The Global Language Monitor (GLM) recently released a report
saying Chinglish has become creative for new English words.
English, as a global language, has been affected by the rise of
China. There are reports saying that many new English words are
"Chinglish" such as "Long time no see," "Drinktea," "coolie" and
"typhoon."
The president of the GLM, Paul Payack, said Chinglish and other
mixed English words have enriched the English vocabulary, which has
now 986,120 words according to latest estimates. The GLM added
20,000 new words to their base in the English language last year,
twice as many as last year. Twenty percent of them are
Chinglish.
These Chinglish words reflect time changes in different periods
of China. Words that feature ancient Chinese culture, such as
Confucianism, the Four Books and Five Classics, the family contract
responsibility system, knowledge economy and peaceful rise
illustrate the social situation after China's reform and opening
up.
Chinglish is also a hot topic among foreigners in China. A blog,
written by a German, Chinglish.de, expresses the author's regret
over China's clean-up of Chinglish logos in public places in
Beijing ahead of the 2008 Olympics. A Dutch youth set up
Chinglish.com in Amsterdam to seek business opportunities given
Chinglish's expansion.
Chinglish's influence is close related with the Chinese-language
study promotion around the world. It is said there are about 30
million foreigners learning Chinese. As a symbol for Chinese
teaching, Confucius Institutes play an important role in Chinese
cultural communication. There are now 120 Confucius institutes in
the world spread across more than 50 countries. The number is
expected to increase to 500 in 2010.
(China Daily February 16, 2007)
