BBC News - Hobson-Jobson: The words English owes to India (http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-18796493)

My wife left India when quite young. She'd been educated by the nuns, so spoke excellent English with not a trace of an accent. However, the occasional word I found funny. She pronounced awry, as it's spelled, for example. I later found out many Anglo Indians pronounce it that way - just one of those things that stick I suppose.

We have a book back in England which clearly states there were only about 400,000 Anglo Indians at the end of the Raj. People like my mother in law found themselves having to make a decision which passport she and her 4 children should take - they were in an unenviable hiatus.

When I was working in India a few years ago I was pleased to discover in one of the hotels that tiffin was served in the afternoon. I never left work in time to partake although a large number of Kingfisher beers were drunk in memory of Sir Sidney Rough-Diamond. :ok:

I love Indian English, those news reports where they use 'Jeeves' type English and refer to the 'bounders who perpetrated this dastardly deed will be severely brought to justice,' when it's probably some minor scam.

. . . in Borneo criminals are still "nabbed" by the police. I like "nabbed", it gives one a safe, comfortable feeling of security under an efficient police force.

We tend to think of Empire in terms of domination and control, in terms of the way power was used and abused.No. We have been taught to think of it in that way. The re-writing of modern history has swung too far to the left and, as those who actually experienced life under the Raj pass on, there are few left to bear witness to its benefits.

My wife's elderly relatives look(ed) back on British rule with fondness. When thinking of the way power was used and abused they'd tell horror stories of life in the "Pan-Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere" under the Japanese: but the British rule is nostalgically regarded as a time of good governance, peace and prosperity by the ordinary folk who actually lived under it.

I love Indian English, those news reports where they use 'Jeeves' type English and refer to the 'bounders who perpetrated this dastardly deed

My favourite - I even brought the paper home to chuckle over it again:-
"...the Minister was in a tizzy..."

Well fifty words from a entire continent over many lifetimes does not stack up well when compared to over seventeen hundred invented by one Englishman, William Shakespeare in one lifetime.:rolleyes:

Make that 51 words. I was over there a few months back and this movie poster was everywhere. My driver could not understand why I kept laughing.

http://desihit.net/new/photo/Jism-2.jpg

Make that 51 words. I was over there a few months back and this movie poster was everywhere. My driver could not understand why I kept laughing.

Same here in Fiji. Asked some indoFijians if it was porno and just got puzzled looks :E

What about wog?

At least the elder Anglo Indians have better diction, and command of English than the oiks in general circulation in south London/Surrey/Sussex:ok:

If you're tempted to download the pdf of Hobson-Jobson (link from the BBC website in the original post) be warned that I aborted when it got to 40MB and still churning.

The elder Indians for sure, but many of the younger ones have an accent acquired from cartoons and other such media which is distinctly American.

Some of the African papers, particularly Ugandan also use slightly archaic English, often totally incorrectly or out of context. Once you're over the initial shock it gets pretty funny.

Malawian newspaper, years ago. They published the films showing at the local fleapit in Blantyre and made an unfortunate error in the typesetting of the name of a certain Mr. Eastwood.

Next day an 'erratum' appeared in which they stated that the correct two letters should have been 'U' and not 'LI'.

The there's rascal. The dictionary defines it as: a mischievous person or animal

How many of us have called mischevious kids "little rascals"?

And there's this lot :eek:

PNG News Board: PNG rascals have just destroyed the tourist industry and volunteer work in PNG (http://www.network54.com/Forum/210143/message/1290057731/PNG+rascals+have+just+destroyed+the+tourist+industry+and+volunteer+work+in+PNG)

The mother of an Albany man who was carjacked and tied to a tree in a Papua New Guinea jungle, where he was forced to witness the rape of a female friend, said she can't comprehend the emotional scars her son now faces

Indian women...will drive a man up the wall in bed, and in life...he shall say 'tire mire ho tope mite mite mit-tume tuvahanah age age chelle hum, mite pichi-mit tume tuvahahnah guibahan'na na- fiah liaia nunge pa ume nunge, nunge pe vapas milor tike ni nehi ja'oongi nunge pa ume nunge pa ume, nunge pa umedoli chuli ja ungi doli cuculu mahru

It's a song from when I said mi mehebuba tumare mire chandini......;););)

Indian women...will drive a man up the wall in bed,
yip and there's one thing you just can't get rid of with soap and water...the smell of curry on her breath...:}

If your with one long enough you can't get rid of the smell of curry and roti, dahl, kulfi nahn et al. from your breath either,...cleanest girl ever...nice taste like...well... you know...:}:}:}

why would you want to be with one long enough when you can be with lots for short enough? :}

Well I don't just limit myself to one type..for example...This Sunday...wish me luck...;)

good luck then. remember if she says she wants you to meet her family you are talking about all 100 of them :}:}:}

Going back to the programme - I caught it in the car yesterday. One of those programmes which make Radio 4 the best English language radio station in the world, without a shadow of a doubt. Do persist if you are having trouble on BBC i-player - it's well worth it.

I'm getting a constant refusal (rotating circle and no connection) from BBC news sites - though I can access I-player.

BBC iPlayer - Hobson-Jobson: A Very English Enterprise (http://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01kksr0/HobsonJobson_A_Very_English_Enterprise/)