hong kong english is a phenomenon that afflicts many Cantonese speakers of the
english language. It is a term used to describe two different yet related concepts. The first concept refers to the variation of the
english language used in
hong kong due to British influence. Since
hong kong was under British rule up until 1997 as a result of the 99-year lease,
hong kong uses predominantly British spellings and pronunciations. The second concept refers to the pronunciation of the
english language by Cantonese speakers known affectionately by locals as their version of Chinglish or
chinese english.
hong kong english, or Cantonese
english, is a term used to describe the accent and characteristics of
english spoken by the native people of
hong kong. It applies primarily to those people whose first language is Cantonese. Therefore, although it is called
hong kong english, it is not only spoken in
hong kong but also by people who come from Cantonese speaking regions, like Canton,
china, or those whose first language is Cantonese.
hong kong, whose population is 95% ethnic
chinese, is a predominantly Cantonese-speaking society; however,
english is one of the official languages. It is used widely and daily in Government,
business, tourism, traffic and schools. In fact,
english is as equally acceptable and valid as
chinese on legal and
business standings. That said, the native people of
hong kong still regard
english as a foreign language that is used primarily for formal communications, particularly in writing. When spoken, the pronunciation is typical of foreign language learners. The
english is heavily influenced and accented by the Cantonese language where nasal sounds are weaker than
english and many sounds are substituted since they do not exist in the Cantonese language.[1]
Some common examples of
hong kong english include:
• Voiceless TH to be pronounced as [f], so through may be pronounced as [fru],[2] and three may be [fri].[3]
• Voiced TH tends to be [t],[5] so though is [tou] and there is [t?].[6] This is reported to be very widespread, so this is nearly always [tis], and brother is [brata].[7]
• Mispronunciation of 'v' because the 'v' sound has no equivalent in Cantonese. Therefore 'v' becomes 'w' or 'f'. (e.g. 'f' in 'favour', second 'v' in 'Volvo' and either 'f' or 'w' in 'develop' depending on the speaker.)
• Multi-syllable words are often differently stressed. For example, the word "latte" is pronounced with the second syllable stressed instead of the first.
• Omission of entire syllables in longer words. ('Difference' become DIFF-ENS, 'temperature' becomes TEM-PI-CHUR.)
• Difficulty pronouncing double consonant endings, except when the second element is fricative. e.g. "think" as "thing", "swamp" as "swam", "send" and "sent" as "sen".
• Confusion between homographs (e.g. the noun "resume" and the verb "resume")
• Confusion with verb tenses and agreement of singular or plural nouns, as there is direct equivalents in Cantonese
According to the article "Grammar Error Strike Hard: Language Proficiency Testing of
hong kong teachers and the Four "Noes"" written by Phil Glenwright in Journal of Language Identity and Education, the falling
english proficiency of local
english teachers has come under criticism. In response, the Education Bureau has required
english teachers without
english language undergraduate degrees to submit to an language proficiency
assessment for
teachers, called "LPAT”. Those failing LPAT are no longer permitted to teach
english.
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1. http://en.wikipedia.org
2. Setter, J., Wong., C. S. P., & Chan, B. H. S. (2010).
hong kong english. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
3. Deterding, D., Wong J., & Kirkpatrick, A. (2008). The pronunciation of
hong kong english.
english World-Wide, 29, 148-149.
4. Hong, T. N. (2002). Towards a phonology of
hong kong english. In K. Bolton (Ed.),
hong kong english: Autonomy and creativity (pp. 119-140).
hong kong:
hong kong University Press.
5. Setter, J., Wong., C. S. P., & Chan, B. H. S. (2010).
hong kong english. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
6. Deterding, D., Wong J., & Kirkpatrick, A. (2008). The pronunciation of
hong kong english.
english World-Wide, 29, 148-149.
7. Hong, T. N. (2002). Towards a phonology of
hong kong english. In K. Bolton (Ed.),
hong kong english: Autonomy and creativity (pp. 119-140).
hong kong:
hong kong University Press.