‘Hinglish’ — a mixture of Hindi and English widely spoken in India — may soon become the most common form of the Queen’s language, according to a British expert.
Indian expertise in writing computer software also means that Hinglish will spread via the internet, says Prof Crystal, honorary professor of linguistics at the University of Wales.
“Certain phrases are bound to become global with so many Indians working in information technology. As more Indians talk in chat rooms and send emails, the phrases and words they use to describe their lives will be picked up by others on the internet,” he says.
Some are archaic, relics of the Raj, such as ‘pukka’.
Others are newly coined, such as ‘time-pass’, meaning an activity that helps kill time.
India’s success in attracting business has recently produced a new verb. Those whose jobs are outsourced to India are said to have been ‘Bangalored’.
English has long enjoyed a special status in India because of the country’s colonial history.
It is still the language of the government, the elite and the media. It is also the only language that unites Indians in a country that has 14 official ones and more than 1,600 dialects.
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