Friday, May 13, 2005
After a long absence… the xtra inspired blogger is baaaaack.
Ok. First and foremost, XL will like to wish Red Hot cold turkey a HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! Hugz!
Thank goodness this week was a huge improvement from the last… urgh.
Mind your language.
Let me ask you. What do you make of the following sentence?
“ Cannot not finish then da bao la! Come la come la!”
Comprehendo? Nien?
Ok.. translated to proper English..
“ If you cannot finish what’s on your plate, why don’t you just ask for a container and take it back? Please do come along for dinner.”
Is that better? But a little wordy don’t you think?
Truth is, if you’re a Singaporean/msian, that first sentence would make perfect sense to you. Singlish/minglish may not be a proper language, but as much of a rogue as it may seem in the world of languages, it make perfect sense to us.
Well, it just struck me how unique our Singapore accent/ singlish is here in Melbourne. Thing is after growing up in Singapore, I’ve always taken “ an English accent” to mean the usual standard aussie/US/british accent that you hear those cool dudes on TV speak in. It never occurred to me that the way I spoke English ( or mangled it up) was unique. The funny thing is that if an aussie spoke to a brit or if a yankee spoke to a kiwi, they would most probably be able to understand each other, coz they’re all speaking in English. Well, I speak English too.. Singapore brand. But when I speak to the locals, I find myself being very inhibited. Suddenly, my command of English ( which is considered not bad by Singapore standards) seems inadequate to bring across my meaning . I am suddenly aware of how every sentence is rife with bad vocab and grammer. I’ve to twist it and mould it to suit aussie standards so that I make myself understood.
IN Singapore, I use 2 forms of English. One is the one I use to address my frens and family. The other is the impeccable form used to address an English Aural examiner. Needless to say, the latter is less well practiced. But it serves it’s purpose fine in an exam setting and I can swap between both with little problem. But even my so called “ better “ standard of English ain’t good enough for communication here.
So my frens and I have to adopt an aussie accent when we speak to the locals. It’s not that we wanna act yandao ( cool) or smth. we just have to, otherwise both parties are gonna end up scratching their heads. After 2 years, I’ve gotten used to adding this new form of English into my command, switching into it automatically when I talk to the locals or ABCs because that’s the way I’m addressed, thinking that that’s the best way to communicate. But I think sometimes, I sound more weird than anything and my English becomes even more stilted than usual.
Anyway, back to scenerio. I was holding a conversation with Rx in Aa’s room. Rx is from Singapore. Aa is a NBC ( new Zealand bred Chinese) and T is an ABC ( aussie bred Chinese). Rx and I were jabbering away about AJC and RJC and some other Singaporean stuff which Aa and T were puzzling over Aa’s screwed up internet. Then the conversation turned to dinner.
“ aiyah.. just dabao lah,” I told her. “ When I cannot finish I always dabao one.”
Suddenly, we realized that Aa and T were staring at us with their mouths open.
“ What was that?” T asked. “ I didn’t get that at all.”
“ Da3 bao1” Rx repeated slowly. “ Take aways….”
Now T and Aa both speak perfect Chinese and English ( which was all present in that one sentence) and they still couldn’t comprehend my speech. Ah.. the seamless way we Singaporeans bring 3 or more languages or dialects together into a sentence, mash up the intonations and yet still understand each other is utterly amazing!
“ Maybe it’s cause they’re speaking really fast that we don’t understand them,” Aa said.
“ No,” T piped in. “ I think it’s because they’ve really turned on their accent.”
Usually when Rx and I usually speak to Aa and T, we speak with our pseudo aussie accent or at very least, in semi perfect English ( or wat I would term : my “ aural exam standard english”. I’ve never really tried speaking in my usual way to them coz I feel like it’s gonna be in vain. Well, I guess their confusion at this point of time really emphasized my point.
But singlish is a skill, I must say. Because when T tried to say something in singlish, he really “ couldn’t make it.
Even the phrase “ you cannot make it la” , has so many different ways of being spoken. You could go high pitch on the “cannot” and built it down in a singsong way. Or you could say it my style in a flat, sneering way. But a wrongly accented “la “ or “lor” just make it sound soooo wrong.
I guess it’s the same with English spoken in different accents. One of our other frens Rt was from Kenya and she was sending us into fits speaking in a deep,booming Kenyan accent and then switching abruptly to an Indian accent. But the thing was, accented as it was.. it was still proper English. None of our little quiltwork of languages. Singlish is hard to comprehend, not only because of it’s intonation, and the rapid way it is delivered.. but mainly because of it’s “rojakness” .
“ Why like that one???” T was still trying.
Aiyoh… he Really cannot make it. He should stick to making us coffee and hot choc. He got back at my stern marking of his singlish by making me finish the last bit of the hot choc with chilli which left me jumping around his room choking and sputtering.. Ack ack It’s just a fact, singlish is mastery better left to us Singaporeans. Why does the government say we aren’t creative! We are!!! Check out this art work of languages baby!
But there is a time and place for singlish, I can’t imagine myself trying to describe carcinogenesis in singlish during PBL.
“ And then ah… that gene, you know that gene.. Yah.. it go kaput ah.. and then ah.. got some guai guai chemical come in and then nong huai the other gene. Then wah lau eh.. it gone case liao oh..”
Yeah. I think my pbl tutor mark would be damn zai also.
Ok. First and foremost, XL will like to wish Red Hot cold turkey a HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!! Hugz!
Thank goodness this week was a huge improvement from the last… urgh.
Mind your language.
Let me ask you. What do you make of the following sentence?
“ Cannot not finish then da bao la! Come la come la!”
Comprehendo? Nien?
Ok.. translated to proper English..
“ If you cannot finish what’s on your plate, why don’t you just ask for a container and take it back? Please do come along for dinner.”
Is that better? But a little wordy don’t you think?
Truth is, if you’re a Singaporean/msian, that first sentence would make perfect sense to you. Singlish/minglish may not be a proper language, but as much of a rogue as it may seem in the world of languages, it make perfect sense to us.
Well, it just struck me how unique our Singapore accent/ singlish is here in Melbourne. Thing is after growing up in Singapore, I’ve always taken “ an English accent” to mean the usual standard aussie/US/british accent that you hear those cool dudes on TV speak in. It never occurred to me that the way I spoke English ( or mangled it up) was unique. The funny thing is that if an aussie spoke to a brit or if a yankee spoke to a kiwi, they would most probably be able to understand each other, coz they’re all speaking in English. Well, I speak English too.. Singapore brand. But when I speak to the locals, I find myself being very inhibited. Suddenly, my command of English ( which is considered not bad by Singapore standards) seems inadequate to bring across my meaning . I am suddenly aware of how every sentence is rife with bad vocab and grammer. I’ve to twist it and mould it to suit aussie standards so that I make myself understood.
IN Singapore, I use 2 forms of English. One is the one I use to address my frens and family. The other is the impeccable form used to address an English Aural examiner. Needless to say, the latter is less well practiced. But it serves it’s purpose fine in an exam setting and I can swap between both with little problem. But even my so called “ better “ standard of English ain’t good enough for communication here.
So my frens and I have to adopt an aussie accent when we speak to the locals. It’s not that we wanna act yandao ( cool) or smth. we just have to, otherwise both parties are gonna end up scratching their heads. After 2 years, I’ve gotten used to adding this new form of English into my command, switching into it automatically when I talk to the locals or ABCs because that’s the way I’m addressed, thinking that that’s the best way to communicate. But I think sometimes, I sound more weird than anything and my English becomes even more stilted than usual.
Anyway, back to scenerio. I was holding a conversation with Rx in Aa’s room. Rx is from Singapore. Aa is a NBC ( new Zealand bred Chinese) and T is an ABC ( aussie bred Chinese). Rx and I were jabbering away about AJC and RJC and some other Singaporean stuff which Aa and T were puzzling over Aa’s screwed up internet. Then the conversation turned to dinner.
“ aiyah.. just dabao lah,” I told her. “ When I cannot finish I always dabao one.”
Suddenly, we realized that Aa and T were staring at us with their mouths open.
“ What was that?” T asked. “ I didn’t get that at all.”
“ Da3 bao1” Rx repeated slowly. “ Take aways….”
Now T and Aa both speak perfect Chinese and English ( which was all present in that one sentence) and they still couldn’t comprehend my speech. Ah.. the seamless way we Singaporeans bring 3 or more languages or dialects together into a sentence, mash up the intonations and yet still understand each other is utterly amazing!
“ Maybe it’s cause they’re speaking really fast that we don’t understand them,” Aa said.
“ No,” T piped in. “ I think it’s because they’ve really turned on their accent.”
Usually when Rx and I usually speak to Aa and T, we speak with our pseudo aussie accent or at very least, in semi perfect English ( or wat I would term : my “ aural exam standard english”. I’ve never really tried speaking in my usual way to them coz I feel like it’s gonna be in vain. Well, I guess their confusion at this point of time really emphasized my point.
But singlish is a skill, I must say. Because when T tried to say something in singlish, he really “ couldn’t make it.
Even the phrase “ you cannot make it la” , has so many different ways of being spoken. You could go high pitch on the “cannot” and built it down in a singsong way. Or you could say it my style in a flat, sneering way. But a wrongly accented “la “ or “lor” just make it sound soooo wrong.
I guess it’s the same with English spoken in different accents. One of our other frens Rt was from Kenya and she was sending us into fits speaking in a deep,booming Kenyan accent and then switching abruptly to an Indian accent. But the thing was, accented as it was.. it was still proper English. None of our little quiltwork of languages. Singlish is hard to comprehend, not only because of it’s intonation, and the rapid way it is delivered.. but mainly because of it’s “rojakness” .
“ Why like that one???” T was still trying.
Aiyoh… he Really cannot make it. He should stick to making us coffee and hot choc. He got back at my stern marking of his singlish by making me finish the last bit of the hot choc with chilli which left me jumping around his room choking and sputtering.. Ack ack It’s just a fact, singlish is mastery better left to us Singaporeans. Why does the government say we aren’t creative! We are!!! Check out this art work of languages baby!
But there is a time and place for singlish, I can’t imagine myself trying to describe carcinogenesis in singlish during PBL.
“ And then ah… that gene, you know that gene.. Yah.. it go kaput ah.. and then ah.. got some guai guai chemical come in and then nong huai the other gene. Then wah lau eh.. it gone case liao oh..”
Yeah. I think my pbl tutor mark would be damn zai also.
Comments:
Post a Comment
