English language English was a Human language that Uhura once called " universal " . ( ) It was a major operating language for Starfleet , and was spoken widely throughout the Federation . The modern language had developed in England by around the 16th century , and began spreading across Earth in earnest in the 17th century as Old Britain expanded its naval power over the planet ' s oceans and claimed many colonial territories . As a result , the language became commonly spoken in such nation - states as Australia , Bermuda , Canada , Fiji , India , Ireland , Malaysia , New Zealand , Singapore , South Africa , and the United States of America , among others . English alphabet . The alphabet of the English language consisted of 52 symbols representing 26 letters . The English alphabet was also present in nurseries to help children learn them along side other alien alphabets . A nursery aboard the " Enterprise " - D had the English alphabet on the wall in 2365 . ( ) Starfleet vessels of note , such as the and the predecessors of the were commemorated by having new ships later named after them and keeping the same registry number , but adding a letter based on the number of ships that have been renamed . The , which has the registry number NCC - 1701 - D , would then be the fifth vessel to bear the name , and referred to as the " Enterprise " - D . When the ' s autodestruct sequence was activated , Captain Jean - Luc Picard joked wryly that they would probably build yet another " Enterprise " , " . . . plenty of letters left in the alphabet . " ( ) Chronology . From 1992 to 1996 Khan Noonien Singh was the absolute ruler of a quarter of Earth ' s Human population , from the Subcontinent to the Middle East . English was spoken in several of his subject countries , and in others seized by his fellow supermen in 1993 . ( ) In 2024 individuals that were submitted to the Sanctuary District s were given questionnaires and told to answer all of the questions to the best of their ability . They were told that if they could not speak English an interpreter would be provided , and if they could not read , the questions would be given to them verbally . ( ) On the maiden mission of the UESPA / Starfleet , when linguist Hoshi Sato was discomforted by the sequencing of the deflector at warp 4 . 4 , she snapped at T ' Pol " " ponfo mirann ! " " ( Vulcan for " go to hell ! " ) ; T ' Pol replied coldly , " " I was instructed to speak English on this voyage and I ' d appreciate it if you ' d respect that . " " ( ) In early 2152 , welcoming Vulcan ambassador V ' Lar aboard " Enterprise " , T ' Pol addressed her in Vulcan ; V ' Lar insisted that they not speak this language , as she wanted the opportunity to practice her English . ( ) Later yet that year , Jonathan Archer encountered a drayjin that appeared to him in the form of a Human female . This female spoke to Archer , much to his surprise , as his initial reply to her was a statement of the obvious : " You ' re speaking English . " ( ) When " Enterprise " encountered an automated repair station , Captain Archer noted that all of the panels were in English . T ' Pol stated the computer must have scanned their database . ( ) " In the alternate reality , Jaylah learned the English language from the records of the . " ( ) In 2267 , Khan was revived from suspended animation and his first question was in English : " How long ? " Waking later in the ' s sickbay , he thought he had dreamed of hearing the language . ( ) Later that year , the long - lost Zefram Cochrane was surprised to find that James T . Kirk , Spock , Leonard McCoy , and Nancy Hedford spoke English . ( ) The inhabitants of planet 892 - IV spoke a parallel - development form of English , which Spock said had been spoken on Earth three hundred years before . ( ) In 2268 the " Enterprise " encountered a Melkotian buoy which communicated telepathically , everyone on the bridge comprehending the message in her / his native language : Russian for Chekov , Ki - Swahili for Uhura , his own planetary language for Spock , English for Kirk , and certain others . ( ) When the crew of the pulled up the Treaty of Armens , it included both the English language version alongside the Sheliak language version . ( )