world englishes

Question 1

what is a lingua franca

Answer 1

a language systematically used to make communication possible between groups of people who do not share a native language or dialect

eg English is the international language of business

Question 2

why might people want to learn english in the 21st century

Answer 2

english is the official language in 67 sovereign states and 27 non sovereign entities, the majority of which are former territories of the British Empire

is a 2nd or 3rd language in a countless number of countries

1in 5 people can speak or at least understand english

in countries such as india, english is a nativised language that performs institutional functions

sine people think that around 90% of the language spoken today may be lost by the end of the century, the rise of english is contributing to this

Question 3

how did english spread to scotland

Answer 3

english firmly established in the 17th and 18th centuries

english grew alongside and in opposition to local forms

scots has had something of a revival in the late 20th and early 21st centuries

Question 4

how did english spread to ireland

Answer 4

english lang taken to ireland with invaders from britain who arrived in the 12th century

cromwell was brutal and established british rule in england by killing or exiling a third of the irish population

laws banned the use of irish under english rule. it was also illegal to play the harp or wear the colour green

the Great Famine (1846-48) led to over a million lives being lost, many of whom were Irish speakers

introduction of national school system in 1830 in english

Question 5

how did english spread to wales?

Answer 5

process of Anglicisation came after the norman rule who had established strongholds through the north and south of wales

1536– henry VIII decided to pass the Act of Union, prhibitng the use of Welsh in public adminsitration and the legal system

the British introduced a school system which repressed the speaking of welsh

now more than a quarter of the population of modern wales can speak or use welsh. This figure increases among children, helped by 2 major education acts passed during the 1900s

Question 6

what are some examples of hiberno-english (or Anglo-Irish)

Answer 6

Slainte = an interjection meaning Cheers!

syntactical structure of subject + to be + after + -ing: I’m after finishing my tea, = I’ve finished my tea

Question 7

how was american english formed (simplified version)

Answer 7

earliest forms of american english were established in the 1600s with settlers seeking religious freedom and escape from persecution

it is notable that the native americans have had very little influence on American English

the growth of early American english is largely down to the immigration and also the slave trade. their languages were swallowed up to add further weight to Leith’s comments

Question 8

what did Dick Leith say about american english?

Answer 8

suggests that the reason why the native americans have had very little influence on american english is because the language of a conquered people has little effect on that of the conquerors

Question 9

what are language diasporas

Answer 9

a diaspora is when something disperses or spreads out from a central point

Question 10

what was Jennifer Jenkins’ theory about diasporas?

Answer 10

says that these diasporas are characterised in the following ways:

• LARGE SCALE MIGRATION (eg English speakers to America)– here english becomes the mother tongue and changes to meet the needs of its users over the years
• COLONISATION– Jenkins refers to New Englishes being created here (eg India, Nigeria and Kenya). This had led to much greater variety in English

Question 11

what is Kachru’s circle?

Answer 11

inner circle shows countries that use English as their 1st language. known as L1 countries.

outer circle is countries that use english as a 2nd language

expanding circle shows countries that use english as a foreign language?

Question 12

what are L1 countries (kachru’s circle)

Answer 12

English was brought to these countries as a first language as part of colonisation (this group also includes the evolution of English in Britain)

Question 13

what are L2 countries in Kachru’s circle?

Answer 13

outer circle

english was imposed as the native language by banning the original language that existed. many of these countries became english speaking as the british empire expanded

Question 14

what are EAL countries? (kachru’s circle)

Answer 14

expanding circle

these countries have not had English imposed on them and they do not speak it as their first language, but they have chosen to use english as a 2nd language.

EAL means English as an Additional Language

In these countries English is taught in schools as the national 2nd language and it’s often expected that you speak english if you want to go to uni and have a good career

Question 15

when did kachru develop kachru’s circle?

Answer 15

in the 1980s

(so therefore does not consider modern technology)

Question 16

positives of kachru’s circle?

Answer 16

helps us to understand differences

reminds us why english is used

reminds us how english is used

Question 17

negatives of kachru’s circle?

Answer 17

based on the idea that UK English is the ‘norm’ and therefore the best variety

encourages the idea of a scale of good or bad varieties

Question 18

what is the norm of english in L1 countries?

Answer 18

is called ‘norm providing’

this means that the version of english established by authorities is the standard that language used is judged by

Question 19

what is the norm of english in L2 countries

Answer 19

called ‘norm dependent’

although different versions of aspects of language occur, they have standard english rules at their centre, and a more standard form is seen as the prestige form

Question 20

what is the norm of english in EAL countries

Answer 20

is called ‘norm developing’

this means that the version of english used is adapted by the country to suit its needs

Question 21

what was Widdowson’s theory?

Answer 21

developed a theory that explains how the way that english arrived in a country affects the way that it develops

The Distribution V Spread Theory

English was distributed around the world in a controlled way that preserved standard forms

In modern times, English spreads naturally, mixing with local languages

Question 22

what are examples of english taking words from the areas in which it spreads in order to expand its lexicon?

Answer 22

examples include ‘dosa’ and ‘roti’, which are used in South Asia to describe types of bread

Question 23

what was Rose’s theory? (2015)

Answer 23

Refers to ‘semantic extensions’ – in Singapore English (Singlish), the verb ‘open’ also means ‘turn on’ as in ‘open the light’

Question 24

what is a pidgin?

Answer 24

a pidgin is a way for people who do not share a common language to communicate

limited vocab

reduced grammatical structure

much narrower range of functions

it is not anyone’s native language

Question 25

what are pidgin characteristics?

Answer 25

a mixture of the language in contact: words often from dominant language, and structural features are often from the ‘dominated’ or subordinate language

reduced grammatical structure

phonology: CV syllable preferred

morphology: poor affixation, reduplication is common

syntax: SVO pattern preferred, articles usually omitted

Question 26

what are misunderstandings and stereotypes of pidgins?

Answer 26

stereotypes in the media eg ‘Me Tarzan, you Jane’

that a pidgin is a language which has broken down

that a pidgin is the result of baby talk, laziness, corruption, primitive thought process, or mental deficiency

INSTEAD, a pidgin is a language with its own structure, grammar and vocabulary

Question 27

why create a pidgin language?

Answer 27

trade and business

colonisation

slavery

Question 28

what is an example of a pidgin

Answer 28

solomon island pidgin (south pacific)– combination of English and South Pacific languages

eg ‘Mi no luk pikpik bulong iu’ = I not see pig belong you = I didn’t see your pig

Question 29

what are the possible outcomes of Pidgins

Answer 29

die out when original reason for communication diminishes or disappears. for example, the pidgin French used in Vietnam all but disappeared when the French left; similarly, the pidgin English which appeared during the Vietnam War virtually disappeared when the Americans left

or they develop into a creole

Question 30

what are creole characteristics

Answer 30

when a second generation starts to speak the pidgin as a native language

therefore it has to have a much more complex grammar and a much larger vocabulary than a pidgin

Question 31

what is an example of an English-based creole?

Answer 31

Tok Pisin

An English based creole spoken in Papua New Guinea by about 4 million people, 120,000 of whom speak it as their first language

It is one of the official languages of Papua New Guinea and the most widely used language in that country

Question 32

what is modriano’s model of english

Answer 32

has generally displaced kachru’s circles

the centre consists of users of english as an international language, with a core set of features which are comprehensible to the majority of native and competent non-native speakers of english

the 2nd circle consists of features which may become internationally common or may fall into obscurity

the outer area consists of five groups (American English, British English, other major varieties, local varieties, foreign varieties) each with features peculiar to their own speech community and which are unlikely to be understood by most members of the other four groups

for example, ‘like Clapham Junction’ in British English, or ‘robot’ as a South African English term for traffic lights

Question 33

what is crystal’stheory about why english is a leading global language?

Answer 33

crystal proposes 3 factors to explain why english is a leading global language:

• distribution through the British Empire
• Industrial Revolution (western science and technical innovation)
• language of the USA (a superpower country)

Question 34

what are streven’s two centres?

Answer 34

older than Kachru’s circles

shows British English and American English as 2 separate entities

shows that every derivation of English since that is connected to one or the other

Question 35

what is ostler’s theory regarding language and technology

Answer 35

believes that, as US and British power declines globally, so will the influence of the English language

however, he believes that rather than a different language becoming dominant globally, the ability to use technology to translate will take away the need for a global language

Question 36

what is mcarthur’s model of world english

Answer 36

Tom McArthur’s model of World Englishes consists of three concentric circles

The central variety represents ‘World Standard English’ and is idealized and best represented as ‘written international English’

The second circle is made of regional standards or standards that are emerging.

The outer layer comprises of localised varieties that have similarities with the regional standards or emerging standards

Question 37

what is schneider’s dynamic model (2007)

Answer 37

FOR POST-COLONIAL ENGLISHES

phase 1: foundation. english brought to a territory by a colonising power leading to an emerging bilingualism

phase 2: exonormative stabilisation. an ‘elite’ bilingualism spreads, led by the politically dominant power

phase 3: nativism. bilingual speakers forge a new variety of english as ties with settlers’ country of origin weaken

phase 4: endonormative stabilisation. a new linguistic norm is established

phase 5: differentiation. varieties emerge leading to internal diversity

Question 38

what is an arolect

Answer 38

the most prestigious dialect or variety of a particular language

Question 39

what is a mesolect

Answer 39

A variety of speech that is midway between the acrolect and the basilect.

Question 40

what is a basilect

Answer 40

a less prestigious dialect or variety of a particular language.

Question 41

what is phillipson’s theory of linguistic imperialism

Answer 41

language dominance is asserted by establishing inequalities between English and other varieties, where language is used to demonstrate power

EXONORMATIVITY: upholding British English as the standard in postcolonial areas

ENDONORMATIVITY: acceptance and support of local forms of English as the standard

Question 42

what is Moag’s life cycle model

tieid

Answer 42

Moag: proposes 5 processes

1. Transportation – when English arrives in a place where it has not been spoken before
   and remains to stay
2. Indigenisation – a long phase in which the new variety of English begins to reflect the
   local culture
3. Expansion in use – new variety being used in an increasing number of situations and
   for more purposes
4. Institutionalisation – use of the local variety as a language learning model in school
5. (decline) – only applicable in certain countries (Malaysia/Philippines) where increase
   in official promotion of a local language results in the decline of English varieties

Question 43

what is mario saraceni’s view on world englishes

Answer 43

Mario Saraceni suggests that ‘the psychological umbilical cord’ between England and world Englishes should be cut.

He argues that existing models for explaining the relationship between World Englishes foreground what he calls ‘the metaphor of
“spread”’ which creates a fundamental problem.

Saraceni’s argument is that rather than view English as belonging to any one group more than another, or one variety of English to be seen more ‘genuine’ than another, a different focus should be explored

Question 44

what was randolph quirk’s view on world englishes

Answer 44

Debating the issue between 1985 and 1990, Randolph Quirk’s stance was characterised as ‘deficit linguistics’. He argued that it is important to adhere to a standard form of English, with British English most likely to inform the standard.

Question 45

what was kachru’s stance which was characterised as ‘liberation linguistics’?

Answer 45

At the same time, Braj Kachru’s stance was characterised as ‘liberation linguistics’. For Kachru, the argument is not over
the need for standards but how and why certain standards should exist and who has control over them. He sees the reality
of English language use as much more complicated to control and codify than Quirk and argues that in attempting to impose
a central standard, not enough attention has been paid to identify the different Englishes found around the world.