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Traits of Europe
The English language is the most dominant in Europe despite having many languages in the continent. This is because if the influence if the united kingdom in the continent’ especially in the eighteenth century. According to Mairead (2005), the English language is spoken by an approximate 38% of the Europeans compared to the other languages like French, Russian and Italian. The dominance if the English language translates to the dominance of the English culture in Europe. This is because spread of a language carries with it the spread of the culture of the language (Fairclough, 2007). Therefore’ the ethnic traits of the traditional European communities have gradually been influenced by the dominant cultures like English, especially in the countries where the language is spoken. The same trend is observed in communities where both languages like French, Russian and Italian is spoken.
Christianity is the most dominant religion in Europe, accounting for 72% of the Europeans. Of all the Christians, Roman Catholics are the largest Christian denomination with 48% dominance (Henkel & Hans, 2005). Countries like Italy and England have Christianity as their main religion and in most cases the official religion (Henkel & Hans, 2005). However, Islam is present in some parts of Europe as well as Judaism. Islam was introduced in Europe and not a traditional religion for the continent. Islam was introduced during the Muslim conquest during the 18th century. The total number of Muslims in the entire Europe is estimated to be 6% with the exclusion of turkey, which has a significant number of Muslims. Muslims make over 90% of the populations in Kosovo, Northern Cyprus and Turkey (Henkel & Hans, 2005).
Despite the existence of these types of religion in the continent, the scene has been changing due to modernity and influence from other continents. One of the changes that have been introduced in Europe over the years is the migration of people from one country to another (Henkel & Hans, 2005). Immigration leads to the spread of new cultures and blending of the cultures of the immigrants with that of the host. As a result, Europe has recorded a number of people practicing the Indian Hinduism and Deism, especially in France and Germany (Henkel & Hans, 2005). The same trend is observed in the spread of Islam to the conventionally Christian countries. For instance, the minority Islam found in the United Kingdom is as a result of migration to the country.
The influence of modernity and new views of life has also changed the social and cultural perspective of Europe as a continent. This is because the influence of the social and religious views from other continents has impacted on the Europeans (Henkel & Hans, 2005). For instance, the philosophy of people believing there is no God has led to the existence of atheists and agnosticism in Europe. This is the reason for the 7% of the EU citizens being reported to be atheists (Henkel & Hans, 2005). This has taken trend in the late 20th and 21st centuries.
Another factor influencing the change in trends of the social and cultural aspects in Europe is economic integration. The development of the European Union is indirectly influencing the social values of the European population. Most countries are embracing the social practices of other countries, especially those that are dominating economically (Mairead, 2005). Other factors influencing the trends include the use of modern technology and the internet that has impacted on the interactions between people in the continent. All these factors affect the social and cultural aspects differently, and have diverse impacts on the continent.
References
Henkel, R., & Hans, K. (2005). The Changing Religious Landscape of Europe. Amsterdam: Het Spinhuis
Fairclough, N. (2007). Language and Globalization. New York: Routledge
Mairead, C. (2005). Europe and the Politics of Language: Citizens, Migrants and Outsiders. London: Palgrave