1. Colonial Background and Linguistic Descriptions
World Englishes
Colonial Background and
Linguistic Descriptions

2. Strands of British Expansion
Self-determined Colonization: North America
Forced Colonization: West Indies, Australia
Missionary Colonization: New Zealand
Trade Colonization: South Asia: British East India Company (India); Africa: British South Africa Company (South Africa; Zambia; Zimbabwe
Competitive Colonization: Worldwide

3. Resulting National Varieties of English
“National variety” means “local and regional varieties in a country” (p. 433).
The develop because of
Separation from “linguistic homeland” in space and time resulting in “linguistic conservatism”;
Founder effects: features brought at the time of settlement;
Language contact with immigrants from other language groups;
Language contact with indigenous languages;
New landforms require new vocabulary.

4. North American Colonization
Begins with Roanoke (1584), the “lost colony”
1607: Jamestown
Purposes: Exploitation of natural resources (timber, tobacco); markets; pressure valve for religious discord
Southern colonists (to Bermuda) from “West Country”
Northern from Eastern England
Ulster Scots and Irish begin immigration in 1700s
Canada welcomes Scots to “Nova Scotia”

5. Linguistic Conservatism in North American English
NAE is rhotic, preserves [r] after a vowel, as in words like “card” and “car.”
Listen to this man from Tangier Island (settled in 1684): listen at 6:06.
British English (Received pronunciation) lost [r] in these environments in the 18th century.

6. The Strange Case of [r] in New York City
New York City, Boston, and many areas of the Southern US are non-rhotic, but this is actually an innovative feature, developed in imitation of British English.
Listen to William Labov on [r] in New York:

7. Listening Exercise
Listen to this conversation (or some portion of it) about dialect and accent from British Voices:
Do you hear any of the variations characteristic of British English (BE) from pp Make sure you listen to all three speakers.

8. Australia James Cook visits 1700 1788: Sydney penal colony established
“First Fleet” brings 130,000 prisoners from London and Ireland
London “Cockney” gains a toe-hold
Irish include political prisoners as well after 1798 rebellion
Includes Aboriginal vocabulary

9. New Zealand Cook mapped islands by 1770
Whalers and traders settle by 1790
Missionaries come in 1814
Official colony begins 1840 by treaty with Maori
European immigration increases dramatically until 1900
Southeast Asian, Pacific, Hong Kong immigration

10. Dialect Comparisons
Use the George Mason University Accent Archive to compare the dialects of four speakers from different countries: the United States, Australia, New Zealand, and Jamaica. What are some of the phonological contrasts that you see?

11. South Africa Originally colonized by Dutch in 1652
British invade in 1795; control, 1806; colony established, 1820; English official, 1822
Gold/diamond rush, 1870s
Black varieties of English develop in opposition to Afrikaans
Indian immigration, 1860s
Language of ANC, Nelson Mandela
1993, English one of 11 official languages

12. South Asia
British East India Company establishes trading station in 1612
Competes with France for possession; Madras French colony
1765 takes over Bengal
1784 “Board of Control” takes over
Universities in Bombay, Calcutta, and Madras, 1857
1858, Company abolished, control to the Crown
British Raj lasts until 1947

13. West Indies Destination for slave trafficking
Pidgin African dialects give way to Creoles based on French, Spanish, Portuguese, English
Plantation-running colonists import prestige varieties of English
West Indian colonists become important figures in America (e.g. Alexander Hamilton)

14. Listening Exercise
Read along with John Agard as he reads “Listen Mr. Oxford Don” (p. 457):
Watch/listen to this project from York University in Canada about Jamaican Creole: