Summary: | <p>In the context of globalization and increasing international cooperation in different spheres of life the issue of national security and economic prosperity of nations is becoming increasingly urgent.</p><p><strong>Purpose:</strong> Consideration of sociolinguistic and cultural characteristics of the functioning of foreign languages in a multinational state, the example of the United States.</p><p><strong>Methodology:</strong> We used general scientific methods: analysis and synthesis, comparison, generalization, systematic approach.</p><p><strong>Results:</strong> It is concluded that foreign languages in a multinational state, such as the U.S., are studied through active actions of government, public and educational institutions, and the main purpose of language learning is to maintain national security and economic competitiveness in the international arena.</p><p><strong>Practical implications:</strong> The results of the work may be used both in linguistic theory, and sociolinguistics.</p><p><strong><strong>DOI: <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.12731/2218-7405-2013-7-51">http://dx.doi.org/10.12731/2218-7405-2013-7-51</a></strong></strong></p>
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