MS Explains: Singlish & how the Singaporean accent is so unique

Singapore is a multilingual and multiracial country, with residents hailing from all walks of life.

It’s then no wonder the nation has developed its distinct brand of English, which has been recognised by many worldwide.

Interestingly, one Nigerian TikTok content creator went viral last year for insisting that the Nigerian and Singaporean accents are “literally the same”.

Safe to say, Singaporeans can almost always spot their countrymen overseas just by the way they speak — but what is it that makes our accent sound so unique?

And could we have possibly adopted the accent from our neighbours across the Indian Ocean?

How Singapore English came to be

Dr Nick Huang, an assistant professor at the Department of English, Linguistics, and Theatre Studies at National University of Singapore (NUS) spoke to MS News on the topic.

Unlike the standard English language, Singapore English — as referred to by linguists — has its own unique grammatical structure and pronunciation.

It is said to be influenced by the Malay language, and Chinese and Indian dialects such as Hokkien and Tamil.

“The general idea is that properties of these Asian languages got ‘transferred over’ to Singapore English,” said Dr Huang.

The origin of Singapore English dates back to the country’s colonial history when English was a “minority language”.

At the time, most of Singapore’s residents were not native English speakers.

They had to learn and speak the English language when it became important in their work and daily lives.

Over the years, more Singaporeans have adopted English as their primary language.

Today, nearly 50 per cent of Singaporeans use English to communicate at home.

Meanwhile, many young Singaporeans are still learning to speak a secondary language, be it Mandarin, Malay, or Tamil.

The Singapore accent had also likely developed over time as a shared way of speaking. Assistant Professor ...