Bill Bryson's book 'Mother Tongue' is a really easy to read discussion about English, and it covers things like the difference between US English and UK English.
Off the top of my head, because I don't have a copy near me right now. I think he decides that the differences are just due to the natural evolution of languages. When English speakers moved to different parts of the world their use of the language evolved seperately, so we have ended up with all the different types of English we have now.
I guess some people would argue that the opposite is happening today, with the increase in global communication. I definately have to think about whether I should spell it grey or gray.
What this means, to all you people who are learning English, is that there is no 'correct' version of English. So you learn what's best for your situation
Sorry, this is another of my hobby horses
. I used to teach English in a school in Poland. I was mainly employed because I was British, as all the other teachers were from the US or Canada, because the Principal wanted the students to learn British English. The main employer in the town was a factory that was a subsiduary of a US company, so my students had to unlearn some of what they had learnt in order to communicate with their bosses. It never made sense to me
Sorry, rant over
Helga
