Note: This is just my observations of English in China, I didn't do any research into the subject nor did I run a scientific test on English in China. A few days ago I ordered a dish at the ECNU canteen called "Beef and Mushroom Rice" and this is what I got. As I read over the Chinese on my receipt I discovered that this dish should have been more properly called "Beef and Mushroom Soup." I am not sure why the translator made the decision to call this "Beef and Mushroom Rice" but it did get me thinking about Sino-English and English in China. There is a surprisingly high level of English proficiency in China. Even if people can't read, write, or speak in English they have a command of the English alphabet since English letters are use for labels. For instance a Shanghai licence plate might be something like "沪AB12345." Furthermore, many young Chinese are taught the characters using Pinyin, which is a system to romanticize Chinese which uses Latin letters. I have noticed that most people's readings stills are above their speaking skills since China's national college entrance exam, the Gaikai, only tests English reading and writing. Chinese high schools will usually focus on only English reading and writing before the test. For the Chinese who can speak English, I have noticed three accents which I will call Sino-British, Sino-American, and Chinese-English (I am not sure if there is an official name for any of these so I just made one up). Most people who speak with a Sino-British or Sino-American accent have studied in ether the UK or the US (sometimes Canada or Ireland but mostly the UK and US) and have kind of picked up the accent of the place where they studied. I have noticed that most of the people who speak with a foreign twinge to their accent are younger and wealthier, since they could afford to and were permitted to study English abroad. In a kind of random note, some Chinese have full received pronunciation British accents like they just stepped out of a P.G Wodehouse novel or a BBC Masterpiece Theater production. When my class asked a visiting professor with who spoke with this accent where he picked it up he said he taught it to himself because he didn't like his Chinese accent and now kind of regrets it. Finally, those who don't study abroad speak with a standard Chinese-English accent. Speaking with a Chinese-English accent doesn't indicate English proficiency though, while people who speak with Sino-British or Sino-American accents have very good English, people who speak with Chinese-English accents English proficiency varies form "I know how to say Hello, how are you" to "I can discuss complicated teaching methods with you in English." On a final note, I noticed that people in a Starbucks anywhere in the country have a descent grasp on English. I don't think this is because Starbucks coffee improves your English skills. I believe that the type of people who can buy 30RMB coffee are also the type of people are more likely to speak English. Starbucks, trying to look cool, hires English speaking Chinese to cater to the English speaking Chinese. Even in Changsha I found several English speakers in the local Starbuckses (Starbucki?)
3 Comments
sharon
4/8/2017 09:55:47 pm
Why Ireland? What is the Chinese link to Ireland?
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Jared Paul Miller
4/9/2017 09:14:12 pm
Ireland is kind of like Canada or New Zealand, another English speaking country to Stuy English in. Some Chinese do study there but most seem to study abroad in the US or the UK.
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Dad
4/9/2017 01:25:34 am
I also assume that anyone who enjoys coffee or tea in a paper cup rather than traditionally served tea in a pot has learned these habits from either spending time in the US or being very interested in American culture. Thus, speaks decent English
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AuthorI am a junior at Juniata College spending a year studying abroad at East China Normal University. Please feel free to join my on my journey to China and beyond. Archives
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