Singlish

By nature a multicultural country, Singapore struggles to identify and promote a united national identity. This why every school day starts with the singing of the national anthem, the raising of the flag, and the recitation of the pledge:

We, the citizens of Singapore
pledge ourselves as one united people,
regardless of race, language or religion,
to build a democratic society,
based on justice and equality,
so as to achieve happiness, prosperity
and progress for our nation.

The government wants its people to feel connected and invested in the success of their country. So it would seem likely, then, that a creole unique to Singapore would be a source of pride and celebration. Yet Singlish, a combination of English with Hokkien, Malay, and Tamil words, and spoken by most Singaporeans on a day-to-day basis, is surprisingly controversial.

Common Singlish-isms include adding "lah" onto the end of every sentence, saying "can" for yes, and exclaiming "aiyah!" whenever shocked or slightly concerned (as in "oh dear!"). For example:

Me: "The humanities photocopier is broken again."
Singaporean teacher: "Aiyah!"
Me: "Can I use the photocopier in the math department?"
Singaporean teacher: "Can, lah."

So what's the controversy? Singaporeans worry foreigners can't understand them. The fear is that when they find themselves in professional and/or international situations, young Singaporeans will not know how to adjust their language to their context, and will therefore fail in the workforce (keeping in mind that Singapore is entirely dependent on international business and trade). The most recent incarnation of this concern came in the form of Ris Low - winner of the 2009 Miss Singapore World contest. When she won the competition a few weeks ago, the Singaporean media was flooded with articles, debates, and letters expressing their concern that she would be representing Singapore internationally. Why? Because she speaks in Singlish (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5F74FZfdSJY - I actually find that though her accent is strong, she's not using that many Singlish terms, and I don't have a problem understanding her... have I been here too long?). Though some were proud of her unique Singaporean speech, many were outraged, and the question of Singlish was brought to everyone's attention yet again.

This is why, at least in part, I am here - to help my students learn an internationally acceptable English (well, in theory...). As an English teacher, part of me believes in learning how to express yourself clearly, both in writing and orally, and I hope to help my students develop these skills. Simultaneously, I believe that language is powerfully connected to identity, and the colonial overtones of telling students to stop speaking their local dialect makes me, to say the least, uncomfortable... So where do I lie on the Singlish debate? As of now: undecided, lah.

Some other Singlish terms I have learned:

Auntie: name given to all older women
Ang Moh: used to refer to Caucasians (I have heard varying opinions as to whether its meant to be derogatory... I think it depends on context)
Kaki: assistant
Kiasu: afraid to lose (as in students who are worried about failing, or people who line up really early for a sale at a store)
Play Play: please
Wah Lau: what the hell
Wayang: when someone talks and talks and doesn't stop