A Colonial Language Outline of Chapter 3 English in the World Textbook

Recap of Chapter 2 (Standardization) As we saw in Chapter 2, English became a national language. Attitudes towards its standardization and the necessity for it started as early as the 14th century (esp. when people were no longer forced to learn French in school, and there was a need to construe and learn English – and develop the English language into some standard so it is fit to be a medium of instruction pp.84-86), through the 15th century (Caxton’s efforts at printing and selling his books, resulting in the dissemination of the variety of the English language he wrote in pp. 69-70 – generated by the necessity to find a solution to the dialect diversity and a functional standard to ‘please every man, {also described as characteristic of the Middle Ages and their end by Trevisa’s translation in 1385 as caused by proximity in some areas to strange men and ‘aliens’} pp.66-7), becoming very strong during the 16th century with the fact that English was a ‘crude medium,’ not comparable to the ‘ Latin and Greek tongue, (where) everything is so excellently done in them, that none could do better, and everything (in English) in a manner so meanly, both for the matter and handling that no man can do worse’ (Puttenham quoted p.73). So English needed to be developed to rise up to the classical languages and to measure up to the Romance vernaculars such as Italian and French, which had preceded it because the Renaissance had reached these countries earlier. English was ‘base’ ,‘mean, ‘barren’ and ‘barbarous’ which led to elaboration (See p.73 and the attached reading from U210A book English History Diversity and Change on LMS). There was also the political dimension to the upsurge of pride (in English). The Reformation, when newly established Protestantism with the Catholic Church in the early fifteenth century, also provided a political and religious impetus to favoring English over ….(Latin): Some texts praise the ‘plainneess’ and ‘honesty’ of English (See the role of English and Latin in Science and discuss the need for elaboration of English to be fit for Science pp. 75-7). Through the 16th and 17th centuries, texts printed in English used the standard variety, but this incorporated variability (See Reading A , Jonathan Hope, concerning morphological and syntactic features that were changing and the conservative and innovative variants used by Shakespeare (pp. 83-9+ pp.77-8) The first monolingual English dictionary and the grammars of English appeared but were mainly used as guides for teaching. In the 18th century, mainly Dr. Samuel Johnson’s Dictionary (prescriptive and aiming to preserve language against disintegration in face of the tide of linguistic change, and Walker’s attempts to codify pronunciation of the language in the forms of educated Englishmen rather than the Scottish, Irish, Welsh…. , then … Great Britain and the Union…. The need to teach the Scots to ‘speak properly and intelligibly as if they had been born and bred in London’ (See pp.79-80) In the 19th century, expansion of the British Empire and dawn of descriptive linguistics yet abundance of cheap prescriptive handbooks and manuals for those who wanted to avoid mistakes and social embarrassment (p.80)

A Colonial Language Introduction English started to have the potential to be a ‘world language’ in the mid-eighteenth century, as it became fashionable in Europe (esp. Italy). But the universality of English was not only achieved because of its fashionable status in continental Europe. The more fundamental reasons for the spread are related to processes of geopolitical significance: the history of the British Isles, then of Europe, and ultimately of the world. England was spreading its own base well beyond its shores, and English-speaking peoples were already dispersed across territories in several continents. How did that happen? Chapter 4 will discuss the ‘global’ status of English, how it came to occupy it and what its implications on English and the world are. Chapter 3 discusses Colonization and the way it helped lay the foundations for English to become the ‘global force’ it is now!

A Colonial Language Introduction Colonization : The concept of colonization refers to processes involving the establishment, often by force of communities of English speakers in territories around the world. These communities positioned themselves in a relation of power to the indigenous or pre-existing populations of the territories in which they settled, while at the same time maintaining economic and cultural links with England. Colonization is of major interest because it helped spread the English language beyond England first within the British Isles, then to places such as the Americas, Africa and Australia. It is a continuation to the history of language contact where English rubbed up against other languages and cultures, and that had a great influence on the shape of the language as it has developed in diverse world contexts.

The colonial experience The number of speakers of English has been estimated to have risen from 5-7 million mother tongue speakers at the beginning of the reign of Elizabeth I (1603) to 250 million at the beginning of the reign of Elizabeth II (1952), of whom four-fifths lived outside the British Isles. This was largely due to colonial expansion. There was no single, universal colonial experience. Each colony provided a unique context politically, socially and linguistically. But it is possible to follow a common sequence of events in many colonies where English emerged as a main language: First, colonization, whereby the original settlement was made by English speakers Second, political incorporation, whereby the colonized territory was brought under the central control of the English/British government Third, a nationalist reaction which sometimes, but not always, led to independence

The colonial experience The motives for the establishment of colonies where English emerged as a main language are mainly: Economic: Social: Political: Since the process of colonization took place over 300 years and affected 4 continents, it is very difficult to make generalizations about its character. But there are three distinct types of English colonization that can be observed, each with its own linguistic consequences. Displacement: Subjection: Replacement: (See pp.105—112 before the discussion of individual cases of different countries within the British Isles and beyond).

Types of Colonization / Linguistic Consequences In analyzing the types or patterns of colonization, we may distinguish between countries whose populations were : Displaced : Subjugated: Replaced: In Chapter 3 we follow on patterns of rule in the colonies included: displacement by native speakers of English political incorporation or indirect rule slave trade and replacement of local labor force , Patterns of language contact resulted in the following linguistic consequences: English as a first language – and dialect leveling English as an additional or second language ( influence of the substrate) The development of pidgins and creoles

Cont. Patterns of Colonization/ Linguistic Consequences In each pattern we need to analyze: patterns of rule (displacement by native speakers, political incorporation or indirect rule, slave trade and replacement of local labor force) , patterns of language contact resulted in: English as a first language – and dialect leveling, English as a second, official or additional language; the formation of new varieties of English influence of the substrate and in cases where English was in contact with other native languages (i.e. in the case of subjection) Pidgins and creoles identity related issues in response to the colonization, especially nationalist reactions and Schneider’s model of the formation of a variety (pp.108-9) Foundation stage Exonormative stabilization Nativisation Endonormative stabilization & Differentiation as applicable to each country to be discussed – such Ireland, Scotland & Wales (The British Isles) , America, Australia & the Caribbean Islands especially Jamaica.

Cont. Patterns of Colonization/ Linguistic Consequences Understanding colonization and all its processes and patterns leads to an understanding of one of the most important historical reasons for the international spread of English. Colonization was also the reason for the distinction between Kachru’s first two categories of English speakers: * those of the Inner Circle * those of the Outer Circle