Do you think it's right to use Singlish on an international forum such as jc.net ?

[ene]

This poll is inspired by the hot debate going on in the 'Singapore' thread. Read here (http://www.jay-chou.net/forums/showthread.php?t=5982)

So what is Singlish ?

Singaporeans also speak a peculiar brand of English called "Singlish". This local concoction mixes English with common phrases in the Chinese dialects (mostly Hokkien) and some Malay. The use of Singlish continues to be a popular topic of public debate. Purists and Anglophiles bemoan the loss of Queen's English as they know it. Proponents of local culture say Singlish is one of the elements that gives Singaporeans their distinctive identity.

Do you think it's right to use Singlish on an international forum such as jc.net ?

[charmian]

ANOTHER ONE!! haha..i'm going totally bonkers..as i'm born and raise in singapore. BUT..though i hate to say this..NO, its shouldnt be use EXCESSIVELY. get wad i mean? not overboard and its okie.

ene - thanks for the reminder

GOD..i know wad ppl are going to do next. we'll be all fighting in all three threads..haha..FUN! but my hands are dying..haha..its hanging half way down. :cry:

[dazzlette]

Oh man ene... I think I can predict the results of such a poll.. It's not hard to guess what kind of people will choose which option... :rolleyes:

[mein]

hahha...what's singlish???..can someone pls give some examples?..so, it is commonly use amongst singaporean?

[ene]

dazz My point is to show it in figures and numbers :)

charmian I edited the question so you might like to edit your reply. Doesn't quite make sense now hunny.

mein Here's a list of singlish words (http://members.tripod.com/sotongs/singlish.html). Have a read. Here's another site (http://www.geocities.com/SiliconValley/Heights/4766/shumor.html#The Singapore Slangz) as well.

[HaNaBi]

Though it's quite predictable, but i'll still stand by my Home language.

Some examples of Singlish:

"Want to watch a movie mah?"
"Can you hurry up or not?"
"HUH! what the hell lah. Please lor. Stop talking in circles lor."\
"Wa lao. You idiot lah."

[msv]

ene... *sigh* are you just moving the debate over here? My head and hands hurt already. I bet you anything, a debate is going to ensue sooner or later even though I know your intentions were to see numbers :whistle:

[pamujung]

Oh ! I'm not Singaporean but if ask me, do mind use Singlish on international forum like this, I don't mind. I think I can assume what people try to say, just a bit of it is okay for me.

[Sha]

I don't think there's anything really wrong with using Singlish. I'm not Singaporean myself but I use it alot. I think it's alot of fun personally...makes conversation more interesting. But not up to the point where it can't be understood...the really, really heavy Singlish.

But I think it's kinda silly to not allow it so yes, I think it's ok.

[charmian]

HA!!! finally some other country cool babe stand with the fact that singlish is indeed nice..Well..you rock babe!! haha..singlish rocks my singapore's home!! i love it to bits!! cuz its my own unique heritage!

msv, you're well, a bit mean here huh? i guess all she wants to do is to give me another place to type my thought and kick someone's else ass about singlish!! haha!!! NEH, i'm kidding. but i sincerely dun think she just wans to see numbers..she's influence by singapore's debate! =)

hahha...what's singlish???..can someone pls give some examples?..so, it is commonly use amongst singaporean?

er..and to think you live just across the border..god!!!!

[jay_fantasy8]

Singlish is cool? :glug: I'm a pure Singaporean though but I do think that singlish is not really cool. Infact I thought it's abit immature. :dry: ( Although I do use it when talking to my friends sometimes.. :bleh: )

As for using singlish in international forum, I think it's a no for me. However I can still accept mild singlish though..

[msv]

Originally Posted by mein
hahha...what's singlish???..can someone pls give some examples?..so, it is commonly use amongst singaporean?

er..and to think you live just across the border..god!!!!

get it how I was telling you earlier that not a lot of people know that singlish exist, even if they are your neighbors? Thus some would be influence by stereotypes about singaporean you know? :?

And I know I'm mean. :wink2:

[charmian]

:wacko: WELLS, i shall contain myself from furture start a debate..my fingers need a break..wan a kitkat? haha..BTW, its fun though..sharing views, typing and just typing about your own personal view without having the worry that ppl would throw eggs at you..Heheh!! and msv? i know you're wicked from the first time you replied to my post..hehe!!! :bleh:

[danielle86]

well... i think a bit.. won't affect the meaning of what we trying to say..
its uniquely singapore.. haha well ermm.. a little will add the expression in it..

[Squall]

and there are 4 votes for using Singlish..
i voted for No singlish of course..
because although there are many Singaporean Members in this forum..
there are others which are not from Singapore..
so refrain from using singlish in forum except for the Singapore section..
Singlish reflected badly on us Singaporean too :wink2:

[Elisya]

I voted for the 2nd option that is No Singlish...

This is an international forum and we must put ourselves in other people shoes. If we use Singlish just because its a very common usage in Singapore, and most of us, Singaporeans understand, but not the other non-Singaporeans. So they would be lost in the first place. And I think its a kind of respect not to use Singlish in a forum. My opinion, period.

[lattae]

Do we really need 3 threads to debate on the singlish issue :wacko:

[masterCP]

er, are you guys hoping for change? :? hasn't karen posted a new strict rule for using english only in jcnet? so, that's bye bye to singlish la! :D

[diazz]

Hah..A topic that is often debated among ourselves.. I guess it is really ok to use it if much it are like extra words to enhance the meanings like "meh,mah,hor,orh"..
For words that imply other meanings, they would be a different case. Adrian Pang had done a talkshow for one of the previous assignments for my seniors and he said that there are some words that the meaning had changed over the past years. Like "havoc". We use it like "Wah, that girl is havoc man.." n in dictionary, the word actually means "wild n unruly" but we dont go into the zoo these days n go like "Look at that orang utan! It is so... havoc!" The meaning would be all wrong in our context yah? and we would probably make a joke out of it.
I guess Singlish is really a good thing in local context, as it is a mixture of all our different cultures and ethnics.. Our people are really bonded together with the language. It is part of us. I see it as a positive "uniquely Singapore" point.
But there is a need for us to speak and use good english as well. An "ang moh" who listen to us for the first time, wouldnt be able to understand our slangs cause they are not exposed to our culture at all before. They will be likely to take offense if they dont take it in our meanings. It would be very bad for professional image. I guess we could start using good english yes, in an international forum like jay-chou.net, one, for our foreign fellow posters to understand us, two, i bet Jay cant read even English very well, let alone Singlish..

[SimpleBlackHumor89]

i do not like singlish.. i mean i can barely understand what they're saying. plus this is an international forum site where english is tha standard. i kno i use some american slang... sometimes.. but it's readable, and there's not much difference in it.

we hav somethin like singlish in america... it's disgustin with CAPITAL LETTERS

dEw yO0 wAnt tEw gO tEW dA mALl? do u want to go to tha mall

and then there's tha number one... H1 TYP1N LYK3 D1S oR D4T...
then there's a recent one from right thurr song... now everyone goes im right HURR or are you THURR.. so annoyn

haha i might've gone a lil off topic... sorry

[pamujung]

dEw yO0 wAnt tEw gO tEW dA mALl? do u want to go to tha mall
and then there's tha number one... H1 TYP1N LYK3 D1S oR D4T...
then there's a recent one from right thurr song... now everyone goes im right HURR or are you THURR.. so annoyn

:laughing: it's really difficult to read your sentense above and really funny with the right thurr song.

Okay to clarify my vote, I think it's okay for a bit singlish here because some of singaporean like charmian so proud of her country language, we can't deny that. But in the way that we are in the international forum, we should use the correct english as the non-singaporean can understand. I have said that I can assume what they trying to say but that doesn't mean that I know what it exactly means.
I'm Thai, we do have own language and I'm also proud of it. But that doesn't mean I have to use it in the international forum, with those who will never understand my language.

[laruku]

Do we really need 3 threads to debate on the singlish issue :wacko:

i agree.. geez... i guess i will close the singlish topic in the debate side and let it continue here...

will think of a new topic in a few hours..

anyway.. i guess most people in jcn know my stand for singlish.. so i shan't repeat myself

[Pugwash]

I voted no. In an international language, you should use proper English.

MacDawn knows how much I hate Singlish -- the whole loh lah leh liao and I also hate it when my friends use Chinglish i.e. ar ah etc. It just bugs the hell out of me!!! It's an international forum English forum. So, last I looked, these words aren't in the damn dictionary!!

[msv]

and msv? i know you're wicked from the first time you replied to my post..hehe!!! :bleh:

Yeah, I know I'm wicked and mean and just a old grouch talking smack about people but at least I'm not petty you know? :rolleyes:

[laruku]

er, are you guys hoping for change? :? hasn't karen posted a new strict rule for using english only in jcnet? so, that's bye bye to singlish la! :D

we are not trying for any change. it started with macdawn starting a thread to explain why singlish is not allowed in jcn. then it turned into a debate there. at first it started out well. later i decided that we could start a debating thread so we could talk about different issues so i starrted another. ene started this poll to find out how many people think that singlish is acceptable/not acceptable/fairly acceptable in jcn and online.

hope that cleared things out for you! :happy:

[macdawn]

Oh yeah, ene, have you opened a can of worms what you started this topic :rolleyes:

Though it's quite predictable, but i'll still stand by my Home language.

HaNaBi, no one here is asking you to forake your 'Home Language', but we are requesting that you keep your 'Home Language' to your home. Here is the INTERNATIONAL forum, not your home. If you want to use your 'Home Language' in your personal PM to other people, msn, yahoo, icq, emails, your blog, fine use it there.

We have repeated this time and again, this is NOT SIngapore, and so we have to give the people from other countries the respect they deserve, that includes, writing in a universal language.

It is like here in Singapore, we are of difference race and religion, and we have different mother tongue, may it be chinese, malay, tamil, thai, japanese, whatever. But what the education system has done is to set a common language, so that we can laern and communicate on a common platform here. This is the same for the forum.

Holding on to the 'Home Language', is like insisting you want to have all your subjects in chinese because you are more familiar with it, and so the rest of the school should follow your wishes. No one is asking you not speak Singlish at all, just requesting that when communicating on this forum, please try to use proper english, so that the rest of the world can understand you too.

-MacDawn
PS: I am Singaporean, but I never thought of Singlish as my 'Home Language'. English is my home language, the language I use in school, and among my friends, chinese and non-chinese. Chinese is my mother tongue, I use it and am extremely proud to be proficient in it. Singlish is a slang I take as part of my Singaporean culture. I only use it, when I know the person I am speaking to understands what I am saying.....

Or for the case of Puggy, I used it on purpose, just to irritate him :laughing:

[wonnage]

Why post when nobody can tell what the hell you're lor lah le-ing about? english, do you speak it! So maybe we can try to ignore the lor lah le loh la...just as we can ignore schwarzenegger's accent.

[angel_numberone]

I said no for using singlish in j-c.net because i really dont know what it means when u guys post a reply using that slang. I just try to guess what the whole sentense means. But i think it's ok if u use singlish in singapore forum or chatting with your singapore friends. I also mixed thai with english too by putting thai word at the end of sentense e.g. Why you didn't go lah? Dont have friends lor? I dont like it naja. So I dont wanna go naka. I like using it because it adds more fun or politeness to the one u're talking to. I usually use it in thailand forum or msn or e mail to my thai friends. My english is not excellent but i think we should try to write what others can understand.

[macdawn]

I usually use it in thailand forum or msn or e mail to my thai friends. My english is not excellent but i think we should try to write what others can understand.
Exactly what the rest of us think too! I am sure thankful our message got to some of the members here :happy:

-MacDawn

[littleasian]

i think its the same as if we all start typin in chinese. It would be appropriate (many people here know chinese), but not everyone would. What about those ABC's that cant read/write?

therefore, in an international forum it is only appropriate to speak english (not singlish, not chinglish, not klingish..blah blahblah)

[xiang jian dan ai]

i think it is not appropriate to use singlish in this forum, even though the phrases can generally still be understood, since not everyone is singaporean. it is more appropriate to use this kind of language in a thread created specially for singaporeans. :) would you want me to include filipino or taglish (tagalog + english) phrases in this message? :)

this is only my opinion. hope i didnt offend anyone. :)

[raerei]

Emm... somehow, I don't see why it's called Singlish...

Isn't hokkien like Taiwanese accent? (If I'm wrong, I'm sorry!)
They add lah's, and such. I know, because my parents add that stuff and we're a Taiwanese family not Singaporean.
Do Singaporeans do that?

I'm confused. :wacko:

[scarletwillow]

I think Hokkien is a mainland Chinese accent.
I actually don't mind Singlish that much--I misunderstood the poll though (voted in favor of Singlish, since I thought it would be banned even in the SG forums... stupid me).

The occasional lah or so doesn't make much of a difference, of course, but then again, I haven't really seen Singlish being used all that heavily--nothing I haven't brushed aside, that is.

[ene]

laruku and lattae I didn't mean to open up another can of worms on this thread by starting this poll. I just wanted to put our points into numbers, figures and facts for all who don't understand the concept of "international forum" and "the difference between loving Singlish and using it at appropriate times"

:wink2:

[retrobaby]

didn't you just say...international forum? that means, we are not all singaporeans. and how do you expect all non-singaporeans to understand singlish? some people may be able to decipher your singlish, but people from places like the states or canada or europe may not. i'm singaporean, but i only speak singlish when i'm in singapore. when i'm outside, i speak proper english. besides, people who use singlish should know how to use the proper english...that's the international language right? so that's what we use in an international forum.

learn how to speak proper english, or you'll make a fool out of yourself when you're out of singapore.

[mad_doi]

wats wrong w singlish?...

everyone does a bit of multi-language mix in everyday conversation. i always here spanglish. i talk in my own language for all i kno. i talk in english, spanish, jap, chinese, n viet all at once. as long as ppl can understand wat ur saying for the most part its fine. otherwise...they learn a new word or phrase for the day.

if i said sarcastically to my friends that i was so diao they would all look at me weird cause they wouldnt kno wat the hell diao is but they would start saying diao too after they realized how cool the meaning is. its a special lang for special ppl. let it live.

[ap]

i think we can use abit of singlish in this forum but not those too serious kind of singlish....using "lar"s and "lor"s ok coz it can help to express urself..(tts wat i think :P)
its ok as long as its not filled too much with words from other language....

[w4t3r_lily]

Well actually there is nothing wrong with Singlish if you are talking to the one who understand it. I mean i'm not Singaporean but i understand Singlish a lil bit but if all of you talking with Singlish all the time, it will confused me a lot.
And because this is an international forum just like retrobaby said..i think all of you have to respect others who don't understand Singlish by speak proper English so everyone can understand what you're talking about.

[Vicluva]

I don't think it's appropriate to use Singlish in an International forum because it can get a bit annoying to try and decypher what a certain person's trying to say. If there was a huge number of members from China and they started typing in Chinese, you wouldn't like that either because you wouldn't be able to understand what they were talking about. And also, if you know Singlish is not appreciated here, why would you persist in typing it when good old English makes us all so happy :D and lessens the number of head-bitings we have occuring due to this unfortunate issue? :wink2:

[dazzlette]

Emm... somehow, I don't see why it's called Singlish...

Isn't hokkien like Taiwanese accent? (If I'm wrong, I'm sorry!)
They add lah's, and such. I know, because my parents add that stuff and we're a Taiwanese family not Singaporean.
Do Singaporeans do that?

I'm confused. :wacko:

Singlish isn't just adding lahs and mehs at the end of sentences. It includes other words like 'jialat', 'malu', 'paiseh', 'sotong' etc. The words are usually either Hokkien or Malay in origin. I think ending your sentences with all the lahs and mehs is actually more of a Chinese thing.

Taiwanese or Min Nan Yu originated from the Fujian province in China. That's also where the Hokkien people in Singapore came from. So that's why there are similarities. :wink2:

Actually I'm surprised at how this poll is turning out... :glug: I thought the answer would be so obvious...

[masterCP]

laruku, crystal clear! :wave:

let me offer my 2 cents... :yeah:

imagine you're a caucasian (white) walking alongside a group of locals...they keep switching back & forth to english/singlish, then they would laugh too at times. wouldn't you be paranoid to think thay they are laughing at you? that they are talking in their own "tongue" so that you would not understand? :laughing:

so it's not just proper to use english in an international forum but a sign of respect too for other cultures who don't speak your language... :happy:

[newg]

OMG! Now, its not only the the "All Around the World" is this debate about "Singlish" but now also in the "Poll Section". I think NO NO because JC.net will look like a n00b forum if ever the they will be allowed to use "Singlish" and somethings its a bit irritating especially its have a lot of "designs" LiK DiS and sometimes they will also add H in the words that are not supposed to be also JC.Net is a international forum it will be difficult for the other people to understand what are you saying. :happy:

[raerei]

Singlish isn't just adding lahs and mehs at the end of sentences. It includes other words like 'jialat', 'malu', 'paiseh', 'sotong' etc. The words are usually either Hokkien or Malay in origin. I think ending your sentences with all the lahs and mehs is actually more of a Chinese thing.

Taiwanese or Min Nan Yu originated from the Fujian province in China. That's also where the Hokkien people in Singapore came from. So that's why there are similarities. :wink2:

Actually I'm surprised at how this poll is turning out... :glug: I thought the answer would be so obvious...

Ohh........ okay.
Yeah, in that case, not everybody understands 'jialat' and 'malu', because I sure don't.
So, maybe it shouldn't be allowed. It might confuse everyone. :wacko:

They originated from Fujian? Well, they could have I guess, but the languages don't really sound alike to me. Another thing is, my dad speaks Fujian, because his parents came from FuZhou... and when I hear that talk, it doesn't sound like Min Nan Yu.

But thanks for explaining that dazzlette! :happy:

[macdawn]

I think the Taiwanese dialect came from Fujian, known as the Hokkien dialect. Because people from Fujian had imgrated to Taiwan to start a new life there, years before the Kuomingtang retreated to the island.

But those Fujian people who had moved there, as they speak the dialect away from the mainland group, the Hokkien actually evolved independently from the mainland Hokkien. After many years, the dialect soon evolved into a dialect of its own. It is very similar to Hokkien, but when it comes to certain words and expressions, there is still a distinct difference. I think I explained this a while back, but the thread had disappeared among the flood of new topics.

Hope that clears up the difference between Taiwanese dialect of 'Min nan yu' and Fujian's Hokkien.

-MacDawn

[ene]

Actually I'm surprised at how this poll is turning out... I thought the answer would be so obvious...

You can say that again dazzy. I was like :glug: I guess that was my point of the poll. To see how everyone on this site really thought of Singlish. I guess the results show otherwise but hey, the "no" option is winning again. Phew......:wink2:

[laruku]

oh well.. you never know, maybe all the noobs are voting in the poll.. lol..

but yeah.. the no option is winning by 3 votes.. LoL

[macdawn]

Well, you think it is obvious, I think it is obvious... but not everyone thinks of it in the same light as we do......freedom of thought here..... but funny thing is, this polls just asking if given a choice, would you use (language/slang).... but it doesn't mean you CAN use them.

We are just asking what you think, not telling you to vote on if Singlish can be used here. If you think so, then sorry to inform you. Here in JCN, democracy exist only in your imagination. Here the admins rule with iron hands..... Their directions to us "Do or die, don't ask why!" :laughing:

-MacDawn

[msv]

Here in JCN, democracy exist only in your imagination. Here the admins rule with iron hands..... Their directions to us "Do or die, don't ask why!"

I'm going to take your rep. points off for insulting Karen because she promised to change my age to 8 years old, and for insulting Lepencil too because he promised me a pink pencil and for insulting Lisa since she promised to draw a cartoon for me. :shifty:

[macdawn]

Take away my rep points????
Nooo!!! :oops:

I didn't insult them!! I was just stating the truth! :cry:
Can I get a pink pencil and a cartoon too? I don't need my age to be reduced to 8, cos I think 26 is perfectly fine for me, I can go and watch R(A) films :laughing:

-MacDawn

[msv]

Age is just a bunch of numbers people use to distinguish what is an adult and isn't. :D And besides, my mind is mature enough to handle those movies and where there's a will there's a way. :whistle:

[macdawn]

Yeah, I am sure..... an 8 year-old mind trapped in a 20 something-year-old body....... I feel sorry for you, then... :rolleyes:

Anyway, we are digressing.... the topic at hand is Do you think it's right to use Singlish on an international forum such as jc.net ? :laughing:

My answer is still 'NO'

-MacDawn

[msv]

(psst: macdawn, I'm not 20 something year old or even close to it honeslty :sweat: )

Anyways... I have no problem with a little bit of lor or lah, I understand that, but if its heavy slang like dazzlette provided... I'd be lost.

I haven't voted yet... I'm just here seeing what the outcome of the poll is. :wink2:

[macdawn]

msv, you are supposed to VOTE!!!!! :-x
So, 20 something is not close, so how about 30 plus? :laughing:

-MacDawn

[9aLr0x1t]

well i personally think its not too much of a prob if its not used too excessively. but other ppl out there shud try to except it aniway.

[missaznkali]

I personally have never heard "Singlish" myself...<I'm not from Singapore> I speak "Chinglish" though

[w4t3r_lily]

OMG now i've just heard about Chinglish. What is it anyway??? Chinese with English: :dry: weird..

[charmed_1009]

Time for my opinions on this subject...
Well...I'm kinda stuck between yes and no...

YES because this isn't only singlish..using words like 'la' and 'meh' in the posts...Malaysians do it too..even in chinese speaking we have 'la' and 'ma'...perhaps some people feel more comfortable using them?I don't do that in this forum though because...(which leads to the next point)

NO because there are a lot of foreigners here...and i'm proud to see that...!Especially people from America...Canada...a lot more...so if we say 'Jay is so cool LAH' then they will be clueless what is LAH?

in conclusion..maybe don't ban Singlish but only make it available in country forums that use it?
Okay...bad idea

[ene]

in conclusion..maybe don't ban Singlish but only make it available in country forums that use it?
We never said anything banning Singlish ! Just that Singlish shouldn't be used in an international forum such as this ? :glug:

[charmed_1009]

:sweat: Okay..maybe the word 'ban' was used wrongly by me here :sweat:

What i'm trying to say that...it's not wrong to use it..... :happy: now that's the right word...
truth to be told...i don't encourage it :sweat:

[angel_numberone]

just to add more opinion. the word Lah le ma meh and blah blah blah could have different meaning too if the reader is not singaprean. thai language also have words pronouce as la ma etc. how u supposed others to understand siglish? having a list of it and the meaning? we all members have to look at it and remember? just for the sake of singaporean who want to use siglish in international forum? to me it sounds unfair.

[weemalyn]

i feel that if we use it between singaporeans, then it is alright.
but in this international forum, we should try to use a language that most of the people using the forum understand. it may be unfair to the rest, because the others may not understand what we are trying to say.

Likewise, members from other countries could do the same thing also, they could also use their own language and we may not be able to understand it.

:wink2: Since this is an international forum, we should be considerate and we also want to interact more with others from different places

[Lizzy]

I think A little bit of singlish wil be ok.
and maybe someone who knows Singlish well can start a forum to help people who cant understand it?or if a person see singlish in a forum and doesnt understand it,to translate it into english.
Just my suggestion!
I think its a compromise the people who like using singlish can use it (a little)
and the people who dont understand can get help!

[kasic_fantasy]

i guess its better not to...when i just join the net,i used alot of singlish...coz i didnt know its an international forum here...until when someone send me a warning then i started to freak out....not everyone understand the 'lor,leh,meh,mah' stuff...but now,i'm more used to using english...thanx to the net man!!! :D ....

[jaychou_21]

JCNet,as an international fan forum,must avoid using mixtures of languages
unfamiliar to others,such as Singlish,Manglish,and the like.
I'm non-Singaporean and it would rather be unfair to us if others in this site
would use Singlish as their medium of communication.
I can only understand the English part,but what about the Singaporean slang?
It would rather be unwise on our behalf since we do not understand Singlish words,
and it may eventually lead to confusion and this will eventaully evoke the other
members to use their native languages as well.
It would deem unfair for other nationalities 'cause we also have those kinds of mixed languages.
In our part,we have Taglish (a mix of Tagalog-English),which is commonly used
in urban Philippines nowadays to cope with the ever growing civilizational jargons.
It would impart partiality not only to our part,but to the others as well.

[spax]

Singlish should not be used in an international forum such as JCNET. Well, besides having difficulty to understand what Singaporeans like me are talking about for non-Singaporeans, I feel that it is a disgrace to use Singlish in an international forum like this. Singlish is just broken english that Singaporeans use. I hope I had not offended any Singaporeans. That's just my point of view.