Global Englishes by Jennifer Jenkins
A Summary by Demi Kraakman
A: Introduction
A1. The historical, social and political context
There are around 75 regions where English is either spoken as a first language (L1) or as an
official second language (L2). With L2 they refer to English speakers for who it serves as the
language for country-internal functions: English as a Second Language (ESL). So, L2 doesn't
include the growing group of English speakers for whom it was never a colonial language, nor
does it function as an official language within their country: English as a Foreign Language
(EFL). Along with EFL, English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) is used, describing non-native English
speakers who use English to communicate with each other. The many variations of Englishes
are all viewed with different attitudes.
There are two diasporas of English. The first diaspora resulted in new mother tongue varieties
of English (think American, Australian, etc.). The second diaspora led to the development of a
number of second language varieties: New Englishes.
A2. Who speaks English today?
Speaking English as a:
- Native Language (ENL)
- Foreign Language (EFL)
- Second Language (ESL)
These are the most commonly used categories for English speakers, though the lines
between them are getting blurry and the fourth group is often ignored: English as a Lingua
Franca (ELF). People who speak English as a Lingua Franca use English for intercultural
communication and this group is arguably the largest of the four.
McArthur lists sic difficulties with this three-way categorization:
1. ENL isn’t one variety of English but differs per region.
2. Pidgins and creoles* don’t fit into any category.
3. Large groups of ENL speakers live in ESL territory (because of colonization).
4. ESL speakers live in ENL territory (because of immigration).
5. They don’t take into account that people are multi- or bilingual, nor that English is used for
a lot of code-mixing and -switching**.
6. Native speakers are viewed superior to non-native speakers regardless of their quality.
*Pidgins and creoles are both the result of blending two or more languages together. A pidgin
language is a simplified means of communication between two or more groups that don’t share a
, language but still want to communicate (happened a lot during trade), it’s based on words, sounds
or body language. A creole language is a language formed out of mixing different languages
together; often it stems from a pidgin language that becomes fully developed into a ‘real’
language.
** Code-mixing is when a bi- or multi-lingual speaker integrates a word of another language in a
sentence. Code-switching is when a bi- or multi-lingual person keeps alternating between two
languages throughout a conversation.
To these six difficulties pointed out by McArthur you can add three more problems: 1) in
some ESL countries they learn English as their L1; 2) some ELF/EFL countries exist where
English is used intranational: country internal; 3) it neglects the way English is used.
There are two types of social dialects: acrolect, the standard version which is considered
formal; and basilect, the colloquial version which is considered informal. Typically, an acrolect
dialect is considered to be better than a basilect one.
A3. Standard language ideology
Standard language: the variety of a language that’s considered the norm. Language
standards: the prescriptive language rules that form the standard to which every speaker has
to conform regardless of their own local variety. Social dialect: is not associated with an
accent, it has a greater prestige and isn’t tied to a specific geographical place.
A4. Variation across postcolonial Englishes
The first diaspora [see A1] form the Inner Circle Englishes, and the second diaspora form the
Outer Circle Englishes, although these two sometimes overlap partially. The Inner Circle
consists primarily of the UK, the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South-Africa. The
Outer Circle consists but is not limited to Indian-, Philippine-, Nigerian-, and Singapore-
English. Kachru came up with a model of the Inner Circle, Outer Circle, and Expanding Circle
(EFL countries).
There have been many attempts made at capturing the entire English language in a graphic,
but none are completely accurate because there is just too much variation within the
language.
The postcolonial Englishes (or New Englishes) of the Outer Circle are: 1) developed through
the educational system; 2) developed in a region where native English isn’t spoken most; 3) is
used for a range of functions; 4) has become nativized or localized.
Bamgbose came up with five factors which were meant to help measure the postcolonial
English’s status of innovation:
1. Demographic factor: how many speakers it has.
2. Geographical factor: how widely dispersed the language is.
3. Authoritive factor: where its use is sanctioned.
4. Codifications: does it appear in dictionaries or grammar.
5. Acceptability factor: attitude towards it of users and non-users.
A Summary by Demi Kraakman
A: Introduction
A1. The historical, social and political context
There are around 75 regions where English is either spoken as a first language (L1) or as an
official second language (L2). With L2 they refer to English speakers for who it serves as the
language for country-internal functions: English as a Second Language (ESL). So, L2 doesn't
include the growing group of English speakers for whom it was never a colonial language, nor
does it function as an official language within their country: English as a Foreign Language
(EFL). Along with EFL, English as a Lingua Franca (ELF) is used, describing non-native English
speakers who use English to communicate with each other. The many variations of Englishes
are all viewed with different attitudes.
There are two diasporas of English. The first diaspora resulted in new mother tongue varieties
of English (think American, Australian, etc.). The second diaspora led to the development of a
number of second language varieties: New Englishes.
A2. Who speaks English today?
Speaking English as a:
- Native Language (ENL)
- Foreign Language (EFL)
- Second Language (ESL)
These are the most commonly used categories for English speakers, though the lines
between them are getting blurry and the fourth group is often ignored: English as a Lingua
Franca (ELF). People who speak English as a Lingua Franca use English for intercultural
communication and this group is arguably the largest of the four.
McArthur lists sic difficulties with this three-way categorization:
1. ENL isn’t one variety of English but differs per region.
2. Pidgins and creoles* don’t fit into any category.
3. Large groups of ENL speakers live in ESL territory (because of colonization).
4. ESL speakers live in ENL territory (because of immigration).
5. They don’t take into account that people are multi- or bilingual, nor that English is used for
a lot of code-mixing and -switching**.
6. Native speakers are viewed superior to non-native speakers regardless of their quality.
*Pidgins and creoles are both the result of blending two or more languages together. A pidgin
language is a simplified means of communication between two or more groups that don’t share a
, language but still want to communicate (happened a lot during trade), it’s based on words, sounds
or body language. A creole language is a language formed out of mixing different languages
together; often it stems from a pidgin language that becomes fully developed into a ‘real’
language.
** Code-mixing is when a bi- or multi-lingual speaker integrates a word of another language in a
sentence. Code-switching is when a bi- or multi-lingual person keeps alternating between two
languages throughout a conversation.
To these six difficulties pointed out by McArthur you can add three more problems: 1) in
some ESL countries they learn English as their L1; 2) some ELF/EFL countries exist where
English is used intranational: country internal; 3) it neglects the way English is used.
There are two types of social dialects: acrolect, the standard version which is considered
formal; and basilect, the colloquial version which is considered informal. Typically, an acrolect
dialect is considered to be better than a basilect one.
A3. Standard language ideology
Standard language: the variety of a language that’s considered the norm. Language
standards: the prescriptive language rules that form the standard to which every speaker has
to conform regardless of their own local variety. Social dialect: is not associated with an
accent, it has a greater prestige and isn’t tied to a specific geographical place.
A4. Variation across postcolonial Englishes
The first diaspora [see A1] form the Inner Circle Englishes, and the second diaspora form the
Outer Circle Englishes, although these two sometimes overlap partially. The Inner Circle
consists primarily of the UK, the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and South-Africa. The
Outer Circle consists but is not limited to Indian-, Philippine-, Nigerian-, and Singapore-
English. Kachru came up with a model of the Inner Circle, Outer Circle, and Expanding Circle
(EFL countries).
There have been many attempts made at capturing the entire English language in a graphic,
but none are completely accurate because there is just too much variation within the
language.
The postcolonial Englishes (or New Englishes) of the Outer Circle are: 1) developed through
the educational system; 2) developed in a region where native English isn’t spoken most; 3) is
used for a range of functions; 4) has become nativized or localized.
Bamgbose came up with five factors which were meant to help measure the postcolonial
English’s status of innovation:
1. Demographic factor: how many speakers it has.
2. Geographical factor: how widely dispersed the language is.
3. Authoritive factor: where its use is sanctioned.
4. Codifications: does it appear in dictionaries or grammar.
5. Acceptability factor: attitude towards it of users and non-users.
