Indian English: phonology

Indian English (IndE) is a cover term for a number of varieties of English used as a second language in India. These varieties exhibit significant phonological variations, stemming from regional linguistic differences. However many of these features converge into what can be considered a ‘general’ phonology of IndE. English is widely used in India - it is the ‘associate official’ language of the country and it also serves as a link language between the educated. It is the most potent medium of higher education, perhaps the sole medium of science and technology. Most books, newspapers, reports, seminars and so forth directed to a nationwide audience are brought out in this language.

Work on IndE phonology has so far been largely sketchy or tilted towards the use of English in a particular region. Because of an earlier focus on language teaching, IndE has often been characterized as a ‘deviant’ variety, with researchers focusing on its phonetic differences from RP. It is nonetheless surprising that no full-length description of IndE is available, despite its widespread use. English is spoken in India by a very large section ranging from the semi-literate to the highly educated. For the purposes of this paper a random selection has been made of educated speakers who use English as a second language. An effort has been made to broadly cover all the major areas of the country in order to make phonological generalizations and show the range of variation in IndE.