Yessenbayeva  A.M.

Taraz State Pedagogical Institute, Kazakhstan

 

FEATURES OF  ENGLISH FUNCTIONING  IN THE MODERN KAZAKH BUSINESS  COMMUNITY

 

   Without a doubt, the English language has become one of the leading languages ​​in international business communication in the twenty-first . This fact is further supported by many studies on the spread of English and its role in today's global business community [1, 2]. It should be noted that the scale of the spread of English in the world by different researchers (M.Castells, JAFishman, TLMcCarty , etc. ) are treated fairly ambiguous. Thus, in most cases, command of the English language is considered one of the most important conditions for integration into the international community, must-have positive social change, economic prosperity and new technologies [3]. Others are concerned about the idea that minority languages ​​can be in danger of extinction to the extent that the English language will be distributed as a result of globalization and integration processes in the world [4, 5].

Due to the expansion of international contacts in the business world more and more companies began to choose English as their official corporate language. And in most cases, members of the business communication are those for whom English is a foreign language . [6] Thus, according to estimates David Crystal  (2003 ) , the number of speakers of English as a nonnative constantly increasing : currently about a quarter of the world's population speak English , and by 2060 , the number of its speakers greatly exceeds the number of native speakers themselves [4 ; 153]. This use of the English language A. Lesznyak ( 2002 ), C.Mauranen ( 2003) and B.Seidlhofer ( 2002) and others attribute to the communications carried out by means of an intermediary language or lingua franca ELF - English as a Lingua Franca. To address issues of using English as the lingua franca directly in business communication European explorer L.Louhiala-Salminen ( 2005), introduced a new term BELF-Business English as a Lingua Franca ( Business English as a lingua franca ) .

The globalization process that engulfed all aspects of life today in the world, did not leave the sidelines and Kazakhstan. Over the last twenty years in the country drastic changes in the social, political and economic life have a significant impact on the development of various fields , including in the area of ​​business , as well as the role and place of the foreign language in intercultural business communication in the country.

In Kazakhstan, as in the whole world is becoming more and more English, a language of intercultural communication in the field of business communication. Currently, knowledge of the English language in Kazakhstan is not only in the list of mandatory conditions of studying abroad, but also is essential to the competitiveness of young professionals in the labor market , both in this country and abroad. Fluency in English, together with the Kazakh and Russian languages, having at the Constitution respectively the status of state and official languages, has now become a problem of national importance. More recently, the English language is designated as a condition for successful integration into the global economy and has been considered as one of the main priorities of the state policy. This is confirmed and elaborated in recent years, policy documents (the State program of functioning and development of languages ​​for 2011-2020 , etc.), which refer to the need to address the widespread teaching English and other foreign languages ​​as a means of international business communication. Thus, the annual address to the nation on January 28, 2011 the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan

 Nursultan Nazarbayev noted that " for the modern citizen of Kazakhstan possession of three languages ​​- a requirement for their own well-being ." In this regard , a task that, by 2020 the proportion of people who speak English, was not less than 20 percent [5]. And in the speech of the President of the Republic of Kazakhstan at the XIX session of the Assembly of People of Kazakhstan ( April 27, 2012 ) also focuses on the further development of the trinity of languages ​​as an important aspect of economic and social modernization , and notes the importance of the role  of  English in the way of  Kazakhstan  into the  world  of innovation,  technology  and business [ 2].

In Kazakhstan in recent years due to the increase in business activity of the population and the expansion of foreign economic relations of the subjects of the market economy there is a high demand in the labor market for specialists who speak English. For example, according to a study conducted M.Sh.Sarybay, knowledge of English has become a requirement of 98 ads (out of 101) as a manager , engineer , operator, secretary, accountant and administrator. Moreover, 40 % of adverts placed in the newspaper  in  2003 , was published in English [ 3]. Operations in more than 50 embassies and representative offices of foreign affiliates , 700 foreign companies and representative offices of foreign companies in 1500 due to business communication in English . The growing number   of  professionals who speak English, and translators due to the scale of international cooperation in Kazakhstan. English in this case serves as a lingua franca in intercultural business communication between local and foreign experts.

In foreign linguistics , as a rule , studies were carried out in the aspect of genre and discourse analysis business writing and oral business communication , as well as in the aspect of different skills and strategies for effective business communication. Studies of genre analysis (D.Akar, K.Bhatia, V.BSantos) is mainly related to the analysis of  business correspondence , business and e-mails that defines a particular structure and transitions (moves) the different types of text business writing , as well as the different cultural aspects of certain discourse communities that affect the structure and adopted the rhetoric of the text. The objects of the study of discourse analysis (M.Charles, R. de Beaugrande, J.Gimenez, L.Louhiala-Salminen) are discourse models of different situations oral business communication, such as business meetings, negotiations, etc. In this case, identifies the factors affecting the discourse model and characterize the business relationship between the parties to business communication, degree of formality, cultural differences, etc. Work skills and strategies regarding business communication (L.Barbara, K.Chew, L.Louhiala-Salminen, St. John) usually begin with a definition of the most commonly used and necessary skills for successful business communication , and only then move to the study of communication strategies in business, applying the results already obtained and the conclusions of the discursive analysis of the use of Business English .

Kazakh linguists interested in issues related to business communication and business discourse , in particular , the ontology of the business and its discourse genres ( G.G.Burkitbaeva ) function and the semantics of nominative phrases in business correspondence ( A.Aytureeva ) , the role of word- of connectors in the syntax and semantic organization of business texts( Z.Zhambulatova), lexical and semantic tools communicators in business communication ( Z.K.Omarova ) syntactic features of  business correspondence ( A.S.Tolengutova ) , issues of intercultural communication ( K.K.Shohaeva , M. T.Sabitova and G.I.Isina ), etc.

Among these works should emphasize research G.G.Burkitbaeva (2005), an English-language business discourse in which the business discourse in English is considered as the sum of inter-related linguistic, cognitive , and other extra-linguistic characteristics , is inextricably linked with the production , operation and perceptions of business discourse. This understanding has allowed the author to analyze the methodological problems of ontology business discourse, interaction of genres , to include in its study the conceptual analysis of the concepts of  " text " and " discourse" and to examine the relationship formal business style and business discourse , explore business discourse from the point of view of an interactive model of communication, analysis and consider the business discourse within the framework of the theory of genres. Ontological study English-language business discourse was based on a number of parameters (extra linguistic and interactional context , language features ) that have been systematically presented in a list of collective and distribution of descriptors and are reflected in the matrix model analysis of business discourse [6].

According to most  respondents , if the Russian language for Kazakhstan needs to integrate and maintain relationships in the post-Soviet space, the English language is important for the initiation to the world economy . More than 50%: the respondents fully support the policy of the trinity of languages ​​is not functioning at the expense of other languages. Respondents associate English with the future in economic terms, the ability to promote their careers , and with the acquisition of the more prestigious and high-paying jobs .

More often than English is used in business correspondence (emails, business letter) , as well as during foreign trips, for presentations, conferences etc. In addition , respondents noted a number of difficulties in using the English language, with which they had meet in their professional activities , and a number of other important points that must be considered , in addition to proficiency. Thus, 64.3 % of respondents had difficulty in communicating with foreign partners in the English language due to ignorance of a word and idiom , 42.6 % - because of the difficult -to-understand accent interlocutor and 39.3 % - because of national and cultural differences. These comments are of great interest for our future work on the topic of the study.

 

 

 References

 

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2.    Louhiala-Salminen L., Charles M., Kankaanranta A. English as a lingua franca in Nordic corporate mergers // English for Spe­cific Purposes. — 2005. — № 24. — Р. 401-121.

3.   Crystal D. English as a global language. — Cambridge, England: Cambridge University Press, 2003. — 255 р.

4 .  Послание Президента Республики Казахстан Н.А.Назарбаева народу Казахстана от 28 января 2011 г.

5.  Сарыбай М.Ш. О роли английского языка и должности переводчика в современной казахстанской организации (по материалам объявлений о вакансиях переводчиков в прессе) // Communication at Work: Issues and Challenges. 2nd Annual CAABC, Conference, 23-24 January. — 2004. — Р. 130-135.

6.   Буркитбаева Г.Г. Деловой дискурс: онтология и жанры. — Алматы: Ғылым, 2005.