Abstract
Introduction: English, like many other languages, evolves by incorporating words and expressions from diverse languages and cultures. This naturalization process, however, often results in significant changes in meaning, pronunciation, and other aspects of the borrowed terms. These alterations can sometimes lead to confusion and feelings of alienation among native speakers of the original languages. This study examines the pronunciation of Indian English words and expressions, noting discrepancies between their standard pronunciations in major English dictionaries and their native pronunciations.
Methodology: We analyzed a selection of Indian and Japanese English words and expressions using standard pronunciations from The Oxford Online Dictionary and the Cambridge Online Dictionary. We compared these standard pronunciations with those of native speakers of the original Indian and Japanese languages to identify discrepancies.
Results: Our findings indicate that the standard American and British pronunciations of Indian English words differ significantly from the native pronunciations. This pattern was also observed in Japanese English terms. The discrepancies suggest that these pronunciations may have been standardized without adequate consultation with native speakers of the original languages.
Conclusion: The study highlights the need to consider the standard pronunciations of source languages when incorporating borrowed words into English. It proposes that while standardizing pronunciations, the phonetic range of the borrowing language should be used to achieve the best approximation of the original pronunciation. This approach can help preserve the authenticity of borrowed terms and enhance cross-cultural understanding.
Author Information
Aneesah Nishaat, Higashi Nippon International University, Japan
Syed Wasim Parvez, Independent Scholar, India
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