History Main / CommonTongue

** The Unknown Regions have a vast variety of local tongues and a bunch of trade languages to facilitate communication. ''Literature/{{Thrawn}}'' introduces Sy Bisti as the trade language used in the region containing the Chiss homeworld. Later levels add Meese Caulf, Minnisiat and Taarja.

* In ''Anime/InazumaEleven'' everyone speaks Japanese, no matter what country they come from. This is obviously mostly used in season 3 of the original series, as well as ''Go: Galaxy'', when the Football Frontier International is held and everyone from every team from every country speaks Japanese, even when they're speaking among themselves. This also applies to the aliens in ''Go: Galaxy'' as well.

If you are not a native English speaker, you are currently experiencing this trope as TruthInTelevision by reading this page, as English is today's ''de facto'' global language throughout the entire world. It's so global that, despite being the 4th-most spoken native language in the world, it still has more second-language speakers than first-language ones. On a more local level this happens with [[UsefulNotes/SpanishLanguage Spanish]] and [[UsefulNotes/PortugueseLanguage Portuguese]] in Latin America; English or [[UsefulNotes/FrenchLanguage French]] in mainland Europe; English or French in different parts of Africa; Russian in Central Asia; [[UsefulNotes/ArabicLanguage Arabic]] (and, to a lesser extent, Farsi) in the Middle East; [[UsefulNotes/ChineseLanguage Mandarin Chinese]] and Hindi in East Asia; and English in South/Southeast Asia and Oceania. Essentially most were forced to use the language of whatever big neighbor conquered or colonized them, and it persisted post-independence. [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg Oh yeah,]] and [[GratuitousLatin Latin]] used to be one.

** The Unknown Regions have a vast variety of local tongues and a bunch of trade languages to facilitate communication. ''Literature/{{Thrawn}}'' introduces Sy Bisti as the trade language used in the region containing the Chiss homeworld.

* ''Webcomic/{{Outsider}}'': The Trade language was originally used by the {{Precursors}}, and was consequently inherited by the various primitive societies that survived their collapse. In the modern day, it serves as the main lingua franca used by different spacefaring societies when they need to communicate with each other. It's also the only language the Loroi speak -- they normally communicate telepathically with each other, and consequently never developed any native languages and simply use unaltered Trade for writing and rare vocal communication.

** While UsefulNotes/{{German|Language}} is still a rather universal language in mainland Europe, it is mostly useful when talking to older people who never learned English in school but learned German for historical reasons (especially UsefulNotes/WorldWarII). Many younger people can still speak some German, but as a second language English has gotten ''much'' more popular (few young Europeans without German as their native language speak it fluently, while many young Europeans without English as their native language do speak it fluently). So when the older, German-proficient generation has died out, it seems that English will be even more universal and German will not be that useful anymore.
** English is also the de facto common language in many wikis, including of course TV Tropes, but also the many inter-linguistic parts of the Wikimedia Project, for example Commons and Wikidata. Although Spanish has become popular as common language among the different members of Ibero-America (which include Catalan, Portuguese and other non-Spanish but similar language speakers).

* Further constructed languages attempting this: Interlingua and Ido.
* Also Loglan and its offshoot Lojban (short for "logical language" in English and Lojban respectively). The former of which was mentioned in a couple of Creator/RobertAHeinlein's novels for use with AIs.

* Russian, enjoyed this status in the Communist bloc. Learning Russian there was like learning English in Europe. It still works that way in the countries of the former Soviet Union.
** In newer generations, not so much anymore.
** Russian, with English, also functions as a common tongue language in outer space.

* UsefulNotes/{{India}} is in the same boat as China: there are ''thousands'' of languages, but almost everybody there speaks Hindi or English. After India became independent, there was a movement to purge British influences, including English. The return to traditional languages failed because it was far too useful to have a single standard language that most educated people already knew. Moreover, English persisted because attempts to make Hindi the universal standard met stiff resistance from (among others) the Dravidian-speaking states of South India, who view attempts to promote Hindi (an Indo-Aryan language) as an imposition of a specifically North Indian identity over the South rather than developing an All-India culture. English, being competely foreign to India, is neutral and therefore preferable to Southerners, and they pushed hard (and still do) to keep English in place. Economic reforms in TheNineties, which opened India to the wider world economy in which English is a huge advantage, put the final kibosh on any attempts to remove English from the country (and gave rise to the OperatorFromIndia trope).

* In West Africa, the Hausa Language is the most widely spoken, as the Hausa people were traders that moved around with caravans, and it popular in Nigeria and neighboring countries.
* Sango, in the UsefulNotes/CentralAfricanRepublic, only has a few hundred thousand native speakers, but it is the main language used in the country for business, local government, and urban centers. The Sango tribe lives along the Ubangi River and they were mostly a trading/merchant people, leading to their language becoming the main trade language of the area.

* ''Literature/{{Animorphs}}'' has Galard, a Yeerk language briefly mentioned a couple of times. The Yeerks designed it to be spoken by all kinds of different host bodies with unusual vocal chords.

* TabletopGame/{{Warhammer}} tends to lean on Reikspiel, the language of the Empire, in this capacity. It isn't a universal world language by any means, but the Empire is easily the biggest and most prominent of the human realms, and hence its language has a certain reach and importance as a Lingua Franca. Most elves, dwarfs and others who deal with humans tend to learn Reikspiel for communication (the elder races finding it childishly easy, but crude and ugly on the tongue), and even brutish races like Orcs and Beastmen tend to learn a few choice boasts and insults to torment human victims with. In the RPG, set largely in the Empire, all characters are presumed to know Reikspiel, but non-Imperial characters also get their own native language for free. In the first edition, however, Reikspiel was just a dialect of a true common tongue called Old Worlder (which had its own Greek-and-Latin equivalent in Classical Old Worlder).
* The "Gothic" language in TabletopGame/{{Warhammer 40000}} serves this purpose for the Imperium, acting as a way for cultures from different worlds to communicate. There is also High Gothic, which is used for official purposes and has a role similar to Latin in medieval Europe in that no-one actually uses it as a first language but scholars and those of high rank are expected to know it.

** By the time of the Renaissance, things had stabilized...with ''three'', depending on what one was doing: Florentine (a dialect of Toscano standardized and made acceptable as a literary language by Dante Alighieri through his ''Literature/TheDivineComedy'') was the language of literature and arts, Venetian was the language of trade, and Ligurian (or Genoese) had supplanted the ''lingua franca'' as the language of ''international'' trade.

* ''Webcomic/SchlockMercenary'' actually has ''five'' common languages: Galstandard West (which seems shockingly like English), East, Eight, Brown, and Peroxide. Given later revelations that Galstandard Peroxide is only spoken by ocean-dwelling creatures, it seems as though each language is tailored to a specific voice and vocal type. Brown is based on emitting chemical smells and is used by StarfishAliens with no equivalent to vocal cords.
* Most units in ''{{Webcomic/Erfworld}}'' speak Language, but Natural Allies have their own (unnamed) languages, and only a few members of each tribe speak Language.
* Standard English in ''Webcomic/{{Pacificators}}''. Moreover, the Pacificators are actively discouraged from speaking in their native languages (hence why the platoon always nag on [[SiblingTeam Larima and Taffe]] when they speak in French). [[spoiler:The fact that Muneca has slipped into Spanish a few times is a significant CharacterDevelopment.]]
* In ''Webcomic/{{Harbourmaster}}'', Standard is the primary language for communication in the futuristic civilization the story takes place in.
* Only three languages exist in the world of ''WebComic/SlightlyDamned''. The main language which is called "Lingo" is spoken by humans, jakkai, khamega, merfolk, and demons. The only other languages are Angelic, spoken by angels, and the unnamed language used by fairies.
* This happened by accident InUniverse in ''Webcomic/{{Homestuck}}'', due to Trollish basically being English with a different alphabetical system. Thus, the Kids and the Trolls can communicate with each other flawlessly despite technically speaking two different languages.
* In ''WebComic/StandStillStaySilent'', Iceland is the largest remaining bastion of humanity with a population of 190 600, while the four other known surviving countries have 58 900 inhabitants ''taken together''. This has resulted in Icelandic basically replacing English as the second language all non-natives learn, and the only member of the cast who can speak three languages mentioning that she learned the third one after learning Icelandic. While it keeps things smooth at MissionControl, it doesn't help the crew on which the story focuses that much on its own: only three out of the six members know it and one of them happens to be native to Iceland.

* ''Fanfic/RocketshipVoyager''. Given that no-one's heard of a UniversalTranslator, the crew have Nee'Lix teach them Traben. The Traben Empire dominated that area of the galaxy before it collapsed, so remains as a ''lingua franca'' used for business (much like English). There's also mention of [[UsefulNotes/EsperantoTheUniversalLanguage Esperanto]] being used for the same purpose back home; Tom Paris uses the language to greet half-Venusian B'Elanna Torres before finding out she can speak Terran-English.

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* The Japanese dialects aren't so different that people would have too much trouble communicating with each other (aside from a few cases of SeparatedByACommonLanguage and when Okinawan gets involved), but they still have ''hyojungo'', or "standard language", that is roughly based on the Kantō dialect.

** The Elves have ''two'' common languages: Quenya and Sindarin. Quenya was spoken by those Elves that journeyed to Valinor, while Sindarin eventually became the main language of those who remained in Middle Earth. When the Elves who journeyed to Valinor returned, they kept Quenya among themselves but also learned Sindarin, making it the chief lingua franca among the Elves. Both Quenya and Sindarin have their own dialects as well, however.

* Subverted in ''Literature/ASongOfIceAndFire''. The "Common Tongue of Westeros" is only universal in the continent of Westeros itself, where most of the action takes place. It is a major world language, and most merchants in major ports from Essos to the Summer Isles will probably be at least familiar with it - but more isolated groups like the Dothraki mounted hordes in central Essos do not know it. Specifically, the "Common Tongue" is actually the language of the Andals, who migrated to Westeros thousands of years ago, displacing the earlier "Old Tongue" of the First Men. The conceit of the story is that Westeros is a fantasy version of the British Isles, but as a continent the size of South America. The Andals are thus the analogue of the Anglo-Saxons, and the First Men the analogue of the Celts. Meanwhile, in Essos, the Valyrian empire once ruled half the known world, and was basically Fantasy Rome (with dragons) - but their empire collapsed 400 years ago after a volcanic eruption in their capital, and their provinces fragmented. Since this collapse, the languages spoken by all their different colonies in the Free Cities and elsewhere drifted into different "Low Valyrian" languages. Their original language, "High Valyrian", is still used by scholars and educated social elites, and is thus their fantasy analogue of Latin. The different Low Valyrian languages are like how French and Italian diverged from each other. Well-educated aristocrats from Oldtown to Meereen can speak High Valyrian, but in terms of languages used by the man on the street, it's a bit of a tossup. Sailors are even described as using a pidgin "Trade talk" to communicate in ports, mirroring real life use.

* The language people know as "UsefulNotes/{{Chinese|Language}}" is actually only Mandarin, which is spoken largely everywhere due to it being taught as part of the official curriculum. Otherwise, people in UsefulNotes/{{China}} speak a [[UsefulNotes/ChineseDialectsAndAccents large family of languages]] sufficiently dissimilar that knowing one doesn't help in understanding another -- from Germanic and Romance languages written in the Latin alphabet (Portuguese in Macau and English in Hong Kong), to Turkish languages written in Arabic alphabet (Uyghur in Xinjiang), to Mongolian written in either Russian or classical Mongolian script (in Inner Mongolia).

If you are not a native English speaker, you are currently experiencing this trope as TruthInTelevision by reading this page, as English is today's ''de facto'' global language throughout the entire world. It's so global that, despite being the 4th-most spoken native language in the world, it still has more second-language speakers than first-language ones. On a more local level this happens with [[UsefulNotes/SpanishLanguage Spanish]] and [[UsefulNotes/PortugueseLanguage Portuguese]] in Latin America; English or [[UsefulNotes/FrenchLanguage French]] in mainland Europe; English or French in different parts of Africa; Russian in Central Asia; [[UsefulNotes/ArabicLanguage Arabic]] (and, to a lesser extent, Farsi) in the Middle East; [[UsefulNotes/ChineseLanguage Mandarin Chinese]] and Hindi in East Asia; and English in South/Southeast Asia and Oceania. Essentially most were forced to use the language of whatever European country colonized them, and it persisted post-independence. [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg Oh yeah,]] and [[GratuitousLatin Latin]] used to be one.

* ''TabletopGame/{{Rifts}}''' "Three Galaxies" setting has ''six'' Trade Tongues. Some of which are for the ease of certain species(like one that insectoid and reptilitan races find easier to speak, or one for telepathic races). One of them, Trade Four, is effectively American English, [[RealityEnsues but has so much loanwords and language drift that a native English speaker(as opposed to a native Trade Four speaker) isn't guaranteed to understand it]].

* Commonly [[ZigZaggingTrope Zig-Zagged]] in ''Series/BuffyTheVampireSlayer'' and ''Series/{{Angel}}''. Almost every demon speaks English, even ones in alternate dimensions, until it's more dramatic for one not to.

* All the various cultures in ''WesternAnimation/AvatarTheLastAirbender'', from pole to pole and around the world, share the same language, spoken as English but written as Chinese. This implies that they may actually speak Chinese, it just sounds [[TranslationConvention like whatever the audience expects to hear.]]
* The titular characters in ''WesternAnimation/{{Gargoyles}}'' woke up from being sealed in stone for a millennium and were immediately able to converse with humans in modern English save for needing to catch up on the occasional slang term. WordOfGod admits that he's always been fully aware that people in 10th Century Scotland didn't speak any form of English whatsoever (let alone the modern variant), but since Scotland natively speaks English nowadays, he basically felt it was close enough to get away with it.
* ''WesternAnimation/HeManAndTheMastersOfTheUniverse1983'' and ''WesternAnimation/SheRaPrincessOfPower'': Pretty much all of the countless species and races on Eternia speak or at least understand English. Furthermore the same applies to Etheria, Trolla, Primus ... pretty much any planet or dimension the characters encounter, including Earth, making this also a case of AliensSpeakingEnglish.
** Continues into the latter's reboot series, ''WesternAnimation/SheRaAndThePrincessesOfPower''. Mara died a thousand years ago, but in her appearances in flashbacks or holograms she recorded while alive speak the same language as Adora and Glimmer. [[spoiler:And Horde Prime can communicate fine with Glimmer and Catra even though Etheria has spent a thousand years in a different dimension to the one Horde Prime came from.]] The First Ones had a different ''written'' language, admittedly, but the spoken language seems to be the same.
* ''Franchise/MyLittlePony'':
** Applies to the original ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTVSpecials My]] [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyTheMovie1986 Little]] [[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyAndFriends Pony]]'' cartoon. Everyone in Ponyland and the surrounding territories speaks English, which is certainly helpful when Firefly enlists Megan's aid.
** ''WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyFriendshipIsMagic'' makes this a bit more diverse, as other languages (such as Zebra and [[BilingualBonus French]]--er, "Fancy") ''do'' exist, but everyone speaks "Ponish" as well. Dragons, Griffons, Yaks, and even initially mysterious outsider Zecora understand it, even if in the latter case she prefers to speak it in [[RhymesOnADime rhymed couplets]]. This even carries over into the humans of the ''[[WesternAnimation/MyLittlePonyEquestriaGirls Equestria Girls]]'' universe, conveniently for Sunset and Twilight.

* Motohiro Kato's works ''Manga/QED'' and ''Manga/CMB'' often employ this trope by making every characters of all nationalities capable of speaking Japanese because the main characters travel overseas a lot. It's more evident for C.M.B. whose main character Shinra is highly regarded internationally as a wise person with vast knowledge.

* There was also a situation in ''Series/StargateSG1'' where four ancient races used holographic displays of various periodic elements as some kind of universal language, though the intended effect was a little vague.
** Of course, the way they chose to represent the elements (as orbiting spheres) doesn't sound like something various alien races would come up with on their own. Especially since the Asgard claim that they can't think primitively.
*** Given the language itself is thousands if not millions of years old, it was most likely a time when the Asgard could "think primitively."

** Simplified in 4th edition (no surprise there); for the most part there are only ten languages, with Common being the trade language. There are however 7 other languages for different regions.
*** Of particular note is the Supernal language, the language of the Gods, the very first language. When the speaker speaks in Supernal, everyone would understand what the speaker says as if in their own native tongue. In fact, all other languages are variants of the Supernal, in how the various races perceived the Supernal language. While you can learn the Supernal language, ultimately subverted because mortals lack the necessary power to fully speak in Supernal, thus losing its capability as universal language.

* Standard English in ''Webcomic/{{Pacificators}}''. Moreover, the Pacificators are actively discouraged from speaking in their native languages (hence why the platoon always nag on [[SiblingTeam Larima and Taffe]] when they speak in French). [[spoiler: The fact that Muneca has slipped into Spanish a few times is a significant CharacterDevelopment.]]

** Chinese linguistic unity is further increased by its logographic (each symbol represents a word) system of writing. The same glyph is pronounced differently in each language, but the meaning usually remains the same. Therefore, a written language independent of speech, known as Classical Chinese, developed, serving as a Common Tongue (or Common Pen?) for the educated not only in China, but also countries under Chinese influence (Japan, Korea, and Vietnam). However, Classical Chinese was based on Late Old Chinese and thus did not reflect several features of more modern Chinese languages, including pronunciation[[note]]Contrary to popular belief, most Chinese characters ''do'' reflect pronunciation[[note]]However, Japanese does not have this, as they borrowed and re-borrowed the same glyph for multiple entirely separate words[[/note]]. They are usually composed of two parts, one giving the sound of the syllable it represents, and the other indicating the meaning)[[/note]] and grammar. Classical Chinese fell out of use shortly after the [[UsefulNotes/NoMoreEmperors Xinhai Revolution]] of 1911, but the Republic of China (Taiwan) used it well into the 1970s for certain government documents.

If you are not a native English speaker, you are currently experiencing this trope as TruthInTelevision by reading this page, as English is today's ''de facto'' global language throughout the entire world. It's so global that, despite being the 4th-most spoken native language in the world, it still has more second-language speakers than first-language ones.. On a more local level this happens with [[UsefulNotes/SpanishLanguage Spanish]] and [[UsefulNotes/PortugueseLanguage Portuguese]] in Latin America; English or [[UsefulNotes/FrenchLanguage French]] in mainland Europe; English or French in different parts of Africa; Russian in Central Asia; [[UsefulNotes/ArabicLanguage Arabic]] (and, to a lesser extent, Farsi) in the Middle East; [[UsefulNotes/ChineseLanguage Mandarin Chinese]] and Hindi in East Asia; and English in South/Southeast Asia and Oceania. Essentially most were forced to use the language of whatever European country colonized them, and it persisted post-independence. [[MyFriendsAndZoidberg Oh yeah,]] and [[GratuitousLatin Latin]] used to be one.

Contrast ClassicalTongue, which was often a Common Tongue long ago. See also [[UsefulNotes/EsperantoTheUniversalLanguage Esperanto]], an attempt to create this trope in real life.