Explore English Variations Across the Planet

The English language continues to travel the world, diversifying from its roots as it finds homes on virtually every continent.

We’ll take a whirlwind, worldwide tour of English across the globe, discovering how English varies from place to place. We’ll consider both the influence of indigenous languages on local English usage and the loanwords that have enriched the English lexicon. We’ll also examine the incorporation of the language’s most-used standards, British and American English, into language varieties such as regional dialects, pidgins, and creoles.

Worldwide English commonalities

Currently, English is spoken as a majority native language in nineteen countries. In the many countries where English is not a majority language, it often facilitates business and government communications among diverse groups. Standard English is also a language of education and opportunity in many of these countries.

Intermixing with indigenous languages, English becomes the basis for pidgins, creoles, and other forms of patois for use in everyday life.

English as a world traveler

Loanwords and phrasings from indigenous languages throughout the world have added diversity and flavor to English. At the same time, newer English varieties reflect some usages and expressions that are now obsolete in standard English.

Global English accents

Like a time capsule, vestiges of English accents from centuries ago remain in many global varieties of English. Older English vowel pronunciations can provide clues as to when English became part of a locality’s linguistic landscape. The way the letter R is pronounced can often indicate whether someone is speaking British or American English.

Several extensive audio collections of English words, phrases, and sample texts illustrate how accents vary throughout the English-speaking world:

• Forvo
• The British Library’s Accents & Dialects archive
• International Dialects of English Archive (IDEA)
• The Speech Accent Archive at George Mason University

Dialects of British and Irish English

The islands of Great Britain and Ireland are jam-packed with a wide variety of English idioms, accents, and usage.

From the Liverpudlian lilt popularized by the Beatles to the Queen’s English, England itself boasts dozens of different regional accents. Cornwall, Wales, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ireland all used other languages before English came into the picture. With the exception of Lowland Scots, a language closely related to English, these indigenous languages primarily belong to the Celtic family.

British and Irish English: Accents, literature, and media

English regional, British, and Irish English expressions

English regional expressions

Additional glossaries

• List of Scottish English words
• Anglo-Manx Dialect
• List of Irish English words

Dialects of Caribbean English

Dating back to the 17th century, many of the Caribbean English dialects are based on British English, with some influence from French, Portuguese, Spanish, and West African languages.

Caribbean English from Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands (namely St. Croix, St. Thomas, and St. John) is more American flavored.

Examples of Caribbean English

Dialects of American English – US & Canada

Due to both history and geographical closeness, many native English speakers from Canada and the northern United States have a somewhat similar accent. However, there aredefinite pronunciation and vocabulary differences between English as spoken in Canada and the United States.

United States

There are over two dozen dialects in the United States; some of the most prominent include:

• African-American
• Mid-Atlantic
• New York City
• New England
• Southern
• Midwestern
• Pacific Northwest

Regional American English Expressions

Canada

Canada’s dialect groups can be categorized as Atlantic (including Newfoundland), Central and Western (including the Pacific Northwest and Ottawa), Québec, and First Nations English.

Canadian English expressions

• bunny-hug – hooded sweatshirt [Saskatchewan]
• blonde – girlfriend [Québec]
• two-four – a case of two dozen beers (totaling 24, or “2-4”).
• Vancouver Special – a house without a basement, in which the first floor is often rented out
• Chesterfield – couch or sofa (from older British English)
• washroom – public toilet facilities (from the obsolete American English term)

Examples of Canadian English Accents

Although Canadian accents in English can be similar to accents from the United States, there are certain hallmarks that are considered typically Canadian.

For example, Canadian “about” sounds a bit like “aboot” to American ears. When a Canadian English speaker apologizes, the word “sorry” can sound somewhat like “sore-y.” Canadians also tend more towards typical British pronunciations on words like “civilization.”

Listening to Canadian English accents by province can give you a better idea of the differences and similarities between them. Reading Canadian English literature from different provinces is a great way to feast on the wide variety of Canadian colloquialisms.

Dialects of Fiji, New Zealand, and Australian English

English is widely spoken in the South Pacific, serving as the primary language of both Australia and New Zealand.

Australia

Australian English dialects are divided into Cultivated, Broad, and General. General Australian is the language heard in TV shows and movies, spoken by actors such as Eric Bana and Hugh Jackman.

Also called “Strine,” Broad Australian is the more stereotypical Australian accent. It was popularized by Crocodile Dundee star Paul Hogan, as well as “Crocodile Hunter” Steve Irwin. Actors Geoffrey Rush and Cate Blanchett speak Cultivated Australian, which might be considered more neutral-sounding.

Indigenous peoples of Australia tend to use Australian Aboriginal English. This differs from Standard Australian and includes many terms derived from their ancestral languages, such as yakka (work) and yabber (incessant talking). Australian Aboriginal English tends to use more of a standard American-sounding R in words like “farmer.” The auxiliary verb is often dropped, leading to phrases like, “He sleeping” or “they walking.”

Australian colloquialisms include coldie (beer), oldies (parents), and Technicolor yawn (vomit) – and, even a bit of rhyming slang, with hit the frog and toad for “hit the road.”

New Zealand

In New Zealand – also known as Aotearoa – English is one of two official spoken languages, side-\ by side with the indigenous Māori tongue. Over 95% of New Zealanders speak English. Their accent is quite distinct, even as compared to their neighbors in Australia.

New Zealanders often use “uptalk,” or a rising inflection at the end of sentences that sounds like a question is being asked. With the exception of the Southland accent, New Zealand accents are fairly uniform.

In New Zealand slang, the natives are kiwis, they wear jandals (flip-flops) on the beach, and they get angry by packing a sad. New Zealand writers often incorporate these Kiwi dialect terms into their work.

Fiji

Standard English, along with Fiji Hindi and indigenous language Fijian, is an official language of the Fiji islands. English is used throughout tourist centers and more populated areas of Fiji, where the natives regularly speak it as a second language. Visitors to Fiji might be greeted with Bula! and experience the timelessness of Fiji time.

Dialects of West African English

Most formal West African English dialects, such those in Gambia, Nigeria, Ghana, Sierra Leone, and Cameroon, are based on British English. The notable exception is Liberian English, which has American roots.

Dialects of East African English

Primarily British-style English is used in Egypt, Sudan, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, and Malawi.

Dialects of Southern African English

The English dialects in Zambia, Zimbabwe, Botswana, Eswatini (formerly Swaziland), Lesotho, Malawi, Namibia, Sierra Leone, and South Africa developed from British English. By population, the largest number of English speakers in the region are in South Africa, Zimbabwe, and Sierra Leone.

Dialects of Southeast Asian and Indian English

English has a presence in both East and South Asia, producing several unique varieties among second-language speakers.

South Asian English

Outside the Indian subcontinent, Singapore and the Philippines have some of the largest groups of English speakers in South Asia.

Indian English

The Indian subcontinent is home to a diverse group of people who speak about 450 distinct native languages.

India uses British-based Indian English as a common means of communication. It’s one of the largest English-speaking countries in the world by sheer number of speakers, but only about 10% of Indians speak English.

Pakistan and Bangladesh speak English varieties based on Indian English. About half the Pakistani population speaks some English, although English proficiency in the country is not rated highly. English is sometimes considered a foreign language in Bangladesh, rather than a second language.

East Asia

In Hong Kong, English is spoken as a second language by about 3.5 million people, or half of the population. However, the grammar and vocabulary of Hong Kong English are strongly influenced by the city’s native Cantonese language, as well as some Portuguese.

Although English is taught in South Korean schools, the language has not been widely adopted there.

English as an urban international lingua franca

Most people who use English as a lingua franca (ELF) will not be native English speakers. ELF is often used as a common language by groups of people with no other language in common.

To avoid confusion and keep communication clear, colloquialisms and idiomatic expressions are kept to a minimum in ELF. Like speakers of pidgin Englishes, ELF speakers tend to simplify grammar, not focusing on exacting standards of correctness. Their goal is to convey information unambiguously.

ELF is different than business English, which generally conforms to a native-level British or American standard. ELF distills English down to language’s most essential task: sheer communication.

Unlike the world Englishes we’ve looked at, which are tied to specific places and groups of people, ELF does not refer exclusively to a single variety of English. Even so, the English standards in particular parts of the world might influence how ELF is used.

European varieties

British involvement in Malta, Cyprus, Gibraltar, and other areas in the Mediterranean helped bring the English language to the European continent. The historical role of English in the European Union government, as well as its usefulness in catering to British, Irish, American, and Australian tourists, further cemented the place of English in continental Europe.

Euro-English is becoming increasingly useful as a lingua franca in Europe, even as it pulls further away from its British roots and American influences.

Singapore & Hong Kong varieties

The prevalence of English in both Singapore and Hong Kong means that ELF in Asia is largely based upon these varieties of English, which incorporate Cantonese and Malasian vocabulary and grammar.

Other hybrid languages, creoles, and pidgins based on English

Naturally enough, many English hybrids, pidgins, and creoles have arisen over the years since English first became a world traveler. Here are but a few of them:

• Africa: Uglish; Sheng; Ghanian Pidgin English; Kamtok; Pichi; Krio; Nigerian Pidgin; Camfranglais
• East Asia: Chinese Pidgin English (historical); Konglish
• South Asia: Singlish;Taglish; Hinglish
• South and Central Pacific: Kriol;Bislama;Tok Pisin; Torres Strait Creole; Norf’k; Nauruan Pidgin English (based on Chinese Pidgin English)
• Europe: Llanito
• North America: Gullah/Geechee; Spanglish; Hawai’i Creole; Cajun English;Chiac
• Central America: Nicaraguan Creole English; Belizean Creole
• South America: Guyanese Creolese; Saramaccan; Sranan
• Caribbean:Jamaican Patwah; Bahamian Creole; Bajan; San Andres Creole English

English linguistic variation is enormous

Variations on British and American English standards are found in Europe, Africa, and Asia, as well as remote places like Pitcairn Island and the Federated States of Micronesia.

Enhanced by an astonishing variety of expression and continually adapting to its speakers’ needs, English is a global language of poetry and practicality, outreach and opportunity.