I talked to a couple of Zambians today,* and during my conversation I instinctively reverted to what is best called "Special English." Clipped, annunciated, and spoken more slowly than my regular pace of conversation, African-accented Special English is how I talked to educated anglophone Cameroonians or students for two years. Apparently the practice became ingrained, and I hope they didn't think I thought they were retarded.
*Taym-wey I bi di tok fo people-dem fo Cameroon fo one week pas, I no bi tok fo pidgin fosikase plenty people-dem wey don learn book tink se you no get fayn fashion ifi you tok fo pidgin.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
1 comment:
I've got a similar "simple English" that I picked up living in Japan. To be honest though, I think it is an actual skill. Some people (my mom, for example) just can't seem to speak very understandable English with non-native speakers (my wife, for example).
Post a Comment