第七单元写作范文

Estimate of English Speakers from 1950 to 2050

This graph shows changes in the estimated number of English speakers from 1950 to 2050. English speakers are divided into three groups: L1 speakers, L2 speakers and EFL speakers.

According to the graph, it is estimated that the number of L1 speakers was a little over 200 million in 1950, a figure that will increase to around 500 million by 2050. L2 speakers will triple during the same period, from less than 200 million to around 600 million. EFL speakers will more than double in number over the period, starting from about 400 million in 1950 and reaching to around 900 million in 2050.

Although the numbers of English speakers in all three groups increase, their patterns of increase are different. L1 speakers increase steadily over the entire period, but not as rapidly as L2 speakers. This rapid growth is predicted to lead to L2 speakers outnumbering L1 speakers by the year 2020. Trends for the number of EFL speakers follow a somewhat different path. While the figures remained fairly stable during the 1950s they then began to experience an increasingly sharp rise that is expected to level off and remain stable from 2020.