The mysteries of Singlish.

Singlish is the version of English current among most Singaporeans. It is the result of the influence of Chinese and other languages in Singapore on English - and the result is not pretty, to an international ear. Yet, there is great resistance, among many Singaporeans, to adopting a more internationalized version of English.

I think Singaporeans are unaware of how unintelligible Singlish actually is, to foreigners. This is where the problem lies: to them it is a perfectly comprehensible language. What they don't realize is that no-one outside of Singapore, Malaysia and Batam is likely to understand them. I will give you some examples to allow you to understand the problem.

There was a poster campaign some while back, when the government (briefly) promoted better English. These examples are taken from those posters, with official translations.

What does: "Got people sit one.", mean? Please have a good think about it.

Have you any idea, yet? No? Well, I will let you know, soon.

"Got people sit one" means: "Sorry this seat is taken" (or that would be what an English person would say in the same circumstances: I don't believe there is a "sorry" in the Singlish version.)

How about: "Like that also can, ah?" Have a think about it.

This is a phrase I have heard quite a few times.

"Like that also can, ah?" means: "How can this be acceptable?"

How about: "Die, die, must finish." Please think about it.

I, too, have heard this one and thought it rather strange.

"Die, die, must finish" means "We must finish this."

Singlish, at its best, is an impenetrable language to outside speakers of English. I have found myself completely unable to understand supposedly intelligent middle-aged Singaporeans, in business, when they spoke Singlish. No information was communicated by them, at all. Words were spoken, which were recognizable individually, but together meant nothing at all.

Singlish is a problem for Singapore, but it is a problem which is not really acknowledged. The campaign to speak better English failed, because there was no resolve among the people to speak better and because I don't think they have any examples of good speech to learn from (many politicians, for instance, speak noticeably badly). The campaign quietly went away - at least, nothing much has been heard from them, for some time.

Singlish is not just a spoken problem, it is a written problem. There are sites on the internet, written by Singaporeans, that are incomprehensible to a native speaker of English. This, of course, limits the reach of communication of Singaporeans to those who grew on up on this small island.

There is even resistance to adopting international standards of English, at the governmental level. I was once employed, for instance, to assist a Singaporean government department on the language use on a website - and there was resistance, from some of the government employees, to accept my corrections of their language. They argued that most of the readers of the site would be Singaporeans so the language should be what Singaporeans expect, irrespective of what correct usage would be. I found their view at odds with that expressed by other government departments on the language issue. It seems there is not even unity at the top, on the issue of the quality of language use in Singapore. There is not, therefore, much hope of change on the ground.

The funny thing about Singlish and its Singaporean speakers, is that I have sometimes found native Singaporeans correcting my language use, from standard English to Singlish...and being most insistent that I am wrong! (One memorable shop assistant said to me: "Why you speak slang, ah?") That this should happen indicates that not only are many Singaporeans not speakers of standard English - but that they do not even recognize it when they hear it. They are, therefore, not conversant in English but what amounts to a localized dialect of it.

Singapore is not, in short, an English speaking country, it is a Singlish speaking country with some English speakers in it (those whose English has, perhaps, benefitted from overseas exposure).

For non-Singaporeans only: were you able to work out the correct meanings of the Singlish samples I gave? What did you think they meant? Comments please - but no comments from Singlish speakers who would have known the answers, please. Thanks.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.

This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication prohibited. Use Only with Permission. Thank you.)

The effect of arrogance in the media.

When I first came to Singapore, I noticed something very clearly: almost no-one spoke well in broadcast media. At first, I made allowances for it, assuming it to be a local language. Then, as the months and years passed I came to understand something else: the mistakes they made in pronunciation were neither English, nor Singlish, they were just pure ignorance.

At one time, I took to calling up Mediacorp to complain about the pronunciation of Channel News Asia anchors, pointing out, in detail, the errors they had made. I got no more than: "You have a very detailed mind." out of them. They said they would call back, but they didn't. I tried several more times to alert them to the deficiencies of the speech of their public figures - but no-one ever got back to me. In the end, I stopped complaining.

One day, however, I made a special visit to Mediacorp where I met a senior executive to make a proposal. I offered to help them with voiceovers, since there were innumerable errors that went beyond the easily correctable. He virtually laughed at me. He seemed most arrogant: he looked down his short nose at me, as from a great, unbridgeable height. He said they didn't need people to do voiceovers since they already had them. I thought he was an idiot, because he clearly could not perceive what was so abundantly clear to me - yet he was a senior man in the institution.

Yesterday, I was watching Arts Central, when I heard the voiceover (a typical deep voiced but poorly informed man), say "scarce" in which the first four letters were rhymed with CAR. It was most disconcerting. It was the first time in my life that I had heard anyone, anywhere ever say it that way. I knew it wasn't Singlish - and I knew it wasn't English - it was just pure ignorance, again.

I didn't call the station to complain. I gave up doing that long ago. Yet, it set me to wondering again about the effect of such verbal ignorance among broadcasters. TV and radio stations set an example to the nation. If that example is filled with errors of pronunciation or grammar, the quality of language of the entire population of the country will be lowered. That is precisely what is happening in Singapore. The reason this situation persists is that the powers-that-be do not know English well enough themselves - or care to know, it seems, from that senior executives' arrogant, narrow-minded attitude - to notice the deficiencies of their staff. It is true to say that virtually none of the staff employed in Singaporean broadcasting speaks English well enough to work in the UK broadcasting industry - and this is not a matter of accent, but of grammar and pronunciation.

There is no real concern for quality in language usage here. I find that worrisome - if a nation doesn't care about the quality of one thing, they tend not to care about the quality of many things. That attitude leads to poor quality in many areas, across the board.

Singapore would benefit from hearing good examples of language usage in public figures in broadcasting. There is a simple solution: fire them and hire better spoken ones. It would be a great help to the linguistic landscape of Singapore, in time to come.

It would also be pleasant not to hear jarring errors in pronunciation or grammar on national TV virtually every day (for someone who watches little TV...) However, given the way that senior executive responded to my suggestion, by scoffing, I don't think anything will ever change.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.)

Lee Kuan Yew's view on Singaporean Education.

Recently, the front page of the Today newspaper carried a story about Lee Kuan Yew's latest public utterances. They quoted him as saying words to the effect (since I don't have the article anymore to hand): "We have educated Singaporeans in English to the highest of world class standards."

My first thought on reading this was that the Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew hasn't actually worked, as a teacher, in the Singaporean system and so doesn't have first hand knowledge of that which he speaks. I have taught in Singaporean schools and seen them from the inside over many years. What I have seen differs from how Lee Kuan Yew views matters.

There are two possible meanings to the statement he made: one is that the English of Singaporeans is "of the highest world class standard". The other is that the medium of instruction is English but that the content of instruction is of the "highest world class standard". From wide experience, I don't believe that either of these views is true. Singaporean education is not at the pinnacle of global education, as Minster Mentor Lee Kuan Yew seems to be stating - neither in the English imparted, nor in the content taught.

Singaporean education is typified by a regimented, rigid, inflexible, unaccommodating approach to students, in which they are, largely speaking, encouraged to be passive recipients in the educative process. Actual thinking is strongly discouraged by this approach. Interestingly, I have taught in Singaporean schools in which the students - local, native-born Singaporeans - show little evidence of the ability to think independently or to originate material. Apparently, this means that they have received a "highest world class standard" education.

As for the quality of English in Singapore - an honest Singaporean, who has had exposure to the English of native Englishmen, Americans, Australians or Canadians, would question Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew's view that the English education they have received is of the highest standard. In some cases, the English education received is of an abysmal standard. For instance, when my son Ainan was in his first year in school, I noted that his correct standard English use of tenses was being "corrected" TO SINGLISH, by his teacher. A teacher whose first language is Singlish cannot ever impart "highest world class standard" English to her students - she can only perpetuate her own level of ignorance as to what standard English is supposed to be.

My experience of young Singaporeans is that few have a high level command of English. The average Singaporean today, studying in local government schools, has, by international standards, a very poor grasp of English - probably just as poor as the teachers who teach them.

With effort, throughout the education system - and the employment of English teachers whose English is actually good, rather than terrible - Singaporeans could, in a generation's time, have "highest world class standard" English. However, they do not have this at present. In only the most fevered of imaginations, could the typical English standard of a typical Singaporean be termed "highest world class standard".

The first step towards solving a problem is recognizing that it exists. A few years ago, there seemed to be the recognition of the problem - with an anti-Singlish programme, nationwide. That initiative appears to have been halted. Now we have a "we are great, wonderful, excellent, the most brilliant in the world" programme that calls for no change at all. I rather think that the first initiative should have been continued until it succeeded - it would have done a lot of good for the ability of Singaporeans to do business on the international stage. As I have remarked in other posts, I have sometimes been completely unable to understand the English of Singaporean business people's "highest world class standard" English. By this I mean, there was NO shared understanding at all. I utterly failed to comprehend them. Yet, they were, supposedly, speaking English.

Singapore has come far, in many areas - but there is one area in which it has declined, terribly, since the British left: the standard of English now spoken is insufficient to optimize Singapore's chances on the global stage. That is the truth of the matter. Saying something is of the "highest world class standard" doesn't make it so. Taking initiatives to instil higher standards of spoken and written English across the nation, would, however, do so. Yet, that would mean admitting that the nation was not already "No.1"...there would be the pain of effort and change involved. In the end, however, the prize would be worthwhile, for the ease of international communication would have been enhanced greatly, to the benefit of the Singaporean people.

As for the other possible interpretation of Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew's statement that Singaporeans have been educated in English to the highest of world class standards - that the educational content is of the highest standard, that, too is easily disproven. It is a simple matter: if the local education was, in fact, the "highest world class standard", it would be the best in the world. If it was the best in the world, why do the brightest students, every year, go overseas to the USA or Europe to study? Clearly, these students are going far and wide to receive an education of a lesser standard, if the statement made was actually true.

The true standard of education is shown by how the people respond to it. Those who are able, respond to it by sending their children overseas to study. They wouldn't do this, at all, EVER, if the local standard was of the "highest world class standard".

I would like to see a Singapore in which both interpretations of Minister Mentor Lee Kuan Yew's statement were, in fact, true. I would like Singaporeans to have the "highest world class standard" of written and spoken English - for then they would be best prepared for the international stage. I would also like them to have received the "highest world class standard", education, in terms of content and skills obtained, for then they would be best able to operate in their various fields in that world. I look forward to such a future - however, that future is not yet here and will not be unless the deficiencies of the present system are recognized and put right either by the present generation of leaders, or those who shall come after them.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and seven months, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, five years exactly, and Tiarnan, twenty-eight months, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, wunderkind, wonderkind, genio, гений ребенок prodigy, genie, μεγαλοφυία θαύμα παιδιών, bambino, kind.

We are the founders of Genghis Can, a copywriting, editing and proofreading agency, that handles all kinds of work, including technical and scientific material. If you need such services, or know someone who does, please go to: http://www.genghiscan.com/ Thanks.)

Does Singlish - Singaporean English - communicate?

The question is a general one. However, I am going to look at it through one particular, though in its way, not uncommon incident.

Singapore has, as anyone who has visited it will know, its own version of English, known as Singlish. This is a form of English that uses words that are derived from the other languages present in Singapore (ie. Mandarin and Malay) - and variations on basic grammatical structures that are far from standard English. In consequence, it can be difficult for a native speaker of English, who is not familiar with this variant, to understand a speaker of Singlish. I certainly had difficulty understanding speakers of Singlish, when I first came to Singapore (and still do from time to time, in the more extreme cases).

There is another problem, of course, but a lesser one. If a Singaporean speaks Singlish, but does not watch enough TV (which is mainly British and American English tv shows), they might not understand a native English speaker, when speaking to them. (Though they should understand standard written English, for all words should actually be familiar to them).

In recent years, Singapore mounted a "speak standard English" campaign - but it was rather a failure and, it seems, the government gave up on it, since I don't see any prolonged efforts to educate the population in English, as it should be.

What effect does this have on communication between Singaporeans and natives of other countries (who are native English speakers)?

Well, recently, I went into a supermarket. When I got to the checkout, I recognized the person who was serving. He looked exhausted, so I decided to enquire how he was.

“Are you tired this evening?” I said, gently, looking at his baggy eyes.

“No, I am just sleepy.”

I left it at that. Clearly, a conversation was not going to be possible: either he didn't understand the word "tired" - or he didn't understand my accent (a standard British accent). I gave up.

This kind of communication problem is not uncommon in Singapore. Usually, however, it is the other way around: it is I who cannot understand the native Singaporean. This occurs even in quite surprising contexts. I have met intelligent businessmen in Singapore, who cannot, who simply CANNOT communicate in English. Their sentences so defy the structures of English that they lose all intelligible meaning. I have to listen very hard and pretend that I understand. Somehow, these businessmen, who are successful in a Singaporean context (through speaking Mandarin, no doubt), cannot communicate their thoughts in English. What is the direct consequence of this? I have to find someone else to do business with. I cannot work with people I cannot understand. So, I move on.

No doubt, this story is repeated millions of times a year, when native speakers of English encounter Singaporeans who speak Singlish. No doubt, those native speakers of English go through the process of meeting and failing to understand the Singaporeans and then having to look around for others to relate to that they can understand. No doubt the business - or other benefit of international communication - goes to the Singaporeans who are able to speak English well enough to deal internationally.

I think the dimension of the problem is not really understood by Singaporeans themselves. They speak to each other in Singlish. To them, it is normal. It is only when they speak to outsiders that they might come to realize that there is a difficulty.

I believe the problem is under-played, here, in Singapore - partly because it is a problem that is quite difficult to fix. The teachers of English, here, speak Singlish. So, Singaporeans are themselves learning from people who speak English poorly. Perhaps, however, there lies a solution. In the days of Empire, I believe that the English teachers were English natives. It is time to return to those days. It is time that ALL English teachers in ALL Singaporean schools were English natives. Then, in one generation, Singaporeans would come to speak Standard English - and never again would natives of the English speaking world, perhaps here to do business, encounter the communication problems that are so common today.

(If you would like to learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, a scientific child prodigy, aged eight years and one month, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, four years and seven months, and Tiarnan, two years exactly, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.html I also write of gifted education, IQ, intelligence, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, College, University, Chemistry, Science, genetics, left-handedness, precocity, child prodigy, child genius, baby genius, adult genius, savant, gifted adults and gifted children in general. Thanks.)