2. The politics of Hinglish
-
Anjali Gera Roy
Abstract
After being subjected to ‘the imperialism of language’ for centuries like other colonized people through the media, education and other instruments of colonial power, educated Indians have ‘decolonized’ English through the invention of a new hybrid formed through the mixing of English with Hindi, which was followed by mixing with other Indian languages. Although Indian English has always been used out of innocence or ignorance and has been normalized as a register of English, Hinglish, a mix of Hindi and English, was first used to great effect by a film tabloid called Stardust in the 1970s under the editorship of the popular fiction writer Shobha De(nee Rajadhyaksha) and entered the vocabulary of educated, middle class speakers. But it was only when Salman Rushdie employed a non-Standard register of English, a mix of Hindi/Urdu with English, in his novel Midnight’s Children (1980) that Hinglish acquired literary respectability. Through comparing “the stylish language of Bollywood, of FM radio and of national advertising” with the “aspirational language” of speakers of bhashas[Modern Indian languages] disdainfully described as “vernacs[vernaculars]” by elite speakers of English, this essay focuses on cultural politics of different varieties of Hinglish in India to argue that while ushering in linguistic democraticization, Hinglish has not been able to bridge social difference.
Abstract
After being subjected to ‘the imperialism of language’ for centuries like other colonized people through the media, education and other instruments of colonial power, educated Indians have ‘decolonized’ English through the invention of a new hybrid formed through the mixing of English with Hindi, which was followed by mixing with other Indian languages. Although Indian English has always been used out of innocence or ignorance and has been normalized as a register of English, Hinglish, a mix of Hindi and English, was first used to great effect by a film tabloid called Stardust in the 1970s under the editorship of the popular fiction writer Shobha De(nee Rajadhyaksha) and entered the vocabulary of educated, middle class speakers. But it was only when Salman Rushdie employed a non-Standard register of English, a mix of Hindi/Urdu with English, in his novel Midnight’s Children (1980) that Hinglish acquired literary respectability. Through comparing “the stylish language of Bollywood, of FM radio and of national advertising” with the “aspirational language” of speakers of bhashas[Modern Indian languages] disdainfully described as “vernacs[vernaculars]” by elite speakers of English, this essay focuses on cultural politics of different varieties of Hinglish in India to argue that while ushering in linguistic democraticization, Hinglish has not been able to bridge social difference.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface vii
- 1. Language policies, language ideologies and local language practices 1
-
Part I. South Asia
- 2. The politics of Hinglish 21
- 3. Globalization and multilingualism 37
- 4. Kaduva of privileged power, instrument of rural empowerment? 61
- 5. The interface of language, literature and politics in Sri Lanka 81
-
Part II. Southeast Asia
- 6. Governing English in Singapore 105
- 7. Uncertain locale 125
- 8. The encroachment of English in Malaysian cultural expression 145
- 9. “They think speaking in English isn’t good, you know” 167
- 10. The grip of English and Philippine language policy 187
- 11. Nimble tongues 205
-
Part III. Asia Pacific
- 12. English vs. English conversation 227
- 13. Language policy and practice in English loanwords in Japanese 249
- 14. English speakers in Korea 269
- 15. English, class and neoliberalism in South Korea 287
- 16. Conclusion 303
- Contributors 317
- Index 321
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Preface vii
- 1. Language policies, language ideologies and local language practices 1
-
Part I. South Asia
- 2. The politics of Hinglish 21
- 3. Globalization and multilingualism 37
- 4. Kaduva of privileged power, instrument of rural empowerment? 61
- 5. The interface of language, literature and politics in Sri Lanka 81
-
Part II. Southeast Asia
- 6. Governing English in Singapore 105
- 7. Uncertain locale 125
- 8. The encroachment of English in Malaysian cultural expression 145
- 9. “They think speaking in English isn’t good, you know” 167
- 10. The grip of English and Philippine language policy 187
- 11. Nimble tongues 205
-
Part III. Asia Pacific
- 12. English vs. English conversation 227
- 13. Language policy and practice in English loanwords in Japanese 249
- 14. English speakers in Korea 269
- 15. English, class and neoliberalism in South Korea 287
- 16. Conclusion 303
- Contributors 317
- Index 321
