Ahn-gleet? (English?)

In a high school French class, I remember Mrs. Kambarian asking us the following questions:
"What do you call a person who speaks three languages?"
Answer: Trilingual
"What do you call a person who speaks two languages?"
Answer: Bilingual
"What do you call a person who speaks one language?"
Amswer: An American

Mrs. Kambarian's quiz was designed to illustrate America's egotism and ignorance. I recognized her point but did not appreciate her backhanded slam. Yes, the world does not really revolve around America, but it is still a major player on the world's field. And, historically speaking, the more influential a nation, the more its language is spoken.

I suppose most Americans speak no languages other than English because they don't really need to. When I was in high school, I took two years of French, one year of German, and a semester of Spanish - not because I needed to, but because it expanded my education. Maybe I would use my foreign language skills some day, maybe not.

When traveling abroad, it becomes strikingly clear that, in the sense of being able to be understood by many people groups, Americans have an edge. English is the closest thing there is to an international language. It is the language of commerce and business. When we were in Singapore, signs on the busses encouraged the Chinese citizens to "Speak Better English."

Sometimes we meet people who do not want to communicate with us in English, although they can. In a way, I understand. After all, this is their country and the official language is Hebrew. (The other official language is Arabic. English and Russian are also widely understood and accepted.) I can't say for certain, but perhaps some of them resent the wide useage of English because it represents how the United States, England, and other English-based countries dominate the world's political-economic-business scene.

Regardless, it helps us that we are not completely at a loss communicating. If someone we meet does not speak ahn-gleet (English), we are never far from someone who is willing to translate for us.