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'Hinglish' may conquer the world http://in.rediff.com/news/2004/oct/17hing.htm 'Hinglish', the variety of English spoken in India, may soon become the most common form of the language, according to a British expert. Professor David Crystal, author of more than 50 books on English, says 350 million Indians speak it as a second language, exceeding the number of native English speakers in Britain and the US. Prof Crystal argues that the growing popularity of Indian culture around the world, including Bollywood movies, means that Hinglish will soon become more widely spoken outside the continent. Some of the Hinglish words in vogue include airdash (travel by air), chaddis (underpants), chai (Indian tea), crore (10 million), dacoit (thief), desi (local), dicky (boot), gora (white person), jungli (uncouth), lakh (100,000), lumpen (thug), optical (spectacles), prepone (bring forward), stepney (spare tyre) and would-be (fiancé or fiancée). Indian expertise in writing computer software also means that Hinglish will spread via the internet, says 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. Forwarded by Eddie Verdes www.goa-world.com/kantaram
