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<blockquote data-quote="darkbard" data-source="post: 699319" data-attributes="member: 1282">hate to be a pedant but....not quite true.&nbsp; while japanese kanji did develop from the chinese pictograms [not technically an alphabet ... seems i don't mind being a pedant after all], only about 50% of japanese and chinese kanji coincide nowadays.however, your point is well-taken.&nbsp; there is historical precedent [and modern precedent too for that matter] for trade tongues.&nbsp; however, assuming that everyone in the world speaks the &quot;common tongue&quot;--and well enough to communicate complex ideas--is not an accurate depiction of how these languages work.&nbsp; take, for example, my current home, japan.&nbsp; despite the fact that everyone is educated in english for the 6 years of junior and senior high school, good luck trying to start up a conversation in english with a random japanese person here!&nbsp; sure, many people may know a few key words in english, but beyond that....</blockquote>

[QUOTE="darkbard, post: 699319, member: 1282"] hate to be a pedant but.... not quite true. while japanese kanji did develop from the chinese pictograms [not technically an alphabet ... seems i don't mind being a pedant after all], only about 50% of japanese and chinese kanji coincide nowadays. however, your point is well-taken. there is historical precedent [and modern precedent too for that matter] for trade tongues. however, assuming that everyone in the world speaks the "common tongue"--and well enough to communicate complex ideas--is not an accurate depiction of how these languages work. take, for example, my current home, japan. despite the fact that everyone is educated in english for the 6 years of junior and senior high school, good luck trying to start up a conversation in english with a random japanese person here! sure, many people may know a few key words in english, but beyond that.... [/QUOTE]

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