With an attempt to bring English to common man in the spree to do better than the peer states, Indian state governments feel so proud of the usage of English alphabetic script to spell the name of the cities on the signage’s, to ensure a smooth ride to foreign travelers and those who do not follow the local language and for tutorial purposes.
How convenient it is: you don’t have to carry literatures or even buy them to learn different languages.
It seems to be a latent approach by the various governments, seems as if they want to check if we are worldly wise. Good, it’s a nice way to learn different languages.
Many governments have not only realized the importance of English for the economic development of their respective states but actually had gone a step ahead (far beyond we could ever expect). Thanks for such a great effort.
This is actually a PDI, Public Display of Ignorance, a perfect source of amusement when you are traveling long distances across India from Ahmedabad to Kolkota, Kashmir to Kanya Kumari and you happen to know both the regional language and English quite well.
The way we write our direction boards, only French, Latin, etc., in their individual identities would get to know what exactly they wanted to write.
We not only just read them; we somehow unconsciously memorize the visual images of all those words (sound files) in English alphabetic script.
And we memorize the pattern as such, which at a later stage in our life acts as a paradigm to support our understanding of physical arrangement of English letters, to spell words which are not yet a part of English language to support our fallible spelling prowess.
To quote an example:
Did any body tell well cultivated in English ‘Sharma’ family to spell ‘Sharma’ like the way they do?
Ignorance.
They are seeing it for long and other words (minimal pairs) they know which have been spelled in English alphabetic script also support it. Like the way we’ve ‘karma’, a super hit Bollywood movie, and many more.
This is not their fault (no offence to Sharma’s, it was just an example), every body seems to be in the same rut.
Do we mean French, Spanish, or German when we write new words using English alphabetic script?
Most of the times, yes. But we do not want to.
We can divide the languages that are plausible threat to English language broadly in two categories:
1. Languages which followed script similar to English alphabetic script (language developed in same lines, with similarity in the alphabetic writing. *****Differences:
a. Different selection.
b. Different application of letters.
c. Different sound preferences.
d. Different word development (vocabulary).
All these language developed differently in their own identities.
2. Languages, which did not use, but have started using English alphabet script with time.
Different script altogether from that of English. With globalization and increase in the popularity of English, regions speaking languages other than those developed with English alphabetic script switched to English alphabetic script and started using English letters to spell words from those separate languages.
As people started to spell words (sounds), difference in application was observed. These languages (scripts) are not much different from languages which used Germanic script, but developed differently. A sub language was formed with different understanding of the physical arrangement of letters to form words.
Now the question is of word bank development (vocabulary).
People started using English for communication with a little tinge of their native language, using their set of favorite words from those languages (separately) every now and then they spoke in English. This was actually good for English language as the word bank was increasing (& for so many latent benefits, let say mysticism). But as the difference in structural arrangement was apparent, the danger to both languages was inevitable.
The best example here would be the word ‘bakra’.
‘Bakra’ is a male goat. The way they spelled it would not be appreciated.
People would use this word in their daily speech as: “I am not a bakra” or “don’t play bakra on me” to mean, “I am not a goat” and “don’t play prank on me”.
This word was fanned out by MTV India, as is a very popular reality show in which people play pranks on innocent ilk. The idea is such a sub-language is a conspicuous threat to English language and to the beauty of such like magnificent words. The sound is not what the spelling suggests.
If the word get popular among English speaking community, there is every possibility that this word will get entry in the English language banks in the near future, like the way so many such like words have already been added. These habits proliferate rapidly with the help of television and print media , and one day it explodes spontaneously to the bewilderment of a lot many people worldwide, and allow them to give English a bad name.
Say if today, this word is added without structural compatibility check, like the way it has been peppered out: b-a-k-r-a, those who do not follow the way a particular region spell words (don’t actually have to, for that reason) would probably read it as “bækr* ” or “bækra:”
Damage: There is every possibility that at a later stage an alternate pronunciation would arise when people somehow get to know the real sound, and also an alternate spelling. Some would say “baker ” or “baker:” and some would say “b*or” or “b*kraal:”, some would spell it as “bark” and some spell it as “buckra”.
The idea is, people want to use words from their respective languages, but unconsciously damage words they loved so much, to add to their speech.
How can we actually put a check on these apparent threats to the language?
By educating every body of the structural vagaries of English language.
It is equally true that there are few sounds, which are very specific to a particular region. There would be sounds very close to an English letter sound but not quite that sound.
A little change in sound is still acceptable as compared to the possible conspicuous change in the sound at a later stage or a possible structural confusion to boggle our minds, and very obvious chance to allow people to give English a bad name.
This wrong use of English alphabetic script to spell words is not just a small folly, has far fetching effects. Such popular word acts as a paradigm to spell new words. ********
Why d spelling had been impervious to change?
How could we change the sound so easily?
Do we worship a lesser God?
The word “haier”.
“air” combination would mean “air” sound ( phonetic representation) as ‘‘i’’ in hive, jive, etc., to Germans but not to the rest of the world.************
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