"NO Noising" and "Airline Pulp"have been named the Top Chinglish Words of 2006, according to the Global Language Monitor's(GLM) annual survey of the Chinese-English hybrid words known more commonly as Chinglish.
Though often viewed with amusement by the rest of the English-speaking world, the Chinglish phenomenon is one of the prime drivers of Globalization of the English Language. In its annual survey GLM has selected the top Chinglish words and Phrases of 2006 from hundreds of nominees.
With the continuing emergence of China and with the Olympics coming to Beijing in 2008, however, the state is now attempting to stamp out some of the more awful examples of Chinglish.
"The importance of Chinglish is the fact that some 250 million Chinese are now studying, or have studied, English and their impact (and imprint) upon the language cannot be denied," said Paul JJ Payack, GLM's President. "Since each Chinese ideogram can have many meanings and interpretations, translating ideas into English is, indeed, difficult. Nevertheless, the abundance of new words and phrases, unlikely as this may seem, can and will impact Global English as it evolves through the 21st century".
Chinglish is just one of a number of the "-Lishes", such as Hinglish (Hindi-English hydrid) and Singlish found in Singapore. A language can best be viewed as a living entity, where it grows just like any other living thing and is shaped by the environment in which it lives.
According to GLM, the English vocabulary is set to hit a million words next year. There are now some 1.3 billion speakers with English as their native, second, business or technical tongue. In 1960, the number of English speakers hovered around 250 million mainly located in the UK and its Commonwealth of former colonies, and the US.
Some Scholars say that English has been undergoing a rebirth since the time of Shakespeare, when English was emerging as the modern tongue known to us today. (Shakespeare, himself, added about 1,700 words to the lexicon.) English has emerged as the lingua franca of the world, the primary communications vehicle of the Internet, high technology, international commerce, entertainment, and the like.
The Top Chinglish Words and Phrases of 2006
1. "No Noising": Meaning "quiet please!"
2. "Airline pulp": Food served aboard an airliner.
3. "Jumping umbrella": A hang-glider.
4. "Question Authority": Information booth.
5."Burnt meat biscuit": No, it's not something to enjoy from the North of England, but what is claimed to be bread dipped in a savoury meat sauce.
