Lotsa debates have been going on about Singlish. Retain it or ditch it. I'd say the latter. Some Singaporeans argued that ditching Singlish is like ditching our unique identity as a Singaporean. They suddenly turned patriotic and felt so strongly about the issue. Fiery arguments and point of views were made - very passionate indeed. My say? C'mon Singaporeans - WAKE UP! *roll eyes* (Yes, it has to end off with the rolling of the eyes for that added effect)
Those of you who wonder what on earth Singlish is, clearly you've not been to Singapore cos if you've been here, there's no way you'd have missed it!
Singlish is Singapore Colloquial English. One can say it's like a melting pot of various languages like Malay, Chinese, English, Hokkien, Tamil, Cantonese, Teochew etc. See, you can't accuse Singaporeans of the lack of creativity cos to be marrying all these languages into one is indeed something! That also means it can be horribly excrutiating especially to the foreign ears. The only people who can TRULY understand Singlish are, no surprise there, Singaporeans. Anti-social? Maybe. It can also be seen as something that bonds the locals. That extra spice of local flavour. In case ya not too familiar with how Singlish goes, here are some examples:
English: Have you received your results?
Singlish: Eh, you got your results already or not?
English: How can it be?
Singlish: Why like that leh?
English: I don't care!
Singlish: I don't care one!
Those are just basic Singlish, I haven't even include those that are a mixture of Chinese dialects, Malay and Tamil - it's really gonna ruin your head! lol... Yes it's definitely not sexy, I can't imagine a hunk of a guy saying to me," I love you la!"
I'm not TOTALLY dissing Singlish. It has its own charms but really, Singaporeans if you wanna aim high and big in life (life is not equivalent to just your tiny world in Singapore), ditch the Singlish and speak English.
I think some Singaporeans are just too loyal to Singlish coz they can't be bothered to upgrade themselves to learn and use proper English. They take comfort in numbers in their country but I'm afraid we can't take comfort in numbers anymore. Look at the number of foreigners in Singapore. 1 out of 3 people in Singapore is a foreigner. They are mostly from Phillipines, China, Malaysia and Indonesia. I truly apologise if what I'll say is offensive but it's my thought and I can't deny it. Most people from these countries don't speak decent English, some non at all. What on earth will happen to Singapore?? We are a first world country yet so robbed of English education and lo and behold, English is our official and business language. Surprise surprise. The number of western expats in Singapore is also on the rise, do you think they are able to understand our funky Singlish?! Geez, it's a no brainer.
I don't speak excellent Queen's English but I do speak proper English. I can still banter in Singlish with my friends who insist on conversing in it but otherwise I rather speak English anytime. Am I ashamed of being a Singaporean? Hell no. In fact I am proud to be one and I'm proud to show to my fellow foreign friends from Turkey, USA, Britain, Australia and wherever that hey we, Singaporeans can speak proper English and it's about time we stop being associated with the 'lahs' and 'lehs'.
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2 comments:
Totally agree with you, luv!
As a linguist, yes, I do understand the need for the hybridization/bastardization of a pure language. It's so people can communicate even when they have different mother tongues.
My issue with Singlish, Spanglish, or Taglish is that these days, it's less used for communication but to denote status. When I visit the Philippines, my head explodes. Taglish is seen as a status marker for the upper middle class, and they use it to be "cute sometimes." Consider this:
"Like, oh my God! As in grabe talaga, he didn't call me last night. How hard naman is it to tawag, ha?"
That statement above is taken almost verbatim from a conversation I had with an educated businesswoman. She can speak proper English, but chooses to speak this way.
My two cents: If you cannot fluently speak in one language and have to cobble together two or three languages to create a whole, then you're an idiot. Your brain cells cannot handle clarity.
PS
I miss you! Lemme know about the visa thing when you get to TR. 90/180, I mean.
Hugs!
Hey babe, you've explained it perfectly!
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