LANGUAGE IN INDIA

Colloquial versus Standard in Singaporean Language Policies

Tania Rahman, M.A.

Abstract

This paper is based on an investigation of the standard - colloquial debate among the four official languages, English, Mandarin, Tamil and Malay in Singapore. The aim of the study is to examine (1) major steps/movements in the history of Singaporean language policies that have been influential in forwarding the debate in the country and (2) how this debate has been reflected in the country's educational policymaking.

Expanding on Gupta's (1989, 1994, 2001) "diglossia model", the study examines the diglossic "H" - "L" relationships among the languages to understand the standard - colloquial issue in the country.

The outcomes of this study reveal that (1) the standard - colloquial debate can be extended beyond the "Singlish" - Singapore Standard English (SSE) question to the other three official languages, and (2) the Singapore government's drive for standard language usage marks significant shift in language use and attitudes of the speakers towards the vernacular languages in the country.

Keywords: varieties of language, standard and colloquial varieties, diglossia, "H" and "L" varieties, language policy, Singapore Colloquial English (SCE) or "Singlish", Singapore Standard English (SSE), Literary Tamil (LT), Spoken Tamil (ST), Sebutan Baku (SB) and Johor-Riau system of pronunciation.

Introduction

The debate between the standard and the colloquial varieties of language is age-old and the promotion of the standard variety is still debated in many parts of the world today. An interesting case is the language situation in Singapore where the standard - colloquial debate concerns multiple languages and their speakers.

Standard English is treated as the "High" (H) language in all communications and the local variety of English known as "Singlish" is considered as the "Low" (L) variety as reflected in government statements.

Mandarin is considered to be the second prestigious language among the majority Chinese community members whereas other Chinese dialects such as Hokkien, Teochiew, Hakka, Cantonese are regarded as the "Low" varieties to be spoken in informal situations like marketplace and home.

Tamil, the language chosen as a majority Indian language in the country, is also marked by the standard - colloquial distinction between Literary Tamil (LT) and Spoken Tamil (ST).

The H - L distinction is also present in the use of Malay language in Singapore, as it varies according to Sebutan Baku (SB) or standard Bahasa Melayu and Johor - Riau varieties of Malay pronunciation.

Language Policies in Singapore

The language policies since independence of the country, particularly in the education sector, have been influential in engendering the current debate on the use of standard and colloquial varieties of languages in the country.

In Singapore, the spoken variants such as the Chinese dialects (Hokkien, Hakka, Teochew, Cantonese), spoken Tamil, and other languages are considered as "Low" varieties as proficiency in these varieties is neither recognized by the government nor the general public (Rubdy, 2007), despite being favored by the young generation students (Lee, 1983 and Pakir, 1997), because of the official use of "exonormic" Mandarin, RP English, Literary Tamil, and standard Bahasa Melayu (Schiffman, 1997). In fact the Singaporean education system regards these vernaculars as a "problem" that needs to be eradicated, rather than a "resource" (Schiffman, 1997; Rubdy, 2007).

The Goal of This Paper

The present paper aims to examine how the language policies in the country have reinforced the debate between the standard varieties of the four official languages in the country - English, Mandarin, Tamil and Malay and the vernaculars, i.e., the mother tongues of different communities. In search of an answer to this question, the paper explores the major policy attempts undertaken by the Singapore government regarding language use in the country since independence. The focus will be on the domain of education as it has been a crucial implementation tool for the government to materialize the language policies for bringing significant changes in language use in the country.

In discussing the language policies of the country, background information on the country's ethnolinguistic situation is explored which reveals the complex nature of the multilingual and multiethnic nation.

For analyzing the standard - colloquial debate in the Singaporean context, I have examined Gupta's (1989, 1994, 2001) diglossic model and found that the H - L relationship between the standard and colloquial varieties of English in Singapore, recognized now respectively as Singapore Standard English (SSE) and Singapore Colloquial English (SCE) or Singlish, are also evident in the other three official languages - Mandarin, Tamil and Malay. In order to discuss the standard - colloquial situation in Singapore, it is important to understand what exactly the term "standard" signify which is discussed below.

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