadian and Australian spelling is provided throughout the article.

The British English is the real one. American English is adapted. English is the Germanic language of the British Isles, widespread and standard also in the U.S. and most of the British Commonwealth, historically termed Old English (c450–c1150), Middle English (c1150–c1475), and Modern English (after c1475).

uhm? they dont change words… british english existed for a lot longer than american english did, and uhm both forms of english have evolved over time…

here here susila2… it often baffles me how young, ill informed English people (for example) … feel they some how have a monopoly over the english language, and laugh and look down on Americans (for example),,, They don’t realise that the UK has much in common with US in that we British folk are completely mixed as a race (Anglo saxons were from germany, normans from france, romans from italy and vikings from norway to name but a few)… Even the word English is from the german “ANGLES” … does this make German the Real English :) ?

(Second try, first one disappeared off screen):

There is no ‘real’ English.

Yes, British English is older (obviously), but it too has changed over the centuries. Just take a look at Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales and the 15th century English it was written in.

All languages change and develop with time. When they are widely spread in geographical terms, considerable differences can develop. This is only natural, and is an ongoing process all over the world with all languages spoken in more than one small place.

On the other hand, with the spread of the written word, with more schooling and greater literacy, it becomes natural to try to agree on a standardized rules for grammar, spelling, and vocabulary. Back in Shakespeare’s time, there was no spelling standard, and Shakespeare himself wrote his name in many different ways.

Different geographical areas can end up developing different standards, according to the most common form of the language spoken there (with a little help from dictionaries issued there - Merriam Webster was a pioneer in establishing US spelling standards). But that doesn’t mean that one area has a ‘better’ or ‘more real’ language than the other - only that they are different.

It’s the same way with dialects, which are simply less officially recognized, usually local, forms of a language (in linguistics we joke that ‘A language is just a dialect with an army’) .

You could equally well (and pointlessly) ask: Which is the ‘real’ US English - that spoken in Texas? in Boston? in Oregon?

Greetings from someone who’s been a professional linguist and language teacher for over 40 years.