The New Cambridge History of the English Language: Volume 6, Part 1

A full overview of varieties of English in Africa, Asia, Australasia and the Pacific, highlighting their histories and development.

This volume, split into two parts, looks at varieties of English in Africa, Asia, Australasia and the Pacific. Introductory chapters deal with the colonial transportation of English overseas and the generic types of English which resulted: first-language, second-language and foreign-language varieties, normally known as World Englishes.This volume offers in-depth coverage of varieties of English across the world, outside of the British and North American arenas. It is split into two parts, with Part one dedicated to varieties of English across Africa, and Part two looking at varieties in Asia, and Australia and the Pacific. There are introductory chapters dealing with the colonial transportation of English overseas, and the generic types of English which resulted, often labelled World Englishes, and examinations of English-lexifier pidgins and creoles. The remaining sections look at different geographic regions. Anglophone Africa divides into three blocks: west, east and south, each with different linguistic ecologies determined by history and demography. Asia, especially South Asia and South-East Asia, is similar in the kinds of English it now shows, with the significance of East Asia for varieties of English increasing in recent years. Varieties of English in Australia and the Pacific are also examined.