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Burmese English is an English language dialect used in Myanmar (formerly Burma). After Britain successfully conquered the Burmese Empire and designated it a colony of British India, education in English became highly regarded, although it did not fully replace Burmese as the vernacular. Burmese English resembles Indian English to a degree, because of historical ties to India during British colonisation. The English language is a West Germanic language that originates in England. ...
British India (otherwise known as The British Raj) was a historical period during which most of the Indian subcontinent, or present-day India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Myanmar, were under the colonial authority of the British Empire (Undivided India). ...
Indian English refers to the dialects or varieties of English spoken primarily in the Republic of India (estimates of the total number of speakers of English in India vary from around 10 to 20 percent of the population [citation needed]), and also by Indian diaspora elsewhere in the world. ...
Burmese romanisiation is based on English, despite the lack of an official system. The preferred system of spelling is based on those of the British, although American English spellings have become increasingly popular. Because Adoniram Judson, an American, created the first Burmese-English dictionary, many American English spellings are common (e.g. color, check, encyclopedia). The '-ize' form is more commonly used than '-ise' form. American English (AmE) is the dialect of the English language used mostly in the United States of America. ...
The neutrality of this article is disputed. ...
English remains entrenched in the Burmese educational system, and is a required subject from kindergarten onward. From secondary school onward, English is the primary language used in textbooks, except for Burmese language and other Burmese-related studies. Because of this, many Burmese are better able to communicate by means of writing than to speak English fluently. British English is the dialect of English taught in Myanmar. The Burmese language ( , or ) is the official language of Myanmar. ...
British English (BrE) is a term used (especially by Americans) to differentiate between the form of the English language used in the United Kingdom and those used elsewhere. ...
Burmese English is often characterised by its unaspirated consonants, similar to Indian English. It also borrows words from standard English and uses them in a slightly different context. For instance, "pavement" (British English) or "sidewalk" (US English) is commonly called "platform" in Burmese English. In addition, many words retain British pronunciation, such as vitamin (pronouced vit-a-min). Burmese English is non-rhotic. The history of liquid phonemes in the English language describes the history of the phonemes /r/ and /l/. // Rhotic and nonrhotic accents English pronunciation is divided into two main accent groups, the rhotic and the nonrhotic, depending on when the phoneme (the letter r, equivalent to Greek rho) is pronounced. ...
For units of measurement Burmese English use both those of the Imperial System and those of the International System of Units interchangeably, but the values correspond to the SI system. Burmese English continues to use Indian English numerical units such as lakh and crore. The Imperial units or the Imperial system is a collection of English units, first defined in the Weights and Measures Act of 1824, later refined (until 1959) and reduced. ...
Cover of brochure The International System of Units. ...
A lakh (also spelled lac or laksha) is a unit in a traditional number system, still widely used in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh, equal to a hundred thousand. ...
A crore is a unit in a traditional number system, still widely used in India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. ...
Honorifics in Burmese English are often derived from Burmese rather than from English, and include the following:
- Bo, Bogyoke - General
- U - Sir (lit. "uncle"). Pronounced 'Oo' (as in 'too'), this honorific is commonly used to prefix the name of an adult Burmese man in much the same way as 'Mr' (e g U Thant, the former Secretary General of the UN)
- Daw - Madam (lit. "aunt"), used to prefix the name of an adult woman. It does not indicate marital status.
- Ko - Mister (lit. "older brother") used as a term of familiarity or affection and not in formal usage.
- Maung (abbreviated Mg) - Mister (lit. "younger brother"), in archaic form used to denote the subservient position of the addressee: eg in Court documentation. It is usually used by someone who is of seniority (in age, rank or social standing) to the addressee.
- Ma - Mrs., Ms., Miss (lit. "old sister")
- Po - used to prefix the name of an aldult man, usually quite elderly (lit. "grandfather"
- Saya, Sayama, Sayadaw - Teacher, Professor (lit. "teacher")
- Thakin - Sir (lit. "Master"), archaic - This term was applied as a prefix by young Burmese during British colonial times to signify that the Burmese should be masters of their own destiny and that it should not be an exclusive form of address for the British rulers.
However, the honorifics only apply to the Burmese.
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