Chapter 5

The ‘New’ Englishes

Introductory activities

The following introductory activities are designed to encourage the reader to think about
the issues raised in this chapter before reading it.

Variation in the Outer Circle

Look at the map in Figure 5.1 that shows some uses of English around the world.

Discussion questions
1 Figure 5.1 shows how English has adapted to its surroundings in various contexts
around the world. Are you familiar with any of these examples? Do you know of any
others?
2 In what ways do you think language contact has been influential in the development
of ‘New’ Englishes? Are you familiar with the English spoken in Singapore?

Case study: creativity in South Asian Englishes

English has been adapted in various Outer Circle contexts in diverse ways. Kachru (1985,
p. 20) uses the term ‘bilinguals’ creativity’ to describe ‘those creative linguistic processes
which are the result of competence in two or more languages’. Creativity in writing
showcases the pluricentricity of English today as these writers adapt the language and
make it their own. Several writers of ‘New’ Englishes in various contexts have made
names for themselves across the English-speaking world. Kachru (1997, pp. 222–23,
cited in Kachru and Nelson, 2006, p. 32) presents a list of world-class literary prize-
winners that includes the following:

Nobel Prize in Literature

Wole Soyinka (Nigeria), 1986
Derek Walcott (Trinidad), 1992
V. S. Naipaul (Trinidad), 2001

Neustadt Award
Raja Rao (India), 1988
 -r\W ^1 Cameroon:
Ghana:
Installment and South Asia:
I met your absense installmentally
[you weren’t there] Shall we prepone the
(Sebba, 2009, p.415) meeting

India:
“Revenue department staffers observe pen-down strike” ( of India, August 1, 2013);
“Mumbai Police to chargesheet Rauf” (Hindustan Times, September 21, 2013);
“North Corporation mulls over new schemes for social upliftment” (www.thehindu.com, February 12, 2013)
“Telugu eveninger launched” (www. thehindu.com, September 16, 2013).

Figure 5.1 Uses of English around the world

 The ‘New’ Englishes 97

Man Booker Prize

Chinua Achebe (Nigeria), 1987
Michael Ondaatje (Sri Lanka), 1992
Ben Okri (Nigeria), 1991
Salman Rushdie (India), 1995
Arundhati Roy (India), 1997

Discussion
1 Despite the long history of English in places like India, and despite the fact that
creative writing in South Asian English has gained stature in recent years, the English
used in such contexts continues to be viewed by some as inferior to ‘standard’ Eng-
lish. Why do you think such attitudes persist? Can the writers listed above claim
‘ownership’ of the English language?
2 Are you familiar with any of the work shown above? Do you know of any other bilingual
writers who use things like code-mixing, code-switching, and borrowing in their work?
3 In what ways can the development of postcolonial literature help the status of the
‘New’ Englishes? Does winning a prize give them a certain kind of legitimacy? Does
this growing body of postcolonial literature have any implications for the study of
English literature?

Introduction
This chapter focuses on the ‘New’ Englishes spoken as an official or recognized second
language in Kachru’s Outer Circle. Used in a variety of domains, even after gaining
independence, English has been appropriated in these ‘new’ contexts to suit the needs
of those living there. However, a number of questions arise. What is a ‘New’ English?
Can it be used in the classroom? Are their features innovations or errors? Is it even
appropriate to talk of ‘varieties’ today, given the rapid spread of English as a lingua
franca? This last question is tackled in the subsequent two chapters but the others are
tackled here, in our examination of the diversity of English. We explore the systematic
description of features in an attempt to show their legitimacy.
A useful starting place is to return to the definition introduced in Chapter 2. Accord-
ing to Platt et al. (1984, pp. 2–3), a ‘New’ English is one that fulfils the following criteria:

1 It has developed through the education system.

2 It has developed where a native variety of English was not the language spoken by
most of the population.
3 It is used for a range of functions among those who can speak or write it in the region
where it is used (e.g. in literature, the government, and the media).
4 It has become ‘localized’ or ‘nativized’ by adopting some language features of its own.

These points, as well as Kachru’s three phases discussed in Chapter 2, will be discussed
throughout this chapter and more fully in Section 5d, where we examine the status of
the ‘New’ Englishes.
98 The ‘New’ Englishes

This chapter has been divided into Sections 5a (covering South Asia), 5b (South-East
Asia), 5c (Africa), and 5d (Hong Kong as well as looking at status). While the ‘New’
Englishes do share some features, they are far from uniform in their characteristics.
Much work has been conducted in the World Englishes paradigm (see Kachru et al.,
2006), and scholars have made tremendous progress documenting the core gramma-
tical, lexical, and phonological forms that are distinct from ‘standard’ varieties of
English. However, by documenting such features, we are not ignoring the use of ELF
either within or across these regions. As introduced in the Preface, the term ‘World
Englishes’ not only refers to a research paradigm but also an ideology, and is based on
an inclusive philosophy that emphasizes the pluricentricity of English. Thus, topics such
as creative writing, pedagogy, and legitimacy are all discussed. In essence, this chapter
exemplifies the variation in the use of English today within the World Englishes para-
digm. It is also important to note that, while we refer to ‘standard’ Inner Circle vari-
eties when we document the distinctive features of the ‘New’ Englishes, this does not
indicate a superior status.

5a English in South Asia

This section focuses on India, Nepal, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Sri Lanka. It is worth
noting that the ‘use of the term South Asian English is not to be understood as indicative
of linguistic homogeneity in this variety nor of a uniform linguistic competence’
(Kachru, 1986, p. 36). We begin with the historical background, the role of English
today, and the general features of these regional varieties, and end with an examination
of the status of English in South Asia.

The history of English in South Asia

Contact with English can be traced to 1579 with the arrival of Father Thomas
Stephens in India. British involvement grew in the seventeenth century through trade
and subsequent British rule with the East India Company. The East India Company
gained more power, eventually taking over the civil government, and education and
government in 1858. British Christian missionaries, who used English as a medium of
instruction, were also influential in the early nineteenth century. English was also
desirable for modernization and economic development. Policy makers gave it a
superior status, evident in the Minute on Indian Education (1835), which made a plea
for a Western mode of education and the creation of ‘a class of persons, Indian in
blood and colour, but English in taste, in opinion, in morals and in intellect’ (Kachru,
1983, p. 22). English was seen as necessary for career advancement as it was becoming
a language of the elite, and an English literature was also emerging. Three English-
medium universities were established in 1857 in Bombay/Mumbai, Calcutta/Kolkata,
and Madras/Chennai, followed by two more in Allahabad and Punjab by the end of
the century.
As internal functions grew, English became dominant in politics, education,
administration, the legal system, and the media. An elite class of Indians who were
proficient in English emerged and, when Indian independence was granted in 1947,
English had already established a dominant role in the emerging nations of India,
Pakistan, and Bangladesh. The 1950 constitution made Hindi the official language,
 The ‘New’ Englishes 99

yet, after unrest amongst the non-Hindi-speaking populations and the language riots
of the 1960s, the Official Language Act, passed in 1963 and amended in 1967, made
English co-equal with Hindi. The Three Language Formula was then introduced
in 1964–66, requiring that Hindi, English, and a regional language be taught in
every state.
There have been attempts to diminish the role of English in India and elsewhere in
South Asia. In Pakistan, the position of Urdu has been strengthened in constitutional
amendments over the years. Sri Lanka’s three-language policy (English, Sinhalese, and
Tamil) also attempted to replace English, although it was unsuccessful and English
was reinstated. Nevertheless, the dominant role of English in South Asia today is an
undisputed fact.

The role of English today in South Asia

Today, there are more English speakers in South Asia than there are in Inner Circle
countries, although numbers are difficult to estimate and proficiency varies. Speakers
of an educated variety of Indian English are estimated to be around 35–50 million,
making Indian English the third largest ‘variety’ of English worldwide, after
British and American English (Mukherjee, 2010, p. 167), if such linguistic lines can
be drawn.
Many different languages are spoken in India and the constitution recognizes 22 official
languages, including English. Hindi is the major language, with upward of 422 million
speakers if all dialects are included (although in the south of India Dravidian languages are
more prominent). In Sri Lanka, Sinhala and Tamil are the main local languages. However,
many continue to use English on a daily basis and code-mix with local languages. It is also
the language of choice by many ‘to show off or as a mark of their age or position’, and
some upper class urban families may have adopted English almost entirely (Melchers and
Shaw, 2011, p. 146).
In India, English has become the language of administration, politics, education, and
academia. Several English newspapers are published, English news is broadcast, and a
growing number of books are published in English. It is also used as a lingua franca
within the country, among people from different linguistic backgrounds. The situation is
similar in Pakistan, where English assumes a dominant role in science and technology,
the media, and international communication.

Features of English in South Asia

Lengthy historical contact with other languages in South Asia’s multilingual mosaic
landscape has led to a lot of variation, which has attracted the attention of a number
of scholars.

Sounds
A lot of research has been conducted on variation in the accents of South Asian
Englishes (Gargesh, 2006; Kachru and Nelson, 2006; Kirkpatrick, 2007; Melchers
and Shaw, 2011; Platt et al., 1984). A few illustrative examples are outlined in the
following subsection.
100 The ‘New’ Englishes

P H ON EMI C V AR IAT IO N

Vowels
It is widely reported that many Englishes linked to South Asia have a reduced vowel
system when compared with the Englishes covered in Chapter 4. Some distinctive fea-
tures include the following.

! Vowel mergers – as a result of a reduced vowel set, some vowels are merged. The RP
vowels /A:/ and /O:/ are merged as [A:] in many Indian accents, and the /Q/ and /æ/
differences in some accents are not maintained with the vowels often merged as [a]
(Trudgill and Hannah, 2008).
! Diphthongs are realized as simple vowels – this results in many diphthongs being
reduced to monophthongs, as in the examples of /eI/ becoming [e:] (e.g. day realized
as [de:]) and /@U/ becoming [o:] (coat pronounced [ko:t]).
! Absence of schwa /@/– in Pakistani English, the schwa found in RP and other South
Asian varieties in letter, horses, and comma is realized as a more open and retracted [V]
vowel.
! Initial front vowels are sometimes preceded by a [j] glide – thus, in India, inner is
pronounced as ‘yinner’ (Kachru and Nelson, 2006, p. 157), and in Southern India
eight as [je:t] (Trudgill and Hannah, 2008).
! Back vowels are sometimes preceded by [w] – in southern India, own may be pro-
nounced as ‘wown’ (Trudgill and Hannah, 2008) and open as ‘wopen’ (Kachru and
Nelson, 2006, p. 157).
! The merging of sibilants – there is considerable merging of sibilants in India, result-
ing in homophonous realization of words like same and shame, in which both initial
consonants are realized as [s]. Likewise, this occurs with the /dZ/ (as in major), /z/ (as
in razor), and /Z/ (as in measure), which are all realized as [dZ] (Kachru and Nelson,
2006, p. 157).

Consonants

! Rhoticity – Englishes found in South Asia are rhotic. The trilled /r/ is pronounced in
Indian English wherever the letter ‘r’ appears in English spelling (e.g. the ‘r’ in dart
and in door), differentiating it from most non-rhotic British colony accents.
! Retroflexed /t/ and /d/ – the alveolar /t/ and /d/ tend to be realized as retroflex [!]
and [¶], which are articulated with the underside of the tongue making firm contact
with the alveolar ridge or palate. Such sounds are typical of Indo-Aryan and Dravi-
dian languages, but uncommon in most English accents. This feature gives Indian
English a distinctively recognizable quality.
! The dental fricatives – the /θ/ and /ð/ phonemes are realized as dental [t“] and [d“] or
alveolar [t] and [d] plosives (e.g. think as ‘tink’).
! Various phonemic distinctions may not be maintained – distinctions are not made
between /v/ and /w/ in Sri Lanka and some parts of India, and /p/ and /f/ plus /s/
and /S/ may also not be distinguished. There is often no distinction between some
voiced and voiceless consonants. For example, the voiceless plosives /p/, /t/, and /k/
at the beginning of words tend to be unaspirated, e.g. time and dime, and ten and den
may not be differentiated.
 The ‘New’ Englishes 101

! Postalveolars – /tS/, /dZ/, /S/, and /Z/ may be pronounced with contact between
the blade of the tongue and the roof of the mouth (rather than its tip, as in other
varieties) (Melchers and Shaw, 2011).
! Consonant clusters are broken up – as discussed in Chapter 2, speakers of the ‘New’
Englishes often employ a number of strategies to deal with consonant clusters. Gar-
gesh (2006, p. 102) notes the following: Punjabi and Haryana speakers may insert
a schwa in word initial clusters (e.g. sport as ‘s[@]port’, school as [s@ku:l]). In northern
India, word-initials /sk/, /st/, or /sp/ tend to receive a preceding /I/ (e.g. speak [Ispi:k].
Hindi-Urdu speakers in the east may also add a /I/ (e.g. speech [Ispi:tS]).

PRO S OD IC VA RIA TIO N

South Asian Englishes tend to be perceived as syllable-timed, not stress-timed, and word
stress is not prominent. Function words that are reduced when unstressed in other varieties
of English (of /@v/, to /t@/, etc) tend not to undergo reduction in India (Trudgill and
Hannah, 2008). Intonation is ‘characterised by rather short intonation units (so that the
placement of sentence stress may seem uninformative)’ (Melchers and Shaw, 2011, p. 147).

Vocabulary
Gargesh (2006) notes that lexical variation is the area where divergence is most noticeable,
and this has received the attention of many World Englishes scholars (Bamgbose, 1992;
Kachru and Smith, 2008; Kirkpatrick, 2007; Gargesh, 2006; Melchers and Shaw, 2011;
Platt et al., 1984; Trudgill and Hannah 2008). Some examples include the following.

! Variety-specific compounds – shoe-bite (blister), head-tie (woman’s head dress), chalk-

piece (piece of chalk), and key-bunch (bunch of keys).
! Same meaning, different words – bogey (railway carriage), cracker (firework), biodata
(curriculum vitae), and colony (residential area). Some older British English lexical
items are also still used in India (e.g. thrice).
! Conversion – to off/on (to switch off/on).
! Semantic extension – hotel (a restaurant or café not necessarily with lodgings).
! Compounding/specialized meaning – pen-down-strike (workers present at work, but
refusing to work).
! Derivation – upliftment (uplift), prepone (to bring forward in time).
! Abbreviations – funda (fundamental).
! Coinages – co-brother (one’s wife’s sister’s husband), cousin-brother (as opposed to a sib-
ling), eve-teasing (sexual harassment of women), inskirt (petticoat), love marriage (mar-
rying someone of one’s own choice, as opposed to someone chosen by the family),
and eveninger (evening newspaper in India and Pakistan).
! Borrowing – goonda (hooligan), mela (crowd), lathi (bamboo stick), dosa (Indian crepe),
channa (chick peas), sari (traditional dress), and melas (gathering).
! Hybrid forms – lathi-charge (an attack by the police using lathis) and congresswallah
(member of congress).
! Locally coined idioms and word-by-word translations of indigenous phrases – I bow
my forehead and I fall at your feet as popular greetings in India, and phrases such cherisher
of the poor meaning someone who is cherishing of or kind to the poor.
102 The ‘New’ Englishes

Grammar-syntactic variation
Unlike the lexicon, syntax is more stable, although some distinctive features have
been documented (Baumgardner, 1987; Kachru, 1983; Gargesh, 2006; Kirkpatrick,
2007; Mukherjee, 2010; Platt et al., 1984; Seargeant and Swann, 2012; Trudgill
and Hannah, 2008).

! Plurality – countable nouns are not always marked by -s to show plurality, while
uncountable nouns are sometimes marked for plurality, so many uncountable nouns
often become countable (e.g. I saw him dropping a lot of litters).
! Tense and aspect – in India, the present continuous, or progressive, with stative
verbs (the be + verb + -ing) construction, is extended, as in I am having a stomach
ache (I have a stomach ache) and where is our new teacher coming from? (where does our
new teacher come from?). The present tense is also often used for durational phases,
e.g. I am here on holiday since Tuesday (I have been here on holiday since Tuesday).
The perfective may be used instead of the simple past (especially with past-time
adverbs), e.g. I have been in Italy twenty years ago (I was in Italy twenty years ago).
Future forms are used in temporal and conditional clauses, e.g. when will you get
there, open the present (when you get there, open the present). Finally the verb ‘be’ is
often omitted.
! Question formation – tag questions may be invariant, e.g. you know it, isn’t it? and you
went there yesterday, no? The subject and the verb may not be inverted in direct
questions, e.g. where you are going?
! Yes/no – the use of yes/no responses may not conform to Inner Circle conventions,
with ‘yes’ used to agree with a negative assertion, as in the enquiry You have no
question? being responded to with Yes, I have no question.
! Adverbs – may be positioned differently, e.g. always I drink coffee.
! Articles – the rules for the use of the definite article (‘the’) and the indefinite article
(‘a’/’an’) are different. For example, there is a tendency to omit the article for non-
specific objects, e.g. do you want apple?
! Reduplication – repetition of words is used for emphasis, e.g. it was a big big cake.
! Prepositions – phrasal and prepositional verb constructions may differ. In India, pre-
positions may be dropped, e.g. to dispense (to dispense with), or added, e.g. to accom-
pany with (to accompany) and to air out one’s views (to air one’s views), or used
differently, e.g. to pay attention on (to pay attention to).
! Auxiliary verbs – in India, could and would may be used instead of can and will (being
seen as more polite), e.g. we hope that you could join us and the lecture would begin at
2:00. Could may also be used instead of able to, e.g. he could just only finish it before we
left. May can be used for politeness, e.g. this furniture may be removed tomorrow (this
furniture is to be removed tomorrow).

Pragmatics
Distinct communicative styles can also be identified.

! Gestures vary – Indians may signal ‘yes’ by nodding their head sideways, often
mistaken for a ‘no’ by those unfamiliar to the context.
 The ‘New’ Englishes 103

! Formality – increased formality is common, e.g. what is your good name, sir?, and
honorific suffixes (e.g. ji or sahib) may be added to names to indicate respect. Matri-
monial advertisements, which feature heavily in newspapers, are a prime example of
culturally specific use of the language and reveal a lot about the domains in which
English is used in India.

Attitudes toward English variation in South Asia

The creative nature of South Asian English is evident in the innovative and creative ways
South Asian poets and novelists have exploited English. However, despite such work, a
lot of which is internationally acclaimed, and the wealth of World Englishes work, the
use of English by speakers in this region continues to be viewed as ‘illegitimate’ and
‘inferior’ by some, and the topic becomes particularly controversial in relation to class-
room models. Adherence to native-speaking norms isn’t always a choice, and Cowie’s
(2007) report on ‘accent training’ for a ‘neutral’ accent in the call centre training industry
highlights occurrences of call centre agents taking ‘elocution lessons’ to gain a British or
American accent.
In addition to the ‘type’ of English used, debate has also arisen over the status of
English in India, as discussed in Chapter 3. For some, it is a neutral language that cuts
across cultural and religious boundaries, a vehicle for political unity and a tool for eco-
nomic advancement. For others, it is something that creates and perpetuates societal
divisions. Kachru and Nelson (2006, p. 163) discuss three dominant views, which
include: support for the use of English from a Westernization/technological progress
view; a rejection of English; and a neutral position, which sees English being retained as
one of several foreign languages, but not in competition with local languages. Attitudes
are complex and, as will be discussed in Chapter 8, are subject to change. An article in
The Telegraph on 10 October 2012, for example, pointed out that British diplomats to
India are being advised to learn ‘Hinglish’ to avoid being left out of the loop in con-
versations. They are also being urged to learn Hindi to aid communication. In fact, the
notion of ‘Hinglish’ has become popularized in India through Bollywood, where film
titles increasingly blend Hindi and English, indicating a move away from ‘standard’
norms. Thus on the one hand we have call centre agents attempting to ‘neutralize’ their
accents to sound more British, while British diplomats are being urged to learn more
about the local usage of English.

5b English in South-East Asia

This section examines English in South-East Asia, where it is spoken as an official second
language (Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei, and the Philippines). Other ASEAN nations are
discussed in Chapter 6. Once again, we begin with a historical overview, followed by the
current role of English and an examination of research that has been conducted within
the World Englishes paradigm, ending with a closer examination of Singapore.

The history of English in South-East Asia

English has a long history in South-East Asia, albeit shorter than in South Asia. Coloni-
alism, which affected all countries except for Thailand (see Chapter 6), can be traced
104 The ‘New’ Englishes

back to the acquisition of Penang in Malaysia by the East India Company in 1786.
A trading settlement was established in Singapore in 1819, and in 1826 the ‘Straits
Settlements’ were created, consisting of Singapore, Malacca, and Penang, used as trading
centres by the East India Company. Malaysian states maintained their royal families,
under the influence of the British Empire, but Singapore was colonized and British
colonial rule lasted for nearly 140 years. In 1946, the Malaya federation was established
although Singapore stayed as a separate crown colony. Malaya became independent in
1957 and was joined in its federation by Singapore in 1963. However, in 1965 Singapore
was expelled from the federation and became an independent state.

English in Singapore
After independence, language policies in Singapore were related to a desire to con-
struct a unified nation among a highly multilingual and multi-ethnic population,
alongside a desire for economic advancement. In 1965, equal status in education was
given to all four national languages (English, Malay, Mandarin, and Tamil). Since 1987,
English has been the major language of education at all levels, and the bilingual policy
of English +1 requires citizens to learn English as well as their mother tongue. How-
ever, English is the medium of instruction in education, and the other three languages
have been assigned second or ‘mother tongue’ language status. This has led to increased
use of English in the country and almost 80 per cent of the population now has some
command of the language (Rubdy et al., 2008, p. 40). Census figures note that English
is routinely used in 32.6 per cent of Chinese homes, 17.0 per cent of Malay homes,
and 41.6 per cent of Indian homes. Today, many young Singaporeans learn English as
a first language, and this brings us back to the problems with Kachru’s simplistic model
discussed in Chapter 1.

English in Malaysia
As a result of colonialism, English education was introduced in the Straits Settlements
from the early nineteenth century, albeit approached cautiously due to fears of nation-
alism. Until the 1960s, English was an important language in Malaysia in a number of
domains, including the government, administration, and education. However, with
independence, Malaysia replaced English with Malay (Bahasa Maleyu). The National
Language Act of 1976 made this the official language and it became the main language of
education in 1982, although English was also compulsory. Today, Malay is the sole lan-
guage of administration and Malaysia has reduced the role of English.
In the twenty-first century, the importance of English was recognized and it was
re-introduced as the language of science in secondary education. In 2002, it became the
medium of instruction for mathematics and science from primary one, followed by the
tertiary sector. This policy was, however, reversed in July 2009, and since 2012 mathe-
matics and science have been taught in Malay, although the policy stated that English-
medium instruction would continue at the pre-university and tertiary levels. Today,
all university undergraduates are required to study English and it is increasingly used in
the business arena.
Thus, in Malaysia there appears to be a ‘back-and-forth movement, which is quite
indicative of the ambivalent attitudes toward English in the country: it shouldn’t get too
 The ‘New’ Englishes 105

strong, but it is equally unthinkable to let it go’ (Schneider, 2011, p. 153), points that
were raised in Chapter 3.

English in the Philippines

A Spanish expedition in 1521 began colonization of the Philippines, which resulted in
400 years of Spanish rule. In 1896, unrest led to American intervention and America
defeated Spain in 1898, beginning American colonization. English replaced Spanish as
the official language and became the sole medium of instruction in 1901. With inde-
pendence in 1946, English continued to be the official language of schools and govern-
ment, although, in 1973, English and a modified version of Tagalog, known as Filipino,
were made the two official languages.
More than 70 different local languages and dialects are used in the Philippines, but
the constitution places emphasis on Filipino as a medium of instruction, although
Bautista and Gonzalez (2006) point out that English has taken centre stage in recent
years due to the demands of globalization. Today, about three-quarters of the popula-
tion can read or understand English, and more than half are said to be able to speak it
(Schneider, 2011, p. 155). It has also become dominant in business, politics, and edu-
cation, and most official government publications and legal documents are published in
English (Friginal, 2007). It is also associated with career advancement and social
mobility, particularly evident in the growing call centre industry, although as Schneider
(2011, p 156) notes, this is a ‘double-edged process’, since such jobs, despite being
well paid, result in unsociable working hours to meet the time lag with US-based
customers, points that were raised in Chapter 3.

English in Brunei
Brunei became a British protectorate in 1888. Malay was adopted as the medium of
instruction and was designated as the official language in 1959. Independence was
granted in 1984 and, in 1985, the national education system was implemented,
accompanied by a bilingual policy. This bilingual education policy introduced Malay as
a medium of instruction for the first three years of primary school, after which English
was to be used. However, since 2011 subjects such as mathematics and science are
taught in English from the first year of primary education, which is different compared
with Malaysia, as discussed above, which shifted back to Malay for these subjects.
Kirkpatrick (2010a, p. 35) notes that this language education policy has, perhaps, been
the most successful in ASEAN. The University of Brunei Darussalam offers English-
medium degrees as well as Malay-medium ones. The CfBT Education Trust, a UK-
based educational organization, also employs a large number of native English-speaking
teachers in primary and secondary schools throughout the country. The education
system is based on the British system, and Brunei students study for British General
Certificate of Education A and O levels.

Features of English in South-East Asia

As in South Asia, English comes into contact with a number of other languages in
South-East Asia.
106 The ‘New’ Englishes

Sounds
While examples of distinct features are given below, once again differences do exist.
In addition, the examples given can substantially differ from the English used in formal
settings. For this section, a number of sources have been consulted (Bautista and Gon-
zalez, 2006; Kachru and Nelson, 2006; Kirkpatrick, 2007; Low, 2010; Melchers and
Shaw, 2011; Platt et al., 1984; Schneider, 2003, 2011; Trudgill and Hannah, 2008).

P H ON EMI C V AR IAT IO N

Vowels

! Vowel mergers – due to a reduced vowel set, there are a number of vowel mergers in
South-East Asian Englishes. For example, /æ/ and /A/ (cat–cot /kat/), and /O/ and
/ou/ (caught–coat /kot/) are merged in the Philippines (Trudgill and Hannah, 2008),
and in Singapore the dress and trap vowels are merged as /e/, resulting in homo-
phonous word sets of set–sat and man–men (Kirkpatrick, 2007).
! Lack of vowel quality/length distinction – due to a reduced vowel set, coupled with a
lack of vowel quality/length distinction, some vowel pairs in certain regions of
South-East Asia are not differentiated:
" kit and fleece vowels are realized as /i/;
" goose and foot vowels are realized as /u/;
" palm and strut vowels are realized as /A/;
" north and lot vowels are realized as /O/.
! Diphthongs are realized as monophthongs/simple vowels – this results in /eI/ in face
being realized as [e:] (e.g. day as [de:] and the /@U/ in goat as [o:], resulting for example
in coat as [ko:t]).
! Absence of schwa [@] – similar to the Pakistani English example in Section 5a, there is
an absence of a schwa in Malaysia and the Philippines, where it is realized as a more
open variant.
! In Singapore, triphthongs may be treated as two syllables with a glide insertion (e.g.
[aI.j@] and [aU.w@] instead of [aI@] and [aU@] in words like fire and hour).

Consonants

! Rhoticity – Philippine English is rhotic, but Singaporean and Malaysian English are
non-rhotic.
! Dental fricatives – where other accents of English have dental fricatives, /t/ or /d/ are
realized word-initially, e.g. thin (tin), three (tree), think (tink), then (den). In the word-
final position, /f/ is realized and voicing contrast is neutralized (e.g. breath as [brEf] and
breathe as [brif]).
! Less distinction between some voiced and voiceless consonants – the voiceless
plosives /p/, /t/, and /k/ at the beginning of words tend to be unaspirated, thus
the /t/ in time might be mistaken as a /d/ to an untrained ear, e.g. time as dime.
Likewise, the voiced consonants at the end of words may be devoiced, creating
similarly pronounced word pairs such as knees–niece, leaf–leave, rope–robe, bad–bed,
and pick–pig.
 The ‘New’ Englishes 107

! Consonant clusters – the consonants at the end of words may be omitted in clusters,
as in fact realized as /fak/ and left as /lEf/, and the deletion of /t/ in dialect. The dis-
tinction between the following consonants may not be made in the Philippines and
Singapore: /tS/ and /dZ/; /f/ and /v/; /s/ and /z/; /s/ and /Z/; and /r/ and /l/.
! The vocalization of /l/ – Singaporeans vocalize /l/ as [U] or it is lost altogether,
meaning milk is pronounced as [miUk], well as [weU], and tall as [tO:].

PRO S OD IC VA RIA TIO N

In general, speech is perceived as syllable-timed, not stress-timed. A Singaporean or

Malaysian English speaker may not use lexical stress to signal the difference between a
verb (conduct) and a noun (conduct).

Vocabulary
Lexical variation has been well documented (Jenkins, 2009; Kachru and Nelson, 2006;
Low, 2010; Trudgill and Hannah, 2008; Platt et al., 1984; Wee, 1998). Some examples
include the following.

! Variety-specific compounds – Singapore: neighbourhood school (low-status schools in

one’s neighbourhood).
! Semantic extension – Singapore: open (turn on the light). Also in Singapore: borrow
and lend have the same meaning, stemming from the Mandarin word, (jiè),
meaning to lend or to borrow (e.g. can I lend your car? [can I borrow your car?]). In
Singapore and Malaysia: stay rather than live may be used for permanent or long-term
residence. In the Philippines: stick (cigarette) and motel (a hotel used for premarital or
extramarital affairs).
! Blending – Singapore: distripark (a distribution park or a warehouse complex).
! Acronyms – Singapore and Malaysia: MC (medical certificate).
! Coinages – Singapore: killer litter (rubbish discarded from high-rises that may end up
killing someone by accident). The Philippines: ambo (a Filipino perceived to be too
pro-American).
! Borrowing – in Singapore, borrowings from Malay are common. Examples include:
makan (to eat, food), tolong (help), mee goreng (spicy fried noodles), sarong (skirt), bomoh
(meaning medicine man with supernatural powers). In the Philippines, items may be
borrowed from Spanish, Tagalog, and other indigenous languages, e.g. as alto (surprise
party), estafa (fraud), and boondock (mountain).
! Locally coined idioms and word-by-word translations of indigenous phrases – exam-
ples include to shake legs (coming from the Malay idiom goyang kaki (to be idle)).
! Variation in the use of idioms, such as gift of the gap in Singapore, instead of the British
gift of the gab (Jenkins, 2009).

Grammar-syntactic variation
A lot of research has also been conducted with regards to syntactic variation (Ansaldo,
2004, 2010; Lim, 2004; Schneider, 2011; Seargeant, 2012; Trudgill and Hannah, 2008;
Platt et al., 1984; Wee, 2004, 2008). Examples include the following.
108 The ‘New’ Englishes

! Plurality – as with South Asia, English speakers do not always mark nouns for plur-
ality, e.g. I like to read storybook. Also, many uncountable nouns often become coun-
table, e.g. informations, staffs, furnitures, chalks, at times resulting in phrases such as sticks
of cigarette.
! Tense and aspect – in present continuous or progressive with stative verbs (the be +
verb + -ing) construction is extended. Colloquial Singapore English marks aspect, not
tense. Examples include:
" Perfective instead of the simple past – I have been in Italy twenty years ago (I was in
Italy twenty years ago);
" Past perfect instead of present perfect – he had already left (he has already left) in the
Philippines (Trudgill and Hannah, 2008);
" Perfective – oh, they go already ah? (oh, they have already left?) (Ansaldo, 2010,
p. 509);
" Durative – they still give my hoping lah (they still give me hope) (Ansaldo, 2010,
p. 509);
" Habitual – always seated at the cashier old lady you know (you know, the old lady
[who is] always seated at the cashier) (Ansaldo, 2010, p. 509);
" Time phrases – last time got mango trees you know (there were mango trees in the
past, you know) (Lim, 2004, p. 137);
" Already may also act as an aspect marker – my father already pass away;
" Use to may be used with present tense, meaning to indicate habitual activity – I use
to go shopping on Mondays (I usually go shopping on Mondays) (Trudgill and
Hannah, 2008, p. 141);
" Use of got – in Singapore got is used in many ways. Wee (2008, p. 595–96) gives
the following examples:
& Possessive – you got nice shirt (you have a nice shirt);

& Perfective – he got go to Japan (he has been to Japan);

& Existential – here got very many people (there are many people here).

! Conjunctions – may not be used in Singapore and Malaysia, e.g. I have three dogs [and]
one cat.
! Possession – -’s is sometimes dropped, e.g. I’m going to my mother house.
! Pronouns – often there is no distinction between he, she, and it. (In Mandarin and
Chinese dialects only the written language makes a distinction between the male and
female third-person pronouns, not the spoken forms.)
! Question formation – tag questions are often invariant, e.g. he is going to buy a car, isn’t
it?. In Singapore, can or not is also common, e.g. she wants to go, can or not? (can she go
or not?).
! Articles – as with South Asia, there is a tendency to make the specific/non-specific
distinction, rather than the definite/indefinite distinction with a and the. The indefi-
nite article is used less frequently, e.g. he is teacher.
! Topic prominence/missing subject – Chinese and Malay are ‘pro-drop’ languages,
prioritizing the topic, not the subject, so the object may be omitted, e.g. that book got
already (I already have that book) (Ansaldo, 2010, p. 507). Trudgill and Hannah
(2008, p. 143) also note that, in the Philippines, verbs that usually have an object may
occur without one, e.g. I don’t like.
! Use of copula verbs – missing copulas are common in Singapore, e.g. careful, window
broken (be careful, the window is broken).
 The ‘New’ Englishes 109

! Reduplication – in Singapore, citing Ansaldo (2004) and Wee (2004), Ansaldo (2010,
p. 514) notes four patterns:
" N-N for intimacy – this my girl-girl (this is my little girl) (affectionate, not very
productive);
" V-V for attenuation – just eat-eat lah (eat a little [or pick some]);
" Pred.Adj-Pred.Adj for ‘intensification’ – his face red-red (his face is really
quite red);
" V-V-V for durative – we all eat-eat-eat (keep eating/eat a lot).
! Discourse particles – in Singapore and Malaysia, discourse markers, such as lah, are
used to add meaning, e.g. at the end of a sentence (I didn’t want go to the party lah),
with imperatives (drink lah! [drink!]), and to signal solidarity, emphasis, persuasion, or
objection (please lah come to visit me on Sunday [please come and visit me]).
! The use of auxiliaries – in Singapore, would is often used rather than will (e.g. we hope
you would come tomorrow) to sound more polite.

Status of English in South-East Asia: Singapore’s ‘Speak Good English Movement’

In Singapore, English has permeated deep into the daily lives of Singaporeans, and
has become an integral part of Singaporean society and culture. Many speak English
as a first language although, as pointed out in Chapter 3, the increased usage of
English has resulted in decreased usage of other languages. Rubdy et al. (2008), for
example, note the decrease in the use of Tamil in favour of English, heightened
by the use of English as a lingua franca among the Indian community. Young
Singaporeans today value English, and see it as a language of success and career
advancement.
English may be the mother tongue of many Singaporeans, but the use of English that
reflects a local or shared identity that differs from ‘standard’ English is not recognized by
the government and is discouraged. This is evident in the public condemnation of col-
loquial Singaporean English. While the government seems happy that the bilingual
policy has helped create an economically prosperous state, the downside has been the
development of this home-grown variety.
The ‘Speak Good English Movement’ (viewable online at www.goodenglish.org.sg)
started in 2000 to promote the use of ‘standard’ English, due to fears that Singlish, which
is seen as inferior, is unintelligible to outsiders. This campaign aims to ‘encourage Sin-
gaporeans to speak grammatically correct English that is universally understood’ (SGEM,
2011), and it has workshops, seminars, and games for children to promote ‘standard’
English usage.
However, many Singaporeans see Singlish as part of their cultural identity and are
opposed to this campaign. In addition, Seargeant (2012, p. 110) notes that the ‘logic
behind the policy is flawed’ since Singlish and ‘standard’ English are both part of the
repertoire of speakers, who can switch between them. Singlish is seen by many as being
an integral part of their lives and is often preferred in informal situations. As discussed in
Chapter 2, code-mixing amongst Singaporean speakers should not, necessarily, be seen as
evidence of a lack of proficiency in English, but may be more related to a desire to
communicate as effectively as possible, using their bi- or multilingual repertoire, as well
as perhaps being a communicative choice.
110 The ‘New’ Englishes

5c English in Africa
The topic of African Englishes is an immensely wide topic beyond the scope of this
book, although, as Mesthrie (2013, p. 518) points out, ‘several factors make it a man-
ageable and coherent theme’. This section explores the ‘New’ Englishes of sub-Saharan
Africa. We begin with a history, then look at the role of English today and variation, and
end with a brief look at attitudes towards English.

The history of English in Africa

The history of English in both east and west Africa is rooted in colonialism, with the
exception of Liberia, a settler colony of free slaves. English contact can be traced to the
1500s, when Africa was used in trading and the slave trade, as discussed in Chapter 1.
Formal British colonialism was widespread in west and central Africa, and encompassed
almost all of east and southern Africa, resulting in the creation of colonies and
protectorates.
Early European contact was through Pidgin Portuguese along the west African coast,
but contact with English grew with increased British presence. In addition, many west
Africans travelled to Europe to train as interpreters, and Pidgin English was spoken
alongside the English spoken by these returnee interpreters. These pidgins served as
lingua francas in trade and, as discussed in Chapter 2, pidgins and creoles remain
important today although, in northern Nigeria, Hausa functions as a link language for
many and Wolof is used in Gambia. Later influence was from the creoles spoken by the
repatriated slaves from Britain, North America, and the Caribbean. In the twentieth
century, English influence further grew as many African leaders in west Africa adopted
English as a symbol of power.
In east Africa, English contact came in the nineteenth century, through trade
expansion and missionaries. British and German colonial power was established
towards the end of the nineteenth century. However, Kiswahili, the Swahili language,
was widely used rather than English or German. British colonial rule regulated official
language use differently across the continent, and English was only spoken in elite
circles among colonial rulers. A ‘trilingual language policy was implemented, with the
ethnic “vernacular” for local communication and basic education, Kiswahili in ethni-
cally mixed centers and English for the highest functions in administration, law and
education’ (Schmied, 2006, p. 189). Thus Swahili was established as the lingua franca,
which has given rise to a rather homogeneous localized variety of English. Unlike in
west Africa, there is no Pidgin English in east Africa due to the absence of slavery and
the use of Kiswahili.
In southern Africa, indigenous languages are important but its closeness to South
Africa strengthens the role of English and has also influenced the forms used here
(Schneider, 2011).
English contact in South Africa came in 1795 with the arrival of the British. Many
British settlers came in 1820 and many teachers were brought over to teach in English,
with English soon replacing Dutch as the official language. English has been an official
language since 1814. In 1910, with the establishment of the Union of South Africa,
English and Dutch (replaced by Afrikaans in 1925) became the official languages.
However, there were attempts in the 1940s to strengthen the position of Afrikaans.
 The ‘New’ Englishes 111

Black African opposition led to the Soweto uprising of 1976 and, after this, schools could
choose their own medium of instruction for the first four years of primary school. At this
time, English gained influence and it is important to point out that it was seen as a lan-
guage of liberation by black South Africans. In 1961, the Republic of South Africa was
established, and Afrikaans and English remained the two official languages. However, in
1994, with the end of apartheid and the establishment of the new South Africa, 11 lan-
guages were granted official status.

The role of English today in Africa

Today, English is used as a second language in most of Britain’s former possessions,
and in some it has been afforded official or co-official status. Since independence,
English has been present in the government, education, media, and commerce of
many African countries, and is the predominant written language of Anglophone
Africa (Table 5.1). However, the functions of English differ throughout the continent,
as outlined below.

! West Africa – in Nigeria, Pidgin English is prevalent but, with more than 500 lan-
guages, English also acts as a lingua franca. English is the ‘official’ language of the
constitution, but Yoruba, Igbo, and Hausa are also mentioned as national languages.
In Ghana, English is an official language and the medium of instruction in most
schools, although a local language is often used for younger levels. English is used for
government affairs, in the legal system, and for commerce.

Table 5.1 Domains of English use in some eastern and southern African states
Uganda Kenya Tanzania Zambia Zimbabwe Malawi
High court + + + + + +
Local court * * – * * *
Parliament + + – + + +
Civil service + + – + + +
Primary school + + – + + +
Secondary school + + + + + +
Radio + + + + + +
Newspapers + + + + + +
Local novels + + + + + +
Local records + + – + + +
Local plays + + – + + +
Films (not dubbed) + + + + + +
Traffic and vehicle signs + + – + + +
Advertising + + * + + +
Business correspondence + + + + + +
Private correspondence + + – + + +
Key
+ English used
* English sometimes used
– English not used
Source: adapted from Schmied, 1991, p. 41, cited in Schneider, 2011, p. 139
112 The ‘New’ Englishes

! East Africa – in Kenya and Tanzania, Swahili has official language status. However,
English plays a strong role in Kenya, although Kiswahili is spoken by nearly 95 per
cent of the population (De Swaan, 2001, p. 119). Tanzania has adopted English as the
medium of instruction in secondary schools, although English is not widely used,
questioning its categorization as an Outer Circle country.
! Southern Africa – in Namibia, English is the official language but is used by only
7 per cent of the population (World Fact book, cited in Kachru and Nelson, 2006,
p. 198). In Botswana, the national language is Setswana but English plays an
important role, although spoken by about only 2.2 per cent of the population
(Ministry of Labour and Home Affairs 2001, cited in Smieja and Mathangwane,
2010, p. 212). English is used for official documents, commerce, and the media.
In South Africa (a case which also highlights the problems with Kachru’s Three
Circle Model), English is used as a first language by those of British descent and by
younger generations of those of Indian decent, but as a second language for
those who speak African languages and Afrikaans as a first language. According
to the 2011 census, English is spoken as a home language by 9.6 per cent of
South Africans and language is divided along racial lines, with English being a first
language for 86.1 per cent of the Indian-Asian population, 35.9 per cent of the
white population, and 2.9 per cent of the Black African population. It is one of
11 official languages in the constitution but has become the de facto working
language in the government, and the medium of instruction at the majority of
schools and all of the universities.

Features of English in Africa

As in other places, English in Africa has undergone a series of adaptations and innovations
at all levels.

Sounds
Despite widespread variation, as well as whether one is speaking the basilectal or acro-
lectal variety, there are some similarities among the varieties of English, particularly in
Englishes that have developed from related substrate languages. A lot of research has been
conducted on the systematic description of the phonology of African Englishes (Bamg-
bose, 1992; Kachru and Nelson, 2006; Kachru and Smith, 2008; Kirkpatrick, 2007;
Melchers and Shaw, 2011; Platt et al., 1984; Schmied, 2006; Trudgill and Hannah, 2008;
Wolf, 2010). Examples from these sources are given below.

P H ON EMI C V AR IAT IO N

Many varieties have fewer vowels than other English varieties, particularly those related
to the Bantu languages, which have a five to seven vowel system. In general, there are
fewer vowels in east African English (Table 5.2) than in west African English (Table 5.3),
resulting in distinct features.

! Diphthongs are realized as monophthongs/simple vowels – thus, RP /eI/ becomes

/e:/ (so day becomes /de:/); RP /@U/ becomes /o:/ (so coat becomes /ko:t/); and
 The ‘New’ Englishes 113

RP /I@/ and /E@/ vowels become /ia/ and /ea/ in west Africa (so peer becomes /pia/
, pair becomes /pea/).
! Central vowels replaced by front or back vowels – there is a tendency for the RP
central vowels /V/, /3:/, and /@/, as in but, bird, and about, to become more open and
less centralized, moving towards sounds like [O], [e], and [a]. The RP /3:/ is pro-
nounced as [a] in east Africa, and [O] in west Africa (e.g. work becomes [wOk], burn
becomes [bOn]), except for in Ghanaian English. Refer back to Tables 5.2 and 5.3 for
vowel contrasts.

CO NS ON ANT S

! Rhoticity – most varieties are non-rhotic, although rhoticity has been described
in Kenya due to the influence of American tourists, and in Malawi where Scottish
missionaries have influenced variation.
! Retroflex consonants – the alveolars /t/ and /d/ tend to be retroflex [!] and [¶].
! Dental fricatives – the phonemes /θ/ and /ð/ may be pronounced as [t] and [d]
respectively, as seen in previous examples.
! Postalveolar fricatives and affricates – /tS/ and /S/ phonemes are realized as [s] in east
Africa, and /dZ/ and /Z/ as [z]. In Gambian English, Wolf (2010, p. 199) notes that
fish sounds like ‘fis’ and measure like ‘meazure’. These forms can be attributed to the
fact that /S/ and /Z/ are not part of the phonological systems of Mandingo and
Wolof, the two dominant languages in Gambia. In east Africa, /s/ is used where the

Table 5.2 West African English vowels

/i/ bid, bee
/e/ bay
/a/ bad, bard, father, butter
/O/ pot, putt, paw, port
/o/ boat
/u/ boot, put
/ai/ buy
/Oi/ boy
/au/ bout
Source: Trudgill and Hannah, 2008, p. 129

Table 5.3 East African English vowels

/i/ bid, bee
/e/ bed, bay
/a/ bad, bard, bird, putt, father
/o/ pot, boat, paw, port
/u/ boot, put
/ai/ buy
/oi/ boy
/au/ bout
Source: Trudgill and Hannah, 2008, p. 132
114 The ‘New’ Englishes

background language of the speakers does not use /S/. Dholuo speakers, for example,
say ‘suga’ for sugar and ‘sat’ for shut. In Black South African English, the /tS/ of church
is often pronounced /S/ by Zulu speakers although, since southern African languages
tend to have a lot of consonants, there is less difference with other Englishes in this
aspect (Kachru and Nelson, 2006, p. 206).
! Distinction between /r/ and /l/ may not be made.
! Intrusive nasals – the intrusion of nasals before plosives is common, as some east
African languages like Kikuyu have pre-nasalized consonants (Schmied, 2006, p. 193),
as in [mb], [nd], and [Ng]. In west African Englishes, as a result of this feature words
ending in -mb, such as bomb, climb, and plumb, are often pronounced with a final /b/
and those ending in -ng, such as ring, long, and bang, may be pronounced with a final
/g/ (Trudgill and Hannah, 2008, p. 129).
! Voiced consonants may be devoiced. In west Africa, proud is pronounced as [praut],
and robe as [ro:p] (Trudgill and Hannah, 2008, p. 129).
! Simplification of consonant clusters – many African languages have a consonant-
vowel syllable structure, so consonant clusters are simplified by either inserting a
vowel or omitting a consonant, e.g. in west Africa last [las] and passed [pas].

PRO S OD IC VA RIA TIO N

Like previous examples, English tends not to be stress-timed perceptually, and word
stress is not prominent.

Vocabulary
A great deal of work has been conducted documenting lexical variation (Bamgbose,
1992; Bokamba, 1992, cited in Kachru and Nelson, 2006; Gough, 1996, cited in Kachru
and Nelson, 2006; Kachru and Nelson, 2006; Kachru and Smith, 2008; Kamwangamalu,
2001; Mesthrie, 2013; Platt et al., 1984; Schmied, 2006; Sebba, 2009; Simo Bodba, 1994,
cited in Kachru and Nelson, 2006; Tripathi, 1990; Trudgill and Hannah, 2008; Wolf,
2010). Some popular examples from these sources are illustrated below:

! Same meaning, different words – west Africa: corner (a bend in the road). Ghana: robots
(traffic lights) and matchbox (shacks or small dwelling units).
! Conversion – west Africa: off (to switch off).
! Semantic extension – Malawi: the verb to move has various meanings, e.g. she has been
moving with him for six months (she has been dating him for six months). West Africa: to
take in (in addition to the ‘standard’ meaning it can also mean ‘to become pregnant’).
! Semantic narrowing – Ghana: hot drinks (alcoholic drinks). West Africa: guy (an out-
going, self-assured young man).
! New meanings given to old words – brutal American film (exciting American film) and
some older terms that have been lost in ‘standard’ English may be used (e.g. can be
able, which dates back to Elizabethan English).
! Compounding/specialized meaning – South Africa: rainbow x (see Chapter 2).
! Derivation – Ghana: enstool and destool (see Chapter 2).
! Blending – indaba (a serious meeting involving community leaders) is often used with
other words: indaba bid, indaba presentation, education indaba.
 The ‘New’ Englishes 115

! Coinage – facing a lot of hardcap (hardship), been-to boys (boys who have travelled
abroad, specifically to Britain or America) and a me-and-my-darling (a small sofa or love
seat). Ghana: scholarize (have a high rate of school attendance), guested (to have a
guest). West Africa: chop bar/canteen (a restaurant serving local food).
! Borrowing – kibanda (black market) in east and west Africa; matutu (taxi bus) and
msungu (white person) in west Africa; sugali (the staple food in Kenya and Tanzania),
posho (the staple food in Uganda) and draw soup (okra soup in Nigeria); kaross (a cloak
worn by the Bushmen in South Africa) and khansu (a shirt in east Africa); lobola
(bride-price) and bondu/bundu (a secret society for women).
! Discourse markers – Wolf (2010, p. 204) notes that na/now may be used to convey
attitudes, sha may convey an attitude of impatience, and finish may be used to signal
the end of an enumeration or the end of the turn itself, e.g. rice and yam, finish and
went to visit my friend, finish.
! Locally coined idioms and word-by-word translations of indigenous phrases – west
Africa: chewing stick (a twig that is chewed up at one end and used as a brush to clean
one’s teeth) (Melchers and Shaw, 2011, p. 25).
! New idioms based on native English – east Africa: to be on the tarmac, I met your absence
(you were not there) (Sebba, 2009, p. 415). South Africa: I wrote it down in my head
(I made a mental note of it), snakes started playing mini-soccer in my spine (I became very
excited), beat someone with a cooking stick (to feed someone), and to step with fur (to tread
carefully) (Kamwangamalu, 2001).
! Creativity through a combination of English and indigenous forms – Nigeria: to put
sand in someone’s gari (see Chapter 2).

Grammar-syntactic variation
A lot of research has also focused on the grammatical variation in African Englishes (Alo
and Mesthrie 2004; Kirkpatrick, 2007; Mesthrie, 2004, 2006, 2013; Huber and Dako
2004, 2008; Platt et al., 1984; Schmied, 2006; Trudgill and Hannah, 2008; Sebba, 2009;
Mbangwana 2004). Examples from some of these sources include the following.

! Plurality – as with previous ‘New’ Englishes examples, we see both subtractive and
additive differences. Speakers do not always mark nouns for plurality and many
uncountable nouns often become countable (e.g. I bought all my furnitures from that
shop).
! Tense and aspect – the following are common:
" Present continuous or progressive with stative verbs – the be + verb + -ing con-
struction is extended (e.g. she is not having a university degree and I am having a stomache).
" Complex tenses (e.g. past perfect and some conditionals) may be avoided (e.g. it
would have been much better if this was done).
! Articles – the rules for the use of the definite article (‘the’) and the indefinite article
(‘a’/‘an’) are different and tend to make the specific/non-specific distinction, rather
than the definite/indefinite distinction.
! Possession – -s is often dropped (e.g. that is Tom car).
! Adjectives – e.g. I find my daughter’s behaviour disgracing.
! Question formation – question tags tend to be invariant (there we are, isn’t it?).
! Article omission – e.g. I am going to cinema.
116 The ‘New’ Englishes

! Undeletion – in Black South African English, there may be a restoration of elements

that usually involve a gap or deletion (e.g. come what may come and he made me to do it)
(Mesthrie, 2006, cited in Mesthrie, 2013, p. 532).
! Pronoun gender conflation – pronouns may be undistinguished by gender (related to
the lack of sex distinctions in pronouns in African mother tongues), e.g. he is called
Ann.
! Resumptive pronouns – east Africa: there is our glue which we are getting them near
(Schmied 2008, p. 456). Cameroon: the other teacher that we were teaching English with
her went away (Mbangwana 2004, p. 906). Ghana: the old woman who I gave her the
money … (Huber and Dako 2008, p. 372). Bokamba (1992, pp. 131–32) also notes
that these may occur in non-subject positions, specifically in relative clauses, which is
an obligatory structure in various west African languages, e.g. the guests whom I invited
them have arrived.
! Left dislocation – topics are often isolated and followed with comments. Nigeria: the
students – they are demonstrating again (Alo and Mesthrie 2004, p. 823). Ghana: that
woman – she cheated me (Huber and Dako 2008, p. 376). South Africa: the people – they
got nothing to eat (Mesthrie 1997, p. 127), and Q: Where did you learn Tswana? A:
Tswana, I learnt it in Pretoria (Mesthrie 1997, p. 127).
! Yes/no – in west Africa, yes and no may be omitted in answering questions, e.g. Q:
Hasn’t she done her homework yet? A: She hasn’t done her homework yet (meaning ‘yes’) or
She has done her homework (meaning ‘no’).
! Relative pronouns – these are often avoided in African varieties (the woman sang was
my mother).

Pragmatics
Many discourse features are culture specific. Examples include the following.

! Greetings and address vary – in South Africa, to create a good impression one may ask
how is your family?, how is your health?, or how was your journey/safari?
! Formality – in Ghana, Sebba (2009, p. 415) notes that Ghanaians do not eat in the
presence of others without offering some food, giving the example of a British visitor
on a bus who would be offered food. For some, this may be an invite to participate in
a conversation, but it is simply a matter of etiquette.

Attitudes toward English variation in Africa

Due to the large number of languages spoken, the use of English as a lingua franca is
favoured by some, although it has also resulted in a number of issues related to educa-
tional opportunities and identity due to its role as a gatekeeper in upward social mobility.
English usage is widespread but it is not always mastered by the entire population,
creating inequalities. For example, in the Botswanan Parliament, all members can speak
Setswana but English is often used (Schmied, 1991). Melchers and Shaw (2011) also
discuss the English language test for members of parliament in Malawi and note that
English is a prerequisite for political activity in Ghana (as in many other countries). The
authors also note that many law courts in Africa are carried out in English, meaning that
the accused may have to rely on interpreters.
 The ‘New’ Englishes 117

While such issues are alarming, ‘the use of English is not seriously challenged at the
grass roots level in most cases, and its roles as “modern” and practical is accepted’ (Mel-
chers and Shaw, 2011, p. 136). In the case of South Africa, Kamwangamalu (2001) notes
that attitudes are more community specific. For example, with a history of apartheid,
white Afrikaaners may see English as a threat to their identity and culture, while South
African Indians, as well as the black community, may view it positively. Attitudes are
complex, and there are those who fear the influence of English on indigenous languages.
Attitudes towards varieties of English also differ. Ghanaians, for example, pride them-
selves on using RP as a model (Wolf, 2010) and the numerous indigenous languages are
seen as inferior (Asante, 2012). In Liberia, connections with the USA, as well as the
influence of Anglophone neighbours, have given rise to a mix of American features.
Attitudes towards indigenized varieties are also complex. In Nigeria, for example,
English is being popularized in Nollywood, the Nigerian film industry, and in Ghana the
distinctiveness of Ghanaian English is generally accepted by its speakers, although gram-
matical features continue to be viewed as errors (Asante, 2012). However, as in South
Asia, Africa has produced a large literature in English and many writers have become
successful, such as the Nobel Prize winner Wole Soyinka and Man Booker prize winner
Chinua Achebe. The influence of such work on the status of the ‘New’ Englishes in the
African context is further discussed in Section 5d.

5d The status of ‘New’ Englishes: recognition, invisibility, and

acceptability

Invisibility: the case of Hong Kong

When discussing the status of the ‘New’ Englishes, a useful starting place is Hong Kong.
The history of English in Hong Kong is presented in the closing case study, alongside
some research that has been conducted documenting its distinctive features. Here, we
discuss the current use of English in relation to the recognition of a ‘variety’ of Hong
Kong English.
With a largely monolingual Cantonese background (despite increasing importance
attached to Mandarin), Hong Kong has never needed a link language. However, the
demand for English has always been high, strengthened after the handover to China
when many people resisted attempts to change from English-medium schools to Chinese
medium ones. Today, English is afforded a high status and an English education is seen as
a valuable asset. Citing Hui (2001), Bolton (2002, p. 9) notes that 134 of the 294 Chi-
nese-medium secondary schools now teach all, or some, Form Four students in English.
Cantonese is now used more in the government, the number of ‘expatriate’ civil servants
has been significantly reduced in the civil service, and employees working in other
‘English-related’ jobs, such as newspapers, have been reduced. Nevertheless, English has
continued to be the main language of written documents and is also used for much
written communication among Cantonese speakers (Tsui and Bunton, 2002). Bolton
(2002, p. 9) adds that Cantonese–English code-mixing is common in government
departments, and Evans’ (2011) survey-based study of more than 2,000 English users in
Hong Kong found that Hong Kong professionals spend a significant proportion of their
working lives reading and writing English texts. Immigration is also making Hong Kong
more multilingual and multicultural. ‘Returnee’ children, those who have lived abroad
118 The ‘New’ Englishes

for some time, account for a large proportion of school populations, and many families
continue to employ amahs, domestic helpers who are mostly from the Philippines.
While research on the distinctive features of Hong Kong English is relatively scarce in
comparison with the other contexts discussed in this chapter, it has received attention
over proficiency concerns. Many measures have been taken over the years to improve
English proficiency, including the recruitment of native English-speaking teachers (dis-
cussed further in Chapter 9) and the setting of language benchmarks for English teachers,
as well as the introduction of an English test in 2000 for graduate teachers (those already
employed as teachers have five years to pass). In addition to these proficiency concerns,
there appears to be present in Hong Kong an ‘invisibility myth’ about the use of English
(Bolton, 2002). Debates surrounding the ‘New’ Englishes often centre on acceptability,
but in Hong Kong the debate has more to do with recognition (Evans, 2011). There is a
belief that English use is not widespread and, as a result, English cannot develop into a
distinct variety, as it has done in the other contexts. This ‘non-recognition’ suggests that
Hong Kong English is in Kachru’s (1992a, p. 56) first phase, as discussed in Chapter 2.
Luke and Richards (1982, pp. 55–56) note,

there is no such thing … as ‘Hong Kong English’ … There is no equivalent of

the mesolectal or basilectal speech styles found, for example, in Singapore … since there
is no equivalent range of English speech varieties in regular use by Hong Kong Chinese.

They argue that a variety of Hong Kong English does not exist. Similarly, although
writing three decades or so ago, Platt (1982) notes that, while certain characteristics do
exist, the case for a distinct variety of English is not as strong as it is in Singapore. As the
closing case to this chapter demonstrates, interest in documenting such features is on the
rise. The case of Hong Kong raises a number of questions. In addition to questions about
recognition, we may also ask whether a new variety requires intraethnic communication
to establish some kind of legitimacy. Bolton and Kwok (1990, p. 163) suggest that,

Whether or not one can speak of ‘Hong Kong English’ as a recognisable ‘localised
variety’ of English remains a matter for further research and investigation. If one can
establish that (in addition to identifiable local accent) there are clusters of shared
lexical and grammatical items which contribute to a distinctive body of shared lin-
guistic features then this may well legitimise recognition of Hong Kong English as a
localised variety.

The development of the ‘New’ Englishes

While it is important not to forget the increased ELF usage and importance of ELF
research (discussed in detail in Section 6d and Chapter 7), the case of Hong Kong raises
important questions about variety recognition as well as the status of the ‘New’ Englishes
in general. Is Hong Kong English an exonormative variety, dependent on native English-
speaking norms (Bolton, 2000, p. 263)? Has it been ‘nativized’, as in some of the other
contexts discussed in this chapter so far? Evans (2011, p. 309) notes that Hong Kong does,
in fact, possess many of the ‘essential ingredients needed for the development of a new
English’, which include a sizeable number of English speakers as well as an international
economy. Hong Kong is a hub for international business and English is certainly used.
 The ‘New’ Englishes 119

Chan (2013) discusses Hong Kong English in relation to Schneider’s Dynamic

Model, introduced in Chapter 2, pointing out that in this model the decisive factor is
the transition from Phase 3 (nativization) to Phase 4 (endonormative stabilization). This
study revealed that, although an ‘Anglophone-centric’ attitude may still be found in
‘high-stakes English-using situations’ (Chan, 2013, p. 71), there is less orientation
towards native-speaking norms and fewer reservations about non-nativeness in less
formal contexts, leading him to believe that Hong Kong may have, in fact, reached
Phase 3. Schneider (2007), however, noted that Hong Kong English has not yet
reached Phase 4, primarily due to the attachment to native-speaking norms, particularly
for career success.
Kirkpatrick also discusses the case of Hong Kong, but in relation to Butler’s (1997,
p. 10, cited in Kirkpatrick, 2007, p. 142) five criteria for an emerging variety of English:

1 A standard and recognizable pronunciation handed down from one generation to

another.
2 Particular words and phrases that sprang up, usually to express key features of the
physical and social environment, and which are regarded as peculiar to the variety.
3 A history – a sense that this variety of English is the way it is because of the history of
the language community.
4 A literature written without apology in that variety of English.
5 Reference works – dictionaries and style guides – that show that people in that lan-
guage community look to themselves, not some outside authority, to decide what is
right and wrong in terms of how they speak and write their English.

Kirkpatrick notes that Hong Kong English meets criteria 1, 2, and 3, as is evident from
the information we have provided here. In relation to criterion 4, he notes that a distinct
literature exists, although this may not be as distinct as the English use by Chinese wri-
ters. He notes that it may take some time to meet criterion 5, giving the example of
Australian English, which was only codified in a dictionary about 200 years after the
country was ‘discovered’ (Kirkpatrick, 2007, p. 142).

The status of the ‘New’ Englishes: the Quirk/Kachru debate

While variety recognition is important, most debate surrounding the ‘New’ Englishes has
focused on the battle with acceptance. As Rubdy et al. (2008, p. 44) note,

Thus, while there is a general acknowledgement of the emergence of Singapore

English as a nativized variety that has evolved its own autonomous system, there is,
at the same time, a reluctance to grant speakers of this variety the recognition and
legitimacy they deserve.

As discussed in Section 5b, colloquial Singapore English is viewed by the government

as being unintelligible, inferior, and illegitimate. Increased usage of this variety has
resulted in governmental fears and an aggressive campaign promoting the use of ‘stan-
dard’ English. It is also clear from this chapter that such concerns are not just limited to
Singapore, and many of the ‘New’ Englishes appear to be stuck in Kachru’s (1992a)
second stage, viewed as ‘inferior’.
120 The ‘New’ Englishes

In 1984, a conference in London, held to mark the founding of the British Council,
ended in an exchange of articles in English Today, written by Randolph Quirk (1990)
and Kachru (1991), on the status of the ‘New’ Englishes and whether they should be
considered as legitimate varieties in their own right and appropriate models for ELT (a
topic that remains contentious today and is returned to in Chapter 9). Quirk questioned
whether these varieties were the result of ‘the increasing failure of the education system’
in Outer Circle countries, which was incapable of teaching students ‘correct’ English
(Quirk, 1990, p. 8). In his view, they are incorrect versions of ‘standard’ English that
should not be used as classroom models. On the other hand, Kachru pointed out that
they are, in fact, distinct, rule-bound, and legitimate varieties that need to be classed in
their own right, pointing out that Quirk’s comments do not reflect the sociolinguistic
uses of the language today. Kachru emphasized that speakers’ intuitions in such contexts
are related to their respective social and cultural contexts, and while they may differ from
native English-speakers’ intuitions, this does not make them inferior.
This debate may have been 20 years ago, since when a lot of research has been conducted
into both the World Englishes and the ELF research paradigms, but today the ‘New’ Eng-
lishes continue to battle for acceptance and legitimacy. Innovations continue to be viewed
by some as errors. The media often does not help, where the use of basilectal Singapore
English has been ridiculed in the media and also banned from television commercials.
Despite such views, the use of these varieties continues to be an important identity marker
for some, a topic first introduced in Chapter 2. Many educated Singaporeans, so-called
masters of the acrolectal variety, for example, may still use basilectal features in their collo-
quial speech as an identity marker. Code-switching even occurs among accomplished bilin-
guals, and the ‘New’ Englishes are not failed equivalents, and usage of features that differ
from the ‘standard’ does not mean a lack of proficiency. People code-switch for a number of
reasons: a local language may have cultural connotations or a feeling of intimacy, whereas
English may have connotations of higher socio-economic status or education. However,
while acceptance and legitimacy are important, we must also be wary not to ignore the fact
that variation exists within these contexts, and ELF research is highlighting that speech
communities are increasingly fluid, a point returned to in Section 6d and Chapter 7.
Discussions surrounding recognition, status, acceptance, and legitimacy also bring us to
the native/non-native distinction. As English is deeply ingrained in the culture of the
contexts discussed in this chapter and used in a variety of domains, these speakers cannot
claim authority to the language. The ‘insider/outsider’ terminology results in a feeling of
alienation and inferiority for the non-native English speaker. Simply put, it belongs to
the native speaker, those that were born in a country where the language is spoken as a
mother tongue. This is explored in more depth in Chapter 9, in relation to teaching
English, but for now it is important to highlight the problems with such a simplistic
dichotomy. Davies (1991, 2003) points out that the notion of nativeness in language is a
‘myth’. It no longer makes sense to make such a distinction and a number of other terms
have been proposed in recent years. Platt et al. (1984) (see Figure 5.2) contrast EFL, ESL,
and ENL contexts, the difference being in the range of functions that a language has.
This is similar to Kachru’s cline of bilingualism, based on the range of variation in terms of
the functions that speakers use English for and their proficiency (Kachru, 1965). How-
ever, the arrow suggests that, as a ‘New’ English expands its functions, it gradually
becomes more a native or near-native language. Simplistic categorizations are proble-
matic and, as this chapter has shown, English is already a ‘native or near native language’
 The ‘New’ Englishes 121

EFL ESL ENL

decrease in functions increase in functions

Figure 5.2 The functions of English (source: Platt et al., 1984, p. 23)

for many speakers. Nevertheless, the concept of the arrow is helpful, showing the
increased number of functions English has taken on in these contexts. However, as
pointed out in Chapter 2, labelling the ‘New’ Englishes as ‘nativized’ is problematic, and
they develop in very different ways. In Figure 5.2, ‘nativeness’ appears to be defined by
the functions of the language yet, as pointed out in Chapter 2, ‘native’ varieties are often
those that have been around for a long time (Kirkpatrick, 2007) and, as discussed, ‘a long
time’ is vague. Kirkpatrick’s (2007, p. 6) third criterion, relating to prejudice and one’s
image of a ‘native speaker’, also discussed in Chapter 2, highlights further problems.
Speakers of English in the contexts described in this chapter may, mostly, speak it as a
second language, but this does not mean that they should be denied legitimacy and
authority. In his article ‘The Ownership of English’, Widdowson (1994) defined the term
ownership as ways in which speakers appropriate language for their own particular use. He
argues that native English speakers do not have sole authority over English today, due to
the fact that norms of usage are no longer developed in communities where it is spoken as
a mother tongue. He describes indigenization as a way of looking at proficiency and cri-
ticizes the use of exonormative standards. As he notes, ‘You are proficient in a language to
the extent that you possess it, make it your own, bend it to your will, assert yourself
through it, rather than simply submit to the dictates of its form’ (Widdowson, 1994, p.
384). This chapter has shown how speakers in various contexts have made English their
own, bringing us back to Widdowson’s (1997) distinction between the spread of English
and the distribution of English; it has not spread as one set of established encoded forms.

Chapter summary
This chapter has outlined variation in countries where English is spoken as a second
language, in what is traditionally known as the Outer Circle. We have further examined
the historical spread that was introduced in Chapter 1 and returned to the topic of
variation, introduced in Chapter 2. We have described the distinct ways in which the
English language has adapted as it has come into contact with local languages, and have
shown how the long history of English in these countries has led to the nativization of
the language. We have also documented World Englishes research that highlights the
phonological, lexical, and grammatical variation in the use of English. This chapter has
also raised many of the issues discussed in Chapter 3, and it is clear that the spread of
English is having both positive and negative impacts on the countries discussed here.
We also revisited the topic of identity, introduced in Chapter 2. Section 5a examined
the use of English in South Asia, and it is clear that here, as in other contexts discussed,
English has become an integral part of the culture and that writers exploit the language,
exemplifying the creative nature of South Asian English. Nevertheless, the ‘New’ Eng-
lishes continue to face a battle for acceptance, and their status has been a central theme
here. In Hong Kong, however, the battle appears to be more to do with recognition,
returning us to the topic of the development of Englishes. Two decades may have passed
122 The ‘New’ Englishes

since the Quirk/Kachru debate, but the status of the ‘New’ Englishes continues to be
controversial, many still viewing them as inferior. Distinctions between ‘native’ and
‘non-native’ do not help, preventing speakers of ‘New’ Englishes from being classed as
legitimate or claiming authority for the language.

Further reading
On the ‘New’ Englishes:

! Kachru, B., Kachru, Y., and Nelson, C. (eds) (2006). The Handbook of World Englishes.
Oxford: Blackwell.
! Kirkpatrick, A. (ed.) (2010). The Routledge Handbook of World Englishes. London:
Routledge.
On Hong Kong:

! Bolton, K. (ed.) (2002). Hong Kong English: Autonomy and Creativity. Hong Kong:
Hong Kong University Press.

On the status of ‘New’ Englishes:

! Quirk, R. (1990). ‘Language varieties and standard language.’ English Today, 6(01),
pp. 3–10.
! Kachru, B. B. (1991). ‘Liberation linguistics and the Quirk concern.’ English Today,
7(01), pp. 3–13.

Closing activities

Chapter discussion questions

Section 5a
1 When describing features of Indian English, Verma (1982, p. 180) notes that, ‘They
are not corrupt, but, rather, different forms of the same language.’ Do you agree with
this point of view?
2 South Asian writers are very creative in their usage of English. What does this tell us
about the ‘New’ Englishes?
3 Kachru (1994, p. 545) states that, ‘English became a vehicle for national unity, and …
pan-Indian cultural and political awakening.’ In what ways has the spread of English
had both positive and negative impacts in South Asia?

Section 5b
1 What are your views on the Speak Good English Movement?
2 There has been a sharp increase in English use in Singaporean homes in the last three
decades. What influence do you think this shift has had on interaction between
families in these households?
3 What is your opinion on the use of exonormative norms in the classroom in this region?
 The ‘New’ Englishes 123

Section 5c
1 In what ways has linguistic contact influenced the spread of English in Africa?
2 Given the large number of languages spoken, can English function as a neutral lingua
franca, or do the negative impacts outweigh the positive ones?
3 This section highlighted some of the distinctive features of African Englishes. Do you
know of any others?

Section 5d
1 ‘The mass of Hong Kong people will not easily accept that a distinctive Hong Kong
English exists’ (Pang, 2003, p. 17). What is your opinion on this statement?
2 What is your opinion on the Quirk/Kachru debate?
3 Do you think speakers of English discussed in this chapter should be denied legiti-
macy and authority?

Debate topics
1 We can no longer classify the ‘New’ Englishes as inferior and illegitimate.
2 Terms such as ‘interlanguage’ and ‘fossilization’ are irrelevant today. Language contact
is inevitable and language change is natural.
3 English is a gatekeeper in upward social mobility in Africa, thus the spread of English
in Africa has a negative effect.

Writing and presentation prompts

Below are ideas for writing and presentation tasks to apply the knowledge learned in
Chapter 5.

Assignment topics
Personal account Provide an account of English in a ‘New’ Englishes context that you are
familiar with or interested in. As in this chapter, focus on the history, the role
of English today, variation, and the status of English.
Research task Choose a corpus that is relevant to a context you are interested in (e.g. The
Asian Corpus of English (ACE) or the ICE-India Corpus). Examine the use of
either a word or a grammatical item. Examine its usage and print out a
number of lines of relevant text.
Basic academic ‘An innovation is seen as an acceptable variant, while an error is simply a
mistake or uneducated usage. If innovations are seen as errors, a non-native
variety can never receive any recognition’ (Bamgbose, 1998, p. 2). Write an
essay on the acceptability of the ‘New’ Englishes.
Advanced academic In Singapore, English has a two-fold role: a global function as the language of
international business and a local function as a marker of cultural identity
(Seargeant, 2012, p. 108). Investigate this dual role of English in Singapore,
considering issues of identity.
Chapter 6

English in global contexts

Introductory activities
The following introductory activities are designed to encourage the reader to think about
the issues raised in this chapter before reading it.

English in the global community

Look at Table 6.1, which shows the age of English-language instruction in Asia.

Discussion questions
1 What is your opinion on the age at which English instruction is introduced in the
countries listed in Table 6.1?
2 In what ways do you think English is used in these contexts (and others)? Has this
changed over the years?
3 In many of the countries listed in Table 6.1, the internal functions of English are
growing. Is it still reasonable to classify them as Expanding Circle, or EFL, contexts?
4 In many of these countries, many parents are enrolling their children in private
English lessons before they start elementary school. How effective do you think
teaching English at such a young age is?

Case study: East Asia

Read the following quote about English use in Japan, taken from Stanlaw (2004, pp. 1–2).

We, that is, the Matsumoto family, live in a manshon (‘mansion’) too. At this
moment, I am watching beisu-boru (‘baseball’) on terebi (‘television’). My wife is out
shopping at a depaato (‘department store’), and later she will stop at a suupa
(‘supermarket’) to get pooku choppu (‘pork chops’), pan (‘bread’), bataa (‘butter’),
jamu (‘jam’) and perhaps some sooseiji (‘sausage’) for breakfast. My daughter has
gone to the byuutii saron (‘beauty salon’) to get a paama (‘permanent’). Oh, the ter-
ehon (‘telephone’) is ringing. We cannot live a day in Japan today without these
loanwords. Language purists lament the fact. The nationalists would wipe out all
foreign-sounding words from our vocabulary. But where will they be without