Singapore is a country with a remarkable linguistic diversity. This is due to the heterogeneous population and numerous ethnic groups which inhabit it. Over the years, the different languages in Singapore, dominated by Chinese dialects like Mandarin, Hokkien or Cantonese, had to compete with another input variety as a result of permanent British settlement in 1819, namely British English. Nowadays, it is the language of government, business, law courts, science and also education. English is taught in school as the First Language, whereas the people’s mother tongue stands behind.
Finally, a variety called "Singapore English" (SgE), which had a significant input from both, the prevalent Chinese variety Mandarin and British English, evolved and is constantly positioned between influences of these two. In contact varieties of English, like SgE is one, various features which distinguish the language emerged. Often, they are even pervasive or obligatory, although they do not occur in Standard English (StE). One of them is the zero-indefinite article where StE requires one. This seminar paper will investigate the usage of the zero-indefinite article in SgE. It is supposed to reveal how often speakers of SgE actually realize the indefinite article in a communication, either spoken or written, and if they do not make use of it, in which contexts the omission occurs.
This aspect is of particular interest for the whole topic of World Englishes, because speakers of StE often tend to consider features of a variety as a mistake. But they are not only learner-errors, there is an underlying pattern and a reason for the occurrence of such features and this term paper aspires to provide an impulse in reference to approach the structure of indefinite article omission in SgE.
Table of Contents
Introduction
1 Methodology
2 Findings
3 Discussion of the findings
Conclusion
Outlook
Research Objective and Topics
This paper investigates the usage of the zero-indefinite article in Singapore English (SgE), specifically focusing on occupational titles where Standard English (StE) would require an article. The research aims to identify the frequency of this omission and determine whether patterns in conversational context, speaker uncertainty, or influences from the Chinese language system contribute to this non-standard variation.
- Quantitative analysis of indefinite article usage in Singapore English
- Examination of article omission in occupational titles
- Qualitative assessment of conversational contexts and registers
- Influence of Mandarin-based specificity on English article systems
- Comparison of standard versus non-standard grammatical variants
Excerpt from the Book
3 Discussion of the findings
This chapter seeks to interpret the findings, which have been presented in the previous passage of this term paper, in a qualitative way. It will reveal the sentence’s contexts, so that a conclusion with regard to possible reasons for realizing either the standard or the non-standard variable can be drawn.
In this paragraph, the findings of the word-list approach are taken into account, beginning with the term teacher. Furthermore, the results from doctor, student and manager are ascribed an exemplary function, because not every single statement bares new information and can be discussed within the frame of this term paper. The first instance of non-standard article omission was uttered as followed:
(6) Yah so and when teacher ask us to share you know our our conclusion of of analysis of ourselves. (S1A-076.TXT)
Apart from the missing third person singular present tense marking, StE would require an indefinite article in front of teacher. The file from which (6) to (8) have been extracted contains private dialogues. Taking the file’s context and the repetition of the words our and of into consideration, it could be possible that the speaker feels insecure in his or her position at the moment. This assumption is confirmed when examining the conversation in more detail. The speaker is a teacher but cannot justify why he or she aspired such a profession due to a lack of social skills. This reveals that conversations under pressure or with implications of uncertainty might be a factor to deviate from the StE usage of the indefinite article.
Summary of Chapters
Introduction: This chapter introduces the linguistic diversity of Singapore and defines the research gap regarding the zero-indefinite article in Singapore English (SgE) compared to Standard English (StE).
1 Methodology: This chapter outlines the quantitative and qualitative research approach, detailing the use of the International Corpus of English to examine article usage in specific occupational titles.
2 Findings: This chapter presents the statistical data gathered from the word-list and read-through approaches, highlighting a strong preference for standard article usage despite minor instances of omission.
3 Discussion of the findings: This chapter qualitatively analyzes selected sentence contexts, attributing article omission to factors like speaker uncertainty, informal register, and the influence of specificity from the Chinese language system.
Conclusion: This chapter summarizes the research results, confirming that while article omission is infrequent, it is linked to specific spoken environments and the blending of language systems.
Outlook: This chapter discusses the limitations of the current study and suggests future research into the role of the indefinite article 'one' in Singapore English.
Keywords
Singapore English, zero-indefinite article, linguistic diversity, occupational titles, article omission, corpus linguistics, Standard English, specificity, language contact, grammatical variation, Mandarin, syntax, sociolinguistics, quantitative analysis, qualitative analysis
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary focus of this research paper?
The paper focuses on the usage of the zero-indefinite article in Singapore English (SgE), specifically exploring how and why speakers omit the indefinite article before occupational titles where it is strictly required in Standard English.
What are the central thematic areas?
The key themes include the contrast between Standard English (StE) and SgE, the impact of language contact with Mandarin, the influence of informal spoken register, and the semantic role of specificity in noun phrases.
What is the core research question?
The study investigates how often SgE speakers realize the indefinite article in communication and, in cases where they do not, what contexts or underlying factors trigger the omission.
Which scientific methodology is employed?
The author uses a mixed-methods approach: a quantitative word-list analysis of corpus data to measure frequency, followed by a qualitative examination of specific sentence contexts to interpret the reasons for article omission.
What topics are covered in the main body?
The main body covers the extraction of corpus data from the International Corpus of English, the statistical presentation of "standard" versus "non-standard" variant hits, and a detailed qualitative discussion of specific speaker utterances.
Which keywords define this work?
The work is characterized by terms such as Singapore English, zero-indefinite article, corpus linguistics, article omission, language contact, and specificity.
How does the author explain the occurrence of article omission in teacher-related examples?
The author suggests that in some cases, the speaker's personal insecurity or pressure during a conversation leads to a deviation from standard grammatical rules, causing the omission of the article.
What role does the concept of "specificity" play in the author's findings?
The author argues that since Mandarin lacks an article system and uses other methods to express specificity, SgE speakers might struggle with standard English article requirements when an item is not unique or specific in a given context.
Is the omission of the indefinite article a common feature among Singapore English speakers?
No, the research shows that article omission is actually quite rare, with 97% of the investigated utterances adhering to Standard English norms, suggesting it is a minor feature rather than a dominant one.
- Arbeit zitieren
- Anonym (Autor:in), 2018, The Use of the Zero-Indefinite Article in Singapore English, München, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/494110
