Language is the
beginning of every culture, and I guess Singlish is just a symbol of mixed
culture. American English, British English, Indian English, Chinglish; each has
its own distinctiveness and glamour, and Singlish is one of the most peculiar
accent I’ve ever met.
When I first came
to this country two months ago, I’m so glad to find that almost 80% of locals
here can speak Chinese, although they shyly admit that their speaking Chinese
is better than written Chinese. So the first two weeks before the semester
begins was like paradise on earth for me, since there is no communication
obstruction at all. But when I enter the lecture theater after August
13th, it was just like stepping into the Tower of Babel. I know we
are talking the same language, point is I just can’t understand it. The most
horrible moment is when the teacher makes a joke and everyone around me starts
to laugh, it makes me feel embarrassed since I can’t get any point of the joke.
During the first
two weeks, the incomprehensible Singlish became the eternal topic after dinner
among my exchange schoolmates. It’s like a question stuck in my heart: why
can’t they just speak English properly!
One day I threw
this question to a local I’m familiar with, and his answer made me think a lot.
He said Singlish is just an accent, just like the accent of American English,
Indian English and Chinese English. It’s just an accent.
I suddenly
realized that I used to consider Singlish inferior to some other
"formal" accent like American accent, which is so ridiculous that it
reminds me of racists, of people that regard their culture superior to other
cultures like Nazi Germany. Since then, I am more adaptable to the accent
around me and if I don't understand I would just ask the speaker to slow down
and finally I can appreciate the beauty of Singlish. What an amazing
experience.
Thanks for this reflective observation, DingDing. I like the way you honestly assess your own prejudices in this post.
ReplyDeleteYou mention that Singlish is an "accent." Technically, that's not correct. Do a bit of thinking (and reading on this) and you'll realize that it's more than just "accent." Consider the fact that various words and phrases are specific to Singlish, not just inflections on those words.
Can you think of any words or phrases used here that are not used, say, in the USA?
Hi Brad,
DeleteThank you for your criticism on my post.
I have noticed that there are a lot of "lah" and 'wah" in the end of Singaporeans' speech and some special words like "kia su" and "kia si" are mentioned quite often. According to my acknowledgment, there special words are symbol of mixed culture from hokkien or guangdong (two provinces in China) and some Malaysia and India. I thought they are just like "tomato" and "Chicago" which come from the Amerindian.
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ReplyDeleteHey Ding Ding,
ReplyDeleteIts a very interesting post :) One glaring problem I found was with the language. In the second paragraph, you started off with past tense but just moved onto present tense.
1. When I first came to this country two months ago, I WAS so glad to find that almost 80 % of the locals here COULD speak only Chinese, although they shyly admitted that their SPOKEN Chinese WAS better than written Chinese.
This problem exists consistently throughout the blog. So please have a grammar check everytime before you post your blog. The impact would be much more :) All said and done, you have brought up an interesting point about accents here. In fact, even I am guilty of considering Indian English superior to the other styles. I failed to understand Singlish for a very long time. In fact, I have narrated the example in class.One of the stall holders in a canteen was shouting at me when I did not collect the food that I had ordered. I did not realise that until she called me, "Indian man". :D So, to be a part of a new culture, it is important that you understand and respect their accent too :)
Hi Ding Ding,
ReplyDeleteThat is a very interesting post. I have to agree, jokes being made in Singapore can only be understood mainly by Singaporean. Its all a mix of Teochew, Hokkien, Chinese, English, Malay and Tamil. It will be the same for me if I were to go Australia for an exchange and all their jokes there will be not easy for me to understand. Do not worry, as you slowly gain an insight to the Singapore culture and beliefs, it is pretty much similar to the Chinese. Hope you will enjoy your time here and learn something out of it.
Min Thu