Does Singlish Contribute to Singaporean’s National Identity, and do Singaporeans Support Formal Recognition of it?

Abstract

‘Singlish’ is a colloquial form of English that was influenced by other languages used in Singapore, such as Chinese Mandarin, Malay and Tamil. The creole is widely used by Singaporeans in informal contexts, but is discouraged by the government, as it is considered ‘broken English’, and may erode Singapore’s linguistic capital. Singlish has evolved to become a source of national identity, though it remains associated with low prestige and a language spoken by the less educated. This study investigates the use of Singlish by 82 Singaporean adults in Singapore, and their general perception towards the creolized language. All participants completed a 26-item questionnaire which assessed their usage of Singlish in different situations, their general perception, and their opinions on whether Singlish should be propagated or not. The results indicated that the usage of Singlish is most prevalent in informal situations, when the social distance is narrower, and when the conversational partners are of a different race. In terms of their perception, most respondents are generally proud of the creolized language, and thought that it contributes to the national identity of Singaporeans. With regard to the issue of whether to promote or ban Singlish, most of them took a neutral stance.