A Troubling Mix of English and Vietnamese
Talk Around Town
(23-10-2005)
A troubling mix of English and Vietnamese
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by Vu Thu Ha
I accidentally heard the following conversation between two young girls in a coffee shop one day: "Sorry, toi qua tao busy qua, khong help may duoc" (Sorry, I was too busy to help you last night?)
"The bay gio thi the nao?" (How about now?)
"Ui gioi, easy work!" (Well, no problem)
At the time I thought that an English-speaking foreigner would be surprised to hear the two girls communicating with each other using "pidgin English". However, since then I have discovered that such kind of talking is becoming more and more common among a section of young people.
It’s now very easy to catch some common English words such as "busy", "sorry", "thanks", and "money" in everday talk. To many people, it seems that these English words are being used even more often than the equivalent Vietnamese words. People seem to forget their mother tongue and prefer using English words instead.
This phenomenon is extremely popular among young intellectuals and students who have to use English frequently in their jobs and studying. It’s now normal when saying: "Anh co the arrange cho em mot appointment voi director cua anh duoc khong?" (Could you arrange an appointment with your director for me, please?) instead of using a pure Vietnamese sentence.
There are many arguments people use to justify themselves. "I have to work eight hours a day in an English speaking environment. It’s very easy to mix Vietnamese with English. It’s normal. It’s not bad," said Thu, an employee working in a foreign NGO office.
Lan, a young student of the Ha Noi Foreign Language University gives another reason: "You know, the best way to learn a foreign language is to practise. Using English words daily is one way of practising.
"It helps me to remember and be more familiar with the English vocabulary. Sometimes, I don’t mean to use it but
(23-10-2005)
A troubling mix of English and Vietnamese
|[pic] |
| |
by Vu Thu Ha
I accidentally heard the following conversation between two young girls in a coffee shop one day: "Sorry, toi qua tao busy qua, khong help may duoc" (Sorry, I was too busy to help you last night?)
"The bay gio thi the nao?" (How about now?)
"Ui gioi, easy work!" (Well, no problem)
At the time I thought that an English-speaking foreigner would be surprised to hear the two girls communicating with each other using "pidgin English". However, since then I have discovered that such kind of talking is becoming more and more common among a section of young people.
It’s now very easy to catch some common English words such as "busy", "sorry", "thanks", and "money" in everday talk. To many people, it seems that these English words are being used even more often than the equivalent Vietnamese words. People seem to forget their mother tongue and prefer using English words instead.
This phenomenon is extremely popular among young intellectuals and students who have to use English frequently in their jobs and studying. It’s now normal when saying: "Anh co the arrange cho em mot appointment voi director cua anh duoc khong?" (Could you arrange an appointment with your director for me, please?) instead of using a pure Vietnamese sentence.
There are many arguments people use to justify themselves. "I have to work eight hours a day in an English speaking environment. It’s very easy to mix Vietnamese with English. It’s normal. It’s not bad," said Thu, an employee working in a foreign NGO office.
Lan, a young student of the Ha Noi Foreign Language University gives another reason: "You know, the best way to learn a foreign language is to practise. Using English words daily is one way of practising.
"It helps me to remember and be more familiar with the English vocabulary. Sometimes, I don’t mean to use it but