Maltenglish
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Maltenglish—also called Minglish[1], Maltese English, Mixed Maltese English, or Maltingliż—refers to the phenomenon of code-switching between Maltese and English.[2]
While English remains an official language of the Maltese Islands (along with the Maltese language), approximately 86% of the Maltese public use it as a second language in everyday discourse. Various Maltese social groups switch back and forth between the two languages, or mix lexical aspects of Maltese and English while engaging in informal conversation or writing.
Prevalence
Recent studies have shown that code-switching is practiced by a third of the population in everyday discourse. [3]
Examples of Maltenglish
Mixed case: * "Tiha kiss il-mummy" - (Give mummy a kiss).
In a Maltese Sentence: * L-actor ta dak il-film mar jiltaqa mad-direttur bil limo - (the actor who starred in that film took a limo to meet its director).
In an English Sentence: *Mela tell him I'm coming now, ta, ghax I can't make it tomorrow - (So tell him I'm coming now, you know, because I can't make it tomorrow).
References
- ^ Noemi Zarb, St Edward's College
- ^ http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=XDodTJ1B5AEC&pg=PA189&lpg=PA189&dq=code+switching+in+maltese&source=web&ots=IEVvuPYvu3&sig=qBS6Rsn_fvQ_3MUZ--DkGN2Y8iE&hl=en&ei=QHyQScrwMYzgMJD7gIwL&sa=X&oi=book_result&resnum=1&ct=result
- ^ Med Magazine - Maltese - An unusual formula
See also
External links
Ignasi Badia i Capdevila, "A view of the linguistic situation in Malta", Noves SL: Revista de Sociolingüística (2004). [1]
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