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lingua franca

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lingua franca

Any language that is used as a means of communication by groups who do not themselves normally speak that language; for example, English is a lingua franca used by Japanese doing business in Finland, or by Swedes in Saudi Arabia. The term comes from the mixture of French, Italian, Spanish, Greek, Turkish, and Arabic that was spoken around the Mediterranean from the time of the Crusades until the 18th century.

Many of the world's lingua francas are pidgin or trade languages; for example, Bazaar Hindi (Hindustani), Bazaar Malay, and Neo-Melanesian (also known as Tok Pisin), which became the official language of Papua New Guinea.



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? Mentioned in ? References in classic literature
 
At the mention of Monte Cristo Dantes started with joy; he rose to conceal his emotion, and took a turn around the smoky tavern, where all the languages of the known world were jumbled in a lingua franca.
The Count of Monte Cristo by Dumas, Alexandre View in context
``I asked you, my children,'' said the Prior, raising his voice, and using the lingua Franca, or mixed language, in which the Norman and Saxon races conversed with each other, ``if there be in this neighbourhood any good man, who, for the love of God, and devotion to Mother Church, will give two of her humblest servants, with their train, a night's hospitality and refreshment?
Ivanhoe by Scott, Walter View in context
There were several of his priests and lawyers present (as I conjectured by their habits), who were commanded to address themselves to me; and I spoke to them in as many languages as I had the least smattering of, which were High and Low Dutch, Latin, French, Spanish, Italian, and Lingua Franca, but all to no purpose.
Gulliver's Travels by Swift, Jonathan View in context
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