English Around the World

Question 1

What are some examples of countries that use English as an official language ?

Answer 1

England, Australia, USA, South Africa, India, Nigeria, Singapore

Question 2

What are some features of Singlish?

Answer 2

Non-English particles - “ah” and “lah”
Non-standard verb inflection - “We all talk English”
Borrowed language - “ang moh”
Missing copular verbs - “everybody make fun of him”

Question 3

Why is English so widespread?

Answer 3

The British Empire ruled 1/3 of the world
English is the most important lingua franca for discussions across countries

Question 4

What is a lingua franca?

Answer 4

A language used to communicate between parties who do not speak a common language.

Question 5

What are Kachru’s Three Circles?

Answer 5

Inner circle, Outer circle and Expanding circle

Question 6

What is the inner circle?

Answer 6

• Countries where English is a first language
• Norm PROVIDERS, they set the standard for how English should be spoken
• e.g. the UK, the USA and Canada

Question 7

What is the outer circle?

Answer 7

• Regions where English is a second language
• Norm DEVELOPING, they follow the standard but deviate and develop their own distinct varieties
• e.g. Singapore, Ghana, Nigeria

Question 8

What is the expanding circle?

Answer 8

• English is used for political and business purposes, practically but not conversationally
• Norm DEPENDENT, they rely on the standard set by the inner circle to communicate and be understood
• e.g. China, Russia

Question 9

What are some features of Canadian English?

Answer 9

Spelling: “u” in “favour” (British) and “z” in “realize” (American)
Phonology: “marry” sounds the same as “merry”. About is pronounced “uh-boat”
Lexis: Washroom not bathroom or restroom
Use of yiz and eh

Question 10

What is Canadian English an example of?

Answer 10

Inner circle English

Question 11

What are some features of Indian English?

Answer 11

Phonology: syllable timed, all equally stressed
Lexis: “Achaa” means “good”
Grammar: Use of progressive aspect over simple present tense, “no?” is a common tag question

Question 12

What is Indian English an example of?

Answer 12

Outer Circle English

Question 13

What are some features of English as a lingua franca?

Answer 13

Omission of TPSPT “s” - she go to work”
Omission of articles - “I’m going to shops”
Omission of plural “s” - “She has two shoe”

Question 14

What are the stages of Schneider’s Dynamic Model?

Answer 14

Foundation, Exonormative, Nativisation, Endonormative, Differentiation

Question 15

Describe foundation

Answer 15

English is brought to a new territory - some lexical borrowings occur to aid simple communication

Question 16

Define exonormative stabilisation

Answer 16

The elite and powerful natives become bilingual and English is used for prestige purposes e.g. Law and education

Question 17

Define nativisation

Answer 17

Britain’s influence weakens - bilingual speakers develop a new variety / regional dialect

Question 18

Define endonormative stabilisation

Answer 18

The territory gains independence and the region specific form is codified and used for prestige purposes

Question 19

Define differentiation in Schneider’s Dynamic Model

Answer 19

The new variety becomes widely spoken and begins to divide into different social varieties.

Question 20

What is Phillipson’s attitude towards World Englishes?

Answer 20

The spread of English is causing other languages to die out (Levelling)

Question 21

What is Crystal’s attitude towards World Englishes?

Answer 21

English will continue to spread as the global Lingua Franca

Question 22

What is McArthur’s attitude towards World Englishes?

Answer 22

English is breaking up into different languages (Anglic Language Family)

Question 23

What is Ostler’s attitude towards World Englishes?

Answer 23

As British and American influence declines, another language will replace English as the global Lingua Franca