New Zealand English is the variety of English that is spoken by the roughly 4 million inhabitants of New Zealand – a South Pacific state which consists of two main islands simply called the North and the South Island. New Zealand is a bicultural country with both English and Māori being its official languages. Since the British colonisation of the young state in 1840, these two languages have been coexisting side by side and, in consequence, have influenced each other. One result of this long-standing and intensive language contact is the incorporation of Māori loans into New Zealand English (NZE), which distinguishes it most distinctly from other national standards, as no other variety of English shares this feature with NZE. Thus, the use and acceptance of Māori borrowings in NZE will be the main subject of this paper.
In the first part of this paper, the position of NZE among other national varieties of English will be discussed. This will be followed by a closer examination of the languages that have participated in the process of borrowing in NZ. Since borrowing is a phenomenon resulting from language contact, the third chapter will give an overview about the extra- and intralinguistic factors that form the frame for the process of borrowing. On the background of those conditions the use and acceptance of Māori borrowings in NZE will then be comprehensively discussed. There are remarkable differences in the process of lexical transfer as well as in the use of the Māori loanwords at different stages in New Zealand’s history. Therefore, the history of English borrowing from Māori will be examined according to these stages in the fourth part. Following this, the present use of these loans will be investigated by the data deriving from a pilot study which was carried out in 2005/2006 and is based on a sample of 40 subjects living in New Zealand. The findings of this study will then be compared to a German control group to determine to which extent Māori loans have gained some international currency.
It is my hope to contribute to the previous research on Māori borrowings in New Zealand English by giving a comprehensive account of both the history as well as the current state of the use and acceptance of these borrowings in the English spoken in New Zealand.
Table of Contents
Introduction
1. New Zealand English as a variety of World English
1.1 The development of distinctive English varieties
1.2 The Antipodes
2. Languages in New Zealand
2.1 New Zealand English
2.1.1 Linguistic research on NZE
2.1.2 Grammar and spelling
2.1.3 Lexicon
2.1.4 Phonology
2.1.5 Variation within NZE
2.2 Māori English
2.3 Te reo Māori (the Māori language)
3. Language contact phenomena
3.1 Language contact and bilingualism
3.2 Consequences of language contact: contact phenomena
3.2.1 Analysing contact phenomena: the Matrix Language Frame model
3.2.2 Types of contact phenomena
3.3 Lexical transfer: borrowing
3.3.1 Defining the term ‘borrowing’
3.3.2 Classification of borrowed items
3.3.3 Assimilation processes
3.3.4 Motivations for borrowing
3.3.5 Borrowing vs. Code-switching
4. The history of English borrowing from Māori
4.1 The arrival of the Māori people in NZ
4.2 European colonisation: the first wave of English borrowing from Māori
4.2.1 Sociohistorical background
4.2.1.1 Pre-colonial intake: First language contact
4.2.1.2 The influence of British missionaries on te reo Māori
4.2.1.3 The colonisation of New Zealand
4.2.2 Lexical transfer and the use of Māori loanwords
4.3 New Zealand becomes a nation
4.3.1 Sociohistorical background
4.3.2 Use of Māori borrowings
4.3.3 Towards an acceptance of Māori borrowings in the 20th century
4.4 The Māori Renaissance: the second wave of English borrowing from Māori
4.4.1 Sociohistorical background
4.4.2 Motivations for renewed borrowing from Māori
4.4.3 Categorisation of Māori borrowings
4.4.4 Who uses Māori borrowings ?
4.4.5 Anglicisation and its constraints
4.4.6 Māori words used by Māori speakers of NZE: Borrowing or CS ?
5. The use of Māori borrowings in present NZE – a Pilot Study
5.1 Aim of this study
5.2 Method
5.2.1 Māori borrowings listed in the pilot study
5.2.2 Subjects
5.3 Results
5.3.1 Letter sample
5.3.2 Wordlist
5.4 Discussion
5.5 Conclusion
6. International use of Māori borrowings in English – illustrated by a German sample
Objectives & Core Topics
This academic paper aims to provide a comprehensive analysis of the historical development, current usage, and social acceptance of Māori loanwords within New Zealand English (NZE). It investigates how language contact between English and the indigenous Māori language has uniquely shaped the New Zealand variety of English, and examines the sociolinguistic motivations behind the shifting patterns of lexical borrowing over time.
- The history and evolution of Māori loanwords in New Zealand English.
- Sociolinguistic factors driving lexical borrowing and language contact.
- The impact of the Māori Renaissance on current usage patterns.
- Empirical analysis of Māori loanword knowledge and usage via a pilot study.
- Distinction between active and passive vocabulary regarding Māori-derived terms.
Excerpt from the Book
1.1 The development of distinctive English varieties
The history of the English language is a unique example of what languages are able to do, as there is “no other language that has undergone a similar expansion since Greek and Roman times” (Bailey/Görlach 1984: 1).
The fourteenth century marked the beginning of the development of Modern English as a national language. At this time it was unimaginable what the future was going to hold for a language that, in those times, was nothing else than the native tongue of a small people in England. From this time onwards, the enormous success of English worldwide took its course. The great age of British exploration, which stretched from about 1600 to 1750, marked the beginning of the global spread of English. British colonies were established all over the world and formed the basis for English to put down roots in various places far from its mother country (Ronowicz 1999: 12 ).
The exploration and colonization of new territories did not just mean a transplanting of European lifestyle and values to the foreign regions. There was a entirely new world that presented itself to explorers, traders, and settlers who, in order to survive, needed to adapt to their new surroundings. The most obvious differences between the European home country and the new colonies were to be seen in the native flora and fauna, which has led to a number of coinages, compounds or borrowings from indigenous languages as the English lexicon did not offer any names for the new items. Words like zebra, kiwi, or koala still bear witness to those processes. The different natural environment, which comprises geological and meteorological factors too, demanded an adjustment of the settlers’ lifestyle as a whole. As in North America, for example, the emergence of a new way of living –the lifestyle of the cowboys- had a great impact on the way people thought and spoke. It supplied the English lexicon with various items like the compound cowboy itself. Another important issue in the context of colonisation is the contact between European settlers and the indigenous peoples in the different countries. The culture of the original inhabitants presented a foreign world to the Europeans and eventually formed a rich source for lexical borrowing: tipi, squaw, and marae are only three of numerous examples.
Summary of Chapters
Introduction: Provides an overview of the bilingual nature of New Zealand and the significance of Māori loanwords in distinguishing New Zealand English as a national variety.
1. New Zealand English as a variety of World English: Explores the historical spread of English globally and the development of distinctive colonial varieties, including the specific linguistic context of the Antipodes.
2. Languages in New Zealand: Examines the linguistic research on New Zealand English, its grammatical and phonetic features, and the distinct dialectal emergence of Māori English.
3. Language contact phenomena: Discusses the theoretical framework of bilingualism and the sociolinguistic processes, such as borrowing and code-switching, that occur when languages coexist.
4. The history of English borrowing from Māori: Traces the chronological stages of borrowing from Māori, from initial colonial contact through to the revival of Māori culture in the late 20th century.
5. The use of Māori borrowings in present NZE – a Pilot Study: Presents empirical findings from a 2005/2006 pilot study regarding the knowledge and usage of Māori loanwords among different demographic groups in New Zealand.
6. International use of Māori borrowings in English – illustrated by a German sample: Compares the local usage in New Zealand with a German sample to determine the international recognition of specific Māori loanwords.
Keywords
New Zealand English, Māori loanwords, language contact, lexical borrowing, sociolinguistics, NZE, Māori Renaissance, bilingualism, te reo Māori, Pākehā, linguistic assimilation, identity, Antipodes, pilot study.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is this research paper primarily about?
The paper focuses on the integration, usage, and social acceptance of Māori loanwords within New Zealand English, exploring how these words have shaped the national identity and lexicon of the country.
What are the main thematic fields covered?
The study spans history, sociolinguistics, language contact theory, and empirical research, analyzing how social status, ethnicity, and historical events influence language borrowing.
What is the central research question?
The core objective is to analyze the history and current state of Māori borrowings in NZE, specifically investigating the factors that influence their adoption and level of integration into everyday speech.
Which scientific methodology is utilized?
The author combines a theoretical analysis of language contact phenomena with a pilot study involving 40 subjects in New Zealand, supplemented by corpus-based comparisons and a control group study in Germany.
What is covered in the main section of the paper?
The main sections delve into the historical stages of borrowing from the colonial era to the present Māori Renaissance, the analysis of specific loanwords, and the social dynamics between Māori and Pākehā populations.
Which keywords best characterize the study?
Key terms include New Zealand English, Māori loanwords, language contact, sociolinguistics, and cultural identity.
Does the study differentiate between speakers based on their ethnic background?
Yes, the empirical study explicitly categorizes subjects into groups such as Māori, Pākehā, and immigrants, finding that those who identify as Māori often demonstrate a higher knowledge and more frequent use of Māori terms.
What role does the Māori Renaissance play in the paper?
The author identifies the cultural revival of the 1980s as a "second wave" of borrowing, characterized by a shift from "need" borrowings (for flora/fauna) to "identity" borrowings (related to Māori culture and society).
Are there regional variations in the use of loanwords within New Zealand?
The pilot study investigates geographical distribution, noting unexpected trends in the knowledge and use of loanwords between the North and South Islands.
- Quote paper
- Lysann Hofmann (Author), 2006, Use and acceptance of Maori borrowings in New Zealand English, Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.grin.com/document/80287
