I think this is a very interesting question. Certainly, the name of the language ties it to its home country, England, but even there it never was a truly native language. Around 450 AD, a number of Germanic tribes (primarily the Angles, Saxons, and Jutes) invaded what is now England and brought with them the Germanic language that would become known as English. Before that invasion, people were speaking languages from prior invasions, including Latin and Celtic.
Even the history of the language, then, complicates the idea that any one country or group of people owns it. (lorijayne's comments seem to me right on the mark!) Today you'll even hear a number of language scholars talking about World Englishes, which suggests that there's no longer one language that can be owned by any one group of people.
In your question you mention "the role and nature of English," which seems to suggest to me that you, too, understand how English has become a global language and has undergone any number of transformations in the process.
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