Intonation patterns of questions in Malaysian English
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
1-1-2017
Abstract
This article examines the intonation patterns used by Malaysian English (MalE) speakers when asking ‘wh-’ questions and ‘yes/no’ questions. Analysis on recordings of Malay, Chinese and Indian speakers revealed similar patterns in the intonation patterns of MalE wh- questions and yes/no questions regardless of the ethnicity of the speaker: wh- questions and yes/no questions tended to start with a level tone; yes/no questions ended with rises, while wh- questions ended with either falls or rises. These patterns cannot merely be attributed to the influence of the speakers’ first languages nor were they learner errors. However, whether these features are accepted as norms of MalE pronunciation will, to a certain extent, be dependent on the perception of MalE among Malaysians, which at the current point in time is generally inconsistent.
Keywords
Intonation, question form, Malaysian English, wh- questions, yes/no questions
Divisions
FLL
Funders
University of Malaya [grant number PO011-2015B]
Publication Title
Asian Englishes
Volume
20
Issue
3
Publisher
Taylor & Francis