Cleaning the English Before the Guests Arrive

IT blogger Kristen Gunderson recently wrote about strange manifestations of English as a foreign language, and with the upcoming Beijing Olympics, she's not the only one who's detected "unorthodox” phrasing.

In anticipation of the 2008 games, representatives from the Beijing Speaks Foreign Languages Program have been scouring the city on a mission to “cleanse” the streets of quirky English signage. Beijing’s new language policy is more than a little reminiscent of the Singapore Government’s Speak Good English Movement, in which Singaporeans, most of whom speak a variation of English tinged with Malay, Tamil, and Mandarin called "Singlish," are vigorously encouraged to speak more like Brits and Americans.

My life as a PhD student (Linguistics) is usually pretty dry, but every once in a while a storyline comes along that makes all the diphthongs and relative clauses worth it. Often it has something to do with a small community rising up against oppressors to declare their language just as valid and dynamic as any other. What can I say, I like drama.

The campaign in Singapore has led to grassroots uprising in favor of Singlish (a heated debate has sprung from the satirical website Talking Cock, for example). It remains to be seen whether Beijingers will mourn the disappearance of the more than 6,500 'Chinglish' signs to date. Singlish and Chinglish are fundamentally different in many ways—Singlish is a first, and sometimes only, language of many young Singaporeans, whereas Chinglish is largely limited to road signs. While Singlish speakers are rising up in defense of their language, Beijing has no shortage of volunteers eager to remove offending signs. (According to a Wall Street Journal story, the head of Beijing's campaign received over 7,000 responses from volunteers offering translation services.)

Beijing's program seems admirably focused on and global outreach and knowledge, yet it's a small step from education about the standard to oppression of valid yet nonstandard forms. And what's the fun of traveling if everywhere you go people speak the Queen's English? Beijing has never been without profound treats for intrepid travelers (and missing signs won't change that), but I’m holding out hope that Beijing residents will feel a hole where their funny English used to be, and will take pride in a English that was all their own.

Check out Michael Erard's recent story in Wired for another linguist's take on Chinglish, Singlish, and evolving English.

Photo: A sign in the garden of Prince Gong Mansion in Beijing, courtesy of Major Clanger via Flickr.

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Comments

[pam]

I'm a little sad about the linguistic scrubfest. First, oh how I love messed up English. We are still laughing hysterically about the button on our AC control in Vietnam labeled "Mightiness." (Cracking up while typing. Really)

And also, there's the idea that you have to find out what, oh, I dunno, Blazing Sunset Next to a Still Pond IS before you order it and that leads to conversation. I like that.

Off to read the links you've posted...

[Ally B]

Thanks for posting pam! Isn't it sad to think we might never have mighty AC again? And apparently the menu items were one of the first things to go... The trend usually goes that a language is officially declared detrimental, and then years later, as it's becoming extinct, entire restoration efforts are launched to preserve the identities, culture, and world-view that are dying along with the language. It may be hard to claim that the English in Beijing is it's own language, but in a way it has its own character and structure and is part of the natural evolution of language in a global context.

If you want to see something I think is slightly absurd, take a look at a classic lesson from Singapore's Speak Good English Movement:

Wrong: Die, Die must finish. (Singlish)
Right: We must finish this by hook or by crook. (English?)

Now, call me American, but I don't have a clue what EITHER of those phrases mean. At least with the Singlish phrase one can make a pretty confident guess! Why would Singlish grammar be bad, but British colloquialisms be good? If Singaporeans are made to say British phrases, should they also throw away their Chinese, Indian, and Malaysian recipes in favor of living off a British diet? Surely if they served only Anglicized food the tourists would be more comfortable, which is a main goal of the SPEM. I'm all for education, but I think the education that's most needed now does not involve teaching people who speak "wrong" to speak "right", but instead involves teaching those who think they speak "right" that there is no "wrong" or "right".

I'd love to hear other opinions, or stories from those who have visited Beijing!

[Matt]

@Ally B: I'm British, and I've never heard "by hook or by crook" either. I looked up what it means: "by any means possible".

[Tim D]

This is my favorite one I've seen so far:

http://adweek.blogs.com/adfreak/2008/07/then-well-grab.html

the idea that a computer glitch would actually make it onto a sign makes my heart filled with laughter. It's like David Sedaris says in his last book: wouldn't someone in the conference room be like, "Hey, before we make this the name of our business, I've got a cousin in America -- why don't we run it by her first?"

[Marilyn Terrell]

@Tim D: that sign is hilarious! I hope the authorities don't remove it.