EL1101E/GEK1011The Nature of LanguageWeek 11, Tutorial 9

Colloquial Singapore English and

Contact Linguistics

CONTACT LINGUISTICS AND SINGAPORE ENGLISH

Question 1

A pidgin is a simplified form of speech which arises to fulfil certain restricted communication needs among people who have no common language.

Example: Chinese Pidgin English

• English: Can you do it?• Mandarin: 可以不可以 ?• CPE: Can do, no can do?

Example: Chinese Pidgin English (CPE)

A creole arises when a pidgin becomes the mother tongue of a speech community, the next generation grow up speaking this language as their first language.

Example: Jamaican Creole aka Patois

Singapore English is a ‘creoloid’ because

1. It has similar structural variables to post-creoles based on the same ‘standard’ language.

2. Did not develop from a pidgin but by some other process.

3. It developed from the transference of features into the ‘standard’ language from the languages of several (sometimes unrelated) ethnic groups.

4. The superordinate language is usually only one of the official languages.

5. It is usually also used as lingua franca in inter-ethnic group communication within the speech community where it is one of the sub-varieties.

(Platt, 1975)

• Part 2B)

African Pidgin/Carribean Creole

Singapore English

Slave History (different languages)

Colonial ruling meets multilingual people

Need for common language among workers and between

slave-masters

English-medium Straits Settlement schools

Sole means of expression Separate Mother Tongue still spoken

NP ELLIPSIS AND SUBSTRATIST EXPLANATION

Question 2

What is noun phrase ellipsis?

It refers to subject, object and possessor omission in Colloquial Singapore English.

Subject Omission

Standard English:After one gets sick, one cannot help it.

Colloquial Singapore English:After Ø get some sickness, Ø can’t help it.

The subject “one” is ommited

Object Omission

Standard English:‘I have never tried it before.’

Colloquial Singapore English:I never try Ø before lah.

The object ‘it’ is ommited.

Possessor omission

Standard English:‘My head is painful.’

Colloquial Singapore English:Ø Head very pain.

The possessor ‘my’ is ommited

So where did noun phrase ellipsis in Colloquial Singapore English originate from?

Subject Omission

Standard English:How do I get to Malacca Train Station?

Hokkien:Ba la ka cia tau bhe an zua ki Malacca station will how go

The subject ‘I’ is ommited

Subject Omission

Standard English:I remember, when I was still small, I often went fishing.

Malay:Ingat-ingat, waktu masih kecil, sering pergi memancing

remember when still small often go fishing

The subject ‘I’ is omitted

Object Omission

Standard English:I have never tried it before

Chinese:Wo mei shi guo

I never try before

The object ‘it’ is omitted

Object Omission

Standard English:I have never tried it before

Malay:tidak pernah cuba sebelum ini

Never tried before

The object ‘it’ is omitted

Possessor Omission

Standard English:My head is painful

Mandarin:tou hen tong

Head very painful

The possessor ‘my’ is omitted

Possessor Omission

Standard English:My head is painful

Cantonese:Tao ho tong worHead very pain

The possessor “my” is omitted

In our examples, we see that noun phrase ellipsis can be found in

MalayMandarinHokkien

Cantonese

Noun phrase ellipsis in CSE does come from both Malay and varieties of Chinese such as Mandarin, Hokkien and Cantonese.

PRAGMATICS OF SENTENCE-FINAL PARTICLES Question 3

Example 1 - LAH

Do you love me?

Yes, I love you!

Do you REALLY love me?

I REALLY love you

LAH!

Function:• Aggressive statement of emotion

Example 1 - LEH

Do you love me?

Yes, I love you!

Do you REALLY love me?

I REALLY love you

LEH!

Function:• Makes the sentence sounds softer than the previous

Example 1 - LOR

Do you love me?

Yes, I love you!

Do you REALLY love me?

I tell you how many times

already! I REALLY

love you LOR!

Function:• Resigned expression of a feuding spouse which has no choice

Can help me do this survey? You’ll stand to win attractive prizes!

Huh? Are you sure can win?

Really! There’s something here for

everyone LAH.

Example 2(a) - LAH

Function:• Appeal for accommodation.• Persuade you to help to do the survey.

What LAH!

Example 2(a) - LAH

Function:• Mood marker (annoyance)• The mood or attitude being conveyed will depend on specific

contextual factors.

OI! Can help me with this question?

We’re going to catch a movie. Do you want to join

us?

Example 2(a) - LAHMaybe not, I have a lot of assignments due this

week.

Just come with

us LAH!

Function:• Soften the force of an utterance• “Come with us” A request• “Come with us LAH” makes it more polite and persuasive

Example 2(b) - WHAT

Function:• Indicate obviousness that the person asking the question

did not think twice about it. • Marks contradiction - A thinks that B can park here but B

replies that he can’t cause there are no other cars around.

No car parks here, WHAT. You stupid

ah? Why you don’t just park here?

Example 2(b) - WHAT

Function: • Marks contradiction – Edelia and Gabrielle has different

thoughts about the standard of Mabel’s cooking.

Mabel’s cooking very lousy leh!

But she can cook

WHAT. Her fried rice very tasty!

Example 2(c) - HOR

Function:• Attempt to garner support for a proposition

Yeah, super big and a lot of shops! I like

it too!

This shopping centre very nice

HOR.

Example 2(c) - HOR

Function:• Attempt to garner support for a proposition

(no response)

That guy is always trying to take advantage of others. Never do his part for the

group project.

HOR?

Yeah lor!!

Example 2(c) - HORThe use of HOR requires that the speaker assert a proposition. Hence, HOR is only found with questions which have a declarative form.

You very rich

hor?

I bought a prada wallet yesterday at

the shopping centre!

Example 2(d) - MEH

Function:• Indicate skepticism/surprise• Mabel thought that Gabrielle will choose book A instead of

book B.

Confirm? You don’t like that one (book A)

MEH?

Which book should I buy? A or B ah? I think

I’m going to get book B.

Example 2(d) - MEH

Function:• Indicates surprise

Yeah! You didn’t know

MEH?Mabel! You can bake

ah! Why you never tell me!

OWNSELF IN CSE = 自己’ ZIJI’ IN CHINESE? Question 4

SINGLISHChinese dialects

Vernacular Malay

自己 (ZIJI)

OWNSELF

Ownself is likely to have derived from ziji

Both exclude involvement of others

Semantically, ziji can express a contrast between the ‘self’ in question

and others who could be involved

Zhe shi wo ziji zuo de!This is I ownself do one!

{as opposed to having other people involved}

In imperatives, both do not require the subject (NP) to precede it

Example 1

(You) Ownself open the door lah! Example 2

(Ni) ziji chi fan! (You) eat rice by yourself!

Take noteYou can’t do this in English!

You yourself open the door!*Yourself open the door!

Ownself is may not have derived from ziji

Ziji—regular reflexive

Ziji can function like a regular reflexive (Used to refer back to the subject/object of the sentence)

BUT ownself cannot function as a regular reflexiveExample 4

Lisi is blaming himself.Lisi zai zebei (ta) ziji

Example 3

He cut himself.*He cut ownself.

Overall

Seems like they can replace each otherEven though ziji is in fact a Chinese expression

Based on example 1

Why you keep asking me! You ziji go open door lah!

Why you keep asking me!You ownself go open door lah!

Conclusion

Ownself is likely to have developed on the basis of the form and functions of the

Chinese expression 自己 ‘ self’

Although the functions of ziji seems to be wider

THANK YOU!

ReferencesDeterding, D. (2007). Dialects of english: Singapore english Edinburgh University Press.Sato, Y., & Kim, C. (2012). Radical pro drop and the role of syntactic agreement in colloquial singapore english. Lingua, 122(8), 858.

Lim, L. (2004). Singapore English : A Grammatical Description. Amsterdam: John Benjamins Pub. Co.)

Nordquist, R. [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://grammar.about.com/od/tz/g/West-African-Pidgin-English-Wape.htm Last accessed 1 April 2014.

The British Library Board. [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://www.bl.uk/learning/langlit/sounds/case-studies/minority-ethnic/caribbean/ Last accessed 1 April 2014.

Wee, L. (2007). Singapore English X-self and ownself. World Englishes , 26, 360-372.

Platt, John T. 1975. The Singapore English speech continuum and its basilect ‘Singlish’ as a ‘creoloid’. Anthropological Linguistics 17:363–374.

BBC News. (1999, Aug 30). Singapore declares war on singlish . BBC News World: Asia-Pacific. Retrieved from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/433745.stm Last accessed 1 April 2014.

The University of the West Indies. (n.d.). Creole languages of the caribbean. Retrieved from http://www.mona.uwi.edu/dllp/linguistics/creole.htm Last accessed 1 April 2014.

Carons, T. A. & Onyioha, A. M. (n.d.). The origin of the pidgin. AfroStyle Magazine, Retrieved from http://www.afrostylemag.com/pidgin.html Last accessed 1 April 2014.

Richards, N. (2010, May 17). [Web log message]. Retrieved from http://www.theworldofchinese.com/2010/05/pidgin-english/ Last accessed 1 April 2014.

Versteegh, K. (2008). Non-indo-european pidgins and creoles. In S. Kouwenberg & V. Singler (Eds.), The handbook of pidgin and creole studies Retrieved from http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com.libproxy1.nus.edu.sg/store/10.1002/9781444305982.ch7/asset/ch7.pdf?v=1&t=hth5a2yf&s=8a9769c7c837c4c07f5b0bc1d66e74ace7488cb5 Last accessed 1 April 2014.