One in Singapore English
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Zhiming Bao
Abstract
This paper investigates the grammar and usage of one in Singapore English, which exhibits the influence of both Chinese and English, the two dominant languages in the multilingual ecology of Singapore English, as well as the influence of relevant linguistic universals. The grammar of one is essentially the grammar of Chinese de filtered through the morphosyntax of English one. The corpus data show that some one forms which are judged acceptable by native-speaker informants have nevertheless low frequency of use. I argue that usage plays an important role in the success of contact-induced grammatical innovation, and propose an exemplar-based model of relexification that provides a satisfactory explanation of the grammatical properties and usage patterns of one in Singapore English.
Abstract
This paper investigates the grammar and usage of one in Singapore English, which exhibits the influence of both Chinese and English, the two dominant languages in the multilingual ecology of Singapore English, as well as the influence of relevant linguistic universals. The grammar of one is essentially the grammar of Chinese de filtered through the morphosyntax of English one. The corpus data show that some one forms which are judged acceptable by native-speaker informants have nevertheless low frequency of use. I argue that usage plays an important role in the success of contact-induced grammatical innovation, and propose an exemplar-based model of relexification that provides a satisfactory explanation of the grammatical properties and usage patterns of one in Singapore English.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Language change in contact languages 1
-
Articles
- The contribution of relexification, grammaticalization, and reanalysis to creole genesis and development 19
- Grammaticalization in creoles 53
- One in Singapore English 79
- Contact-induced grammaticalization 107
- Tone inventories and tune-text alignments 137
- Subsystem interface and tone typology in Papiamentu 177
- A twice-mixed creole? 199
- Index 239
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Language change in contact languages 1
-
Articles
- The contribution of relexification, grammaticalization, and reanalysis to creole genesis and development 19
- Grammaticalization in creoles 53
- One in Singapore English 79
- Contact-induced grammaticalization 107
- Tone inventories and tune-text alignments 137
- Subsystem interface and tone typology in Papiamentu 177
- A twice-mixed creole? 199
- Index 239
