World Englishes Colonial Background and Linguistic Descriptions Strands

World Englishes Colonial Background and Linguistic Descriptions

Strands of British Expansion Self-determined Colonization: North America Ø Forced Colonization: West Indies, Australia Ø Missionary Colonization: New Zealand Ø Trade Colonization: South Asia: British East India Company (India); Africa: British South Africa Company (South Africa; Zambia; Zimbabwe Ø Competitive Colonization: Worldwide Ø

Resulting National Varieties of English Ø “National variety” means “local and regional varieties in a country” (p. 433). Ø The develop because of • Separation from “linguistic homeland” in space and time resulting in “linguistic conservatism”; • Founder effects: features brought at the time of settlement; • Language contact with immigrants from other language groups; • Language contact with indigenous languages; • New landforms require new vocabulary.

North American Colonization Begins with Roanoke (1584), the “lost colony” 1607: Jamestown Purposes: Exploitation of natural resources (timber, tobacco); markets; pressure valve for religious discord Ø Southern colonists (to Bermuda) from “West Country” Ø Northern from Eastern England Ø Ulster Scots and Irish begin immigration in 1700 s Ø Canada welcomes Scots to “Nova Scotia” Ø Ø Ø

Linguistic Conservatism in North American English Ø NAE is rhotic, preserves [r] after a vowel, as in words like “card” and “car. ” Listen to this man from Tangier Island (settled in 1684): https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=up. Kqzxu J 5 L 4 listen at 6: 06. l British English (Received pronunciation) lost [r] in these environments in the 18 th century.

The Strange Case of [r] in New York City Ø New York City, Boston, and many areas of the Southern US are non-rhotic, but this is actually an innovative feature, developed in imitation of British English. Ø Listen to William Labov on [r] in New York: http: //www. npr. org/1999/03/12/3602519/new -yawk-talk

Listening Exercise Ø Listen to this conversation (or some portion of it) about dialect and accent from British Voices: http: //sounds. bl. uk/Accentsand-dialects/BBC-Voices/021 MC 1190 X 0036 XX-0401 V 0 Ø Do you hear any of the variations characteristic of British English (BE) from pp. 436 -441. Make sure you listen to all three speakers.

Australia Ø James Cook visits 1700 Ø 1788: Sydney penal colony established Ø “First Fleet” brings 130, 000 prisoners from London and Ireland Ø London “Cockney” gains a toe-hold Ø Irish include political prisoners as well after 1798 rebellion Ø Includes Aboriginal vocabulary

New Zealand Ø Cook mapped islands by 1770 Ø Whalers and traders settle by 1790 Ø Missionaries come in 1814 Ø Official colony begins 1840 by treaty with Maori Ø European immigration increases dramatically until 1900 Ø Southeast Asian, Pacific, Hong Kong immigration

Dialect Comparisons Ø Use the George Mason University Accent Archive to compare the dialects of four speakers from different countries: the United States, Australia, New Zealand, and Jamaica. What are some of the phonological contrasts that you see? Ø http: //accent. gmu. edu/

South Africa Originally colonized by Dutch in 1652 Ø British invade in 1795; control, 1806; colony established, 1820; English official, 1822 Ø Gold/diamond rush, 1870 s Ø Black varieties of English develop in opposition to Afrikaans Ø Indian immigration, 1860 s Ø Language of ANC, Nelson Mandela Ø 1993, English one of 11 official languages Ø

South Asia British East India Company establishes trading station in 1612 Ø Competes with France for possession; Madras French colony Ø 1765 takes over Bengal Ø 1784 “Board of Control” takes over Ø Universities in Bombay, Calcutta, and Madras, 1857 Ø 1858, Company abolished, control to the Crown Ø British Raj lasts until 1947 Ø

West Indies Ø Destination for slave trafficking Ø Pidgin African dialects give way to Creoles based on French, Spanish, Portuguese, English Ø Plantation-running colonists import prestige varieties of English Ø West Indian colonists become important figures in America (e. g. Alexander Hamilton)

Listening Exercise Ø Read along with John Agard as he reads “Listen Mr. Oxford Don” (p. 457): https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=Ywy. Tthdg 7 w Ø Watch/listen to this project from York University in Canada about Jamaican Creole: https: //www. youtube. com/watch? v=bpn. W AIFLU 9 A