List of dialects of English

Dialects are linguistic varieties that may differ in pronunciation, vocabulary, spelling and grammar. For the classification of varieties of English only in terms of pronunciation, see regional accents of English.

Dialects can be defined as "sub-forms of languages which are, in general, mutually comprehensible."[1] English speakers from different countries and regions use a variety of different accents (systems of pronunciation) as well as various localised words and grammatical constructions; many different dialects can be identified based on these factors. Dialects can be classified at broader or narrower levels: within a broad national or regional dialect, various more localised sub-dialects can be identified, and so on. The combination of differences in pronunciation and use of local words may make some English dialects almost unintelligible to speakers from other regions without any prior exposure.

The major native dialects of English are often divided by linguists into three general categories: the British Isles dialects, those of North America, and those of Australasia.[2] Dialects can be associated not only with place but also with particular social groups. Within a given English-speaking country, there is a form of the language considered to be Standard English: the Standard Englishes of different countries differ and can themselves be considered dialects. Standard English is often associated with the more educated layers of society as well as more formal registers.

British and American English are the reference norms for English as spoken, written, and taught in the rest of the world, excluding countries in which English is spoken natively such as Australia, Canada, Ireland, and New Zealand. In many former British Empire countries in which English is not spoken natively, British English forms are closely followed, alongside numerous American English usages that have become widespread throughout the English-speaking world. Conversely, in many countries historically influenced by the United States in which English is not spoken natively, American English forms are closely followed. Many of these countries, while retaining strong British English or American English influences, have developed their own unique dialects, which include Indian English and Philippine English.

Chief among other native English dialects are Canadian English and Australian English, which rank third and fourth in the number of native speakers. For the most part, Canadian English, while featuring numerous British forms, alongside indigenous Canadianisms, shares vocabulary, phonology and syntax with American English, which leads many to recognise North American English as an organic grouping of dialects.[3] Australian English, likewise, shares many American and British English usages, alongside plentiful features unique to Australia and retains a significantly higher degree of distinctiveness from both larger varieties than does Canadian English. South African English, New Zealand English and Irish English are also distinctive and rank fifth, sixth, and seventh in the number of native speakers.

List
Further information: List of countries by English-speaking population

Europe

World Global English

These dialects are used in everyday conversation almost all over the world, and are used as lingua francas and to determine grammar rules and guidelines.

England

English language in England:

Scotland

Wales

Isle of Man

Channel Islands

Gibraltar

Ireland
Extinct

North America

North American English

United States

American English:

Canada

Canadian English:

Bermuda

Caribbean, Central, and South America

Anguilla

Antigua
  • Antiguan English

The Bahamas

Barbados
  • Bajan English

Belize

Bermuda

Cayman Islands

Colombia
  • San Andrés–Providencia English

Falkland Islands

Guyana
  • Guyanese English

Honduras

Jamaica

Panama

Saint Kitts and Nevis

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
  • Vincentian English

Trinidad and Tobago
  • Trinidadian English

Asia

Bangladesh

Brunei

Burma
  • Burmese English

Hong Kong

India

Indian English:

Malaysia

Nepal
  • Nepali English

Pakistan

Philippines

Singapore

Sri Lanka

Africa

Cameroon

The Gambia

Ghana

Kenya

Liberia

Malawi

Namibia

Nigeria

South Africa

South Atlantic

South Sudan
  • South Sudanese English

Sudan
  • Sudanese English

Uganda

Oceania

Australia

Australian English (AusE, AusEng):

Fiji

Fiji English (FijEng, en-FJ)

New Zealand

New Zealand English (NZE, en-NZ)

Other

Antarctica

Tristan da Cunha
  • Tristan da Cunha English

Creoles
Main articles: List of English-based pidgins and English-based creole languages
Further information: Non-native pronunciations of English

Pidgins and creoles exist which are based on, or incorporate, English, including Chinook Jargon (a mostly extinct trade language), American Indian Pidgin English, and Manglish (Malaysian English-Malay-Chinese-Tamil).

A pan-Asian English variation called Globalese has been described.[11]

Constructed
See also: International English

Several constructed languages exist based on English, which have never been adopted as a vernacular. Language scholars have stated that constructed languages are "no longer of practical use" with English as a de facto global language.[12]

Manual encodings

These encoding systems should not be confused with sign languages such as British Sign Language and American Sign Language, which, while they are informed by English, have their own grammar and vocabulary.

Code-switching

The following are portmanteaus devised to describe certain local varieties of English and other linguistic phenomena involving English. Although similarly named, they are actually quite different in nature, with some being genuine mixed languages, some being instances of heavy code-switching between English and another language, some being genuine local dialects of English used by first-language English speakers, and some being non-native pronunciations of English. A few portmanteaus (such as Greeklish and Fingilish) are transliteration methods rather than any kind of spoken variant of English.

See also

References
  1. Wakelin, Martyn Francis (2008). Discovering English Dialects. Oxford: Shire Publications. p. 4. ISBN 978-0-7478-0176-4.
  2. Crystal, David. The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the English Language, Cambridge University Press, 2003
  3. Trudgill and Hannah, 2002
  4. JC Wells, Accents of English, Cambridge University Press, 1983, page 351
  5. A.J. Aitken in The Oxford Companion to the English Language, Oxford University Press 1992. p.894
  6. Hickey, Raymond (2005). Dublin English: Evolution and Change. John Benjamins Publishing. pp. 196–198. ISBN 90-272-4895-8.
  7. Hickey, Raymond (2002). A Source Book for Irish English (PDF). Amsterdam: John Benjamins Publishing. pp. 28–29. ISBN 90-272-3753-0. ISBN 1-58811-209-8 (US)
  8. "Chicago Daily Tribune". 1903-06-02. Archived from the original on 2017-03-12. Retrieved 2020-01-22.CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (link)
  9. Daniel Schreier, Peter Trudgill. The Lesser-Known Varieties of English: An Introduction. Cambridge University Press, Mar 4, 2010 pg. 10
  10. Bard, Susanne. "Linguists Hear an Accent Begin". Scientific American. Retrieved 2020-04-28.
  11. Nunan 2012, p. 186.
  12. Fischer 2004, p. 181 "[T]he goal [of constructed languages] is no longer of practical use... Living languages are of far greater influence in the world ... world languages are emerging naturally for the first time in history. Indeed, the English language -- by historical circumstance, not by design -- presently counts more second-language speakers than any other tongue on Earth and numbers are growing."

Further reading
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