As an Asian country, Singapore has a reputation for being highly westernized, with English among the country’s four official languages, but a couple of signs found on local buses that have recently become a hit online may say otherwise.
Quite different from English we know, the sign read, for example, “Here cannot go in” instead of “No entry”, and Here can charge phone instead of Charge phone here. This language that resembles English is called Singaporean English or Singlish.
The New York Times calls Singlish “patchwork” because Singapore consists of migrants(移民) from several countries including China, India and Malaysia, and they all speak their own versions of “English”.
“Everyone who speaks it shapes it,” wrote the newspaper.
For example, in Singlish, you can easily recognize influences from Chinese, including vocabulary such as” Mee Siam” and “da bao”. Sentence structures like ” toilet where” instead of “where’s the toilet” also come from Chinese.
Interesting and diverse as it may seem, the trend for Singlish is worrying Singapore’s government. It is concerned that the dialect is lowering the country’s English standard and may affect its relationship with visitors.It even started the Speak Good English Movement.
Unfortunately, the problem was not solved. Instead, Singlish has boomed, especially among young people who think of it as a sign of being cool and a way of identifying themselves as Singaporean.
But this does not mean that standard English is being abandoned by young people. In fact, they are much more capable than the government gives credit--they can speak both.
“We are a nation good at code switching-- we know that the way we speak to friends or drivers must be different from how act at work or school,” wrote Cheryl, a Singaporean author, in Time magazine, “To actively urge us to give up a language that speaks to the very heart of who we are, that's so beautifully represents the melting pot of Chinese, Indians, Malaysians and Eurasians that we are, is shortsighted, surely.”
28 Why does Singapore have many different versions of English? A It is made up of migrants.
B It is highly westernized. C It is influenced by Chinese. D It is affected by official languages.
29 What is the purpose of starting the Speak Good English Movement? A To stop the new trend. B To better the relationship. C To keep the English standard. D To give the government credit.
30 What do the young people think of Singlish?
A It’s interesting. B It’s their identity. C It’s a sign of status. D It’s a way of code-switching.
31 What can we learn from what Cheryl said? A Different people speak different styles of Singlish. B Singlish is a more beautiful language than others. C People speaks Singlish only to friends and drivers. D People can use Singlish to express themselves well.
D
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