A Critical Study of the Phonology of a Sub- Variety of Pakistani English Under the Influence of Pashto
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A Critical Study of the Phonology of a Sub- Variety of Pakistani English under the Influence of Pashto By Ayyaz Mahmood NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF MODERN LANGUAGES ISLAMABAD December 2013 A Critical Study of the Phonology of a Sub-Variety of Pakistani English under the Influence of Pashto By Ayyaz Mahmood A THESIS SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY In English Linguistics To FACULTY OF HIGHER STUDIES NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF MODERN LANGUAGES, ISLAMABAD December 2013 Ayyaz Mahmood, 2013 iii THESIS/DISSERTATION AND DEFENSE APPROVAL FORM The undersigned certify that they have read the following thesis, examined the defense, are satisfied with the overall exam performance, and recommend the thesis to the Faculty of Higher Studies: Thesis Title: A Critical Study of the Phonology of a Sub-Variety of Pakistani English under the Influence of Pashto Submitted By: Ayyaz Mahmood Name of Student Registration #: 269-MPhil/Eng/2007(Jan) Doctor of Philosophy Degree Name in Full English Linguistics Name of Discipline Professor Dr Aziz Ahmad Khan Name of Research Supervisor Signature of Research Supervisor Professor Dr Shazra Mnnawer Name of Dean (FHS) Signature of Dean (FHS) Maj General (R) Masood Hasan Name of Rector Signature of Rector Date iv CANDIDATE DECLARATION FORM I Mr Ayyaz Mahmood Son of Mr Sultan Mahmood Registration # 269-MPhil/Eng/2007 Discipline: English Linguistics Candidate of Doctor of Philosophy at the National University of Modern Languages do hereby declare that the thesis titled A Critical Study of the Phonology of a Sub-Variety of Pakistani English under the Influence of Pashto submitted by me in partial fulfillment of PhD degree in the Department of Advanced Integrated Studies and Research, NUML, is my original work, and has not been submitted or published earlier. I also solemnly declare that it shall not, in future, be submitted by me for obtaining any other degree from this or any other university or institution. I also understand that if evidence of plagiarism is found in my thesis/dissertation at any stage, even after the award of a degree, the work may be cancelled and the degree revoked. Date Signature of Candidate Ayyaz Mahmood Name of Candidate v ACKNOWLEDGEMENT I should like to convey my thanks to each and every one who helped me during the process of my research. I am extremely grateful to my supervisor, Dr Aziz Ahmad Khan whose support, guidance and encouragement from the very beginning of the work till the end facilitated more insight and understanding of the subject. I must thank the Rector NUML, Maj. Gen. (R) Masood Hassan and the Dean, Faculty of Advanced Integrated Studies and Research, Prof. Dr Shazra Munnawwer for allowing me to work on this thesis. I should never forget to thank both my beloved parents, all my respected teachers, lovely siblings, sincere family members and friends who were a great source of inspiration, support and encouragement in their own right. I am greatly indebted to Professor Dr Riaz Hassan who helped and guided me patiently whenever I requested him to help and guide me on my work. I must thank Brig (R) Naseer-ud-Deen for his affectionate guidance. I would like to express my gratitude to the Head of the English Department (GS) who encouraged and facilitated me a lot to go ahead with my thesis. I am genuinely obliged to my friend Mr. Zawar Hussain Shah whose help, motivating ideas and encouragement helped me all the way through my research and writing of this thesis. I must mention all the research participants who spared their valuable time for this project. It is important to mention those friends and colleagues who were a great help in arranging those participants; the group includes Mr. Saeed Imran, Mr. Bashir Ahmad Khan, Mr. Gohar Ali, Ms Wajiha Shah, Ms Tauheeda Bhatti and last but not the least Ms vi Khadija Mushtaq. I also want to thank Mr. Muddassir and Mr. Adnan Rashid for their technical support and assistance. I cannot forget Dr. Muhammad Uzair and Mr. Habib-ur-Rehman who answered all my queries with a smile in difficult times. I am grateful to my spouse for her timely support, keen interest, and valuable contribution. Lastly, I offer my regards and blessings to all those who supported me in any respect during the completion of this project. vii DEDICATION To my beloved parents, family, friends and all my respected teachers viii ABSTRACT A Critical Study of the Phonology of a Sub-Variety of Pakistani English under the Influence of Pashto In Pakistan there are several languages which are spoken in different regions as mother tongues. There are four major regional languages i.e. Balochi, Pashto, Punjabi and Sindhi. In addition to these, Urdu is used as a lingua franca and the national language of the country. Language change is an established phenomenon; it changes horizontally (regionally) as well as vertically (socially) and naturally the same goes for the English language too which is used as a second language in our country. Since L1 influence is a reality, each regional language of the country influences the English language in its own right when it is used by Pakistanis from different regions. In this way, there emerge different varieties of the English language in Pakistan which need to be identified, explored and studied in detail to highlight similarities and differences in them. It will help in getting Pakistani English recognized the world over as a distinct variety and it will project our beautiful indigenous linguistic treasure too. It will help in identifying those difficulties which the speakers of different regional languages face when they learn English. The present study is an effort in this connection with regard to the Pashto language. The phonology of English spoken by Pakistani Pashto speaking people of the country is the focal point of this work. To be able to do it first the participants’ loud reading in English was recorded and transcribed to mark all the deviations manifested in their pronunciation. Finally those deviations were judged against the British Standard English (RP) applying Contrastive Analysis (CA). It was done so because in Pakistan we do not have one variety of English accepted and recognized by all. The possible reasons of the deviations found, have also been shown up to facilitate Pashto speaking learners of English. At the end different suggestions and recommendations have been given to address those problems which are within our capacity. ix TABLE OF CONTENTS Chapter Page THESIS/DISSERTATION AND DEFENSE APPROVAL FORM .............. ii CANDIDATE DECLARATION FORM ...................................................... iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENT ............................................................................. iv DEDICATION ............................................................................................... vi ABSTRACT ................................................................................................... vii TABLE OF CONTENTS ............................................................................... viii 1 INRODUCTION .......................................................................................... 1 1.1 Research Objectives ............................................................................. 3 1.2 Statement of the Problem ..................................................................... 3 1.3 Delimitation ......................................................................................... 4 1.4 Main Hypothesis .................................................................................. 4 1.4 Sub-Hypotheses ................................................................................... 4 1.5 Significance of the Study ..................................................................... 5 1.6 Rationale .............................................................................................. 5 1.7 Outline of the Theoretical Framework of the Study ........................... 6 1.8 Chapters Breakdown ........................................................................... 7 1.9 The Researcher's Concern .................................................................... 7 2 LANGUAGE CHANGE AND THE RELATED CONCEPTS................ 8 2.1 Language Constantly Changing… ........................................................... 8 2.1.1 Major Causes of Language Change ...................................................... 9 2.1.2 Erroneous Views of Language Change ................................................. 10 2.1.3 Change Spread in Language ................................................................. 11 2.1.4 Sound Change and the Regularity of Sound Change ............................ 12 2.1.5 Types of Sound Changes ...................................................................... 13 2.1.5.1 Unconditioned and Conditioned Sound Change ................................ 13 2.1.5.2 Assimilation and Dissimilation .......................................................... 14 2.1.5.3 Deletion and Insertion ........................................................................ 14 2.1.5.4 Monophthongization and Diphthongization ...................................... 14 2.1.5.5 Metathesis .......................................................................................... 15 2.1.5.6 Raising and Lowering… .................................................................... 15 2.1.5.7 Backing and Fronting… .................................................................... 15 2.2 Variety