Pigeon English

[Felix Lynn]

We've heard the native speakers all lose it...and I don't mean their minds. (Well maybe that too. But that's for another post.) What I'm talking about here is how native speakers sometimes lose there ability to speak proper English becaue they've been communicating too long with non-native speakers who know little or no English.

Got any good stories, quotes or paraphrases that others might like to hear???

Please post them here...

Thanks

FL

[pnustedt]

It was Monday morning and my Essex girl sister was cooking English breakfast for my Thai wife.

Wife hears her say "would you like it Friday?"

Wife replies: "It won't last till Friday".

"Naahh - fried egg - would you like a fried egg?"

[the scouser]

Is that, perchance, pidgin English?

Scouse.

[thailien8]

Does anyone besides me routinely say to their English-speaking friends things like "I've got to hit the hawng nam", " I really can't stand katoeys" or "The Thais are copying farangs again"? The more I think in Thai, the more of it comes out of my mouth.

[Darknight]

A real english (cockney accent) car dealer in pattaya somewhere between soi bukhauw and second road.

"You can rent here cheap cheap, no ploblem"

he didn't even notice it anymore...

[Richard W]

Does anyone besides me routinely say to their English-speaking friends things like "I've got to hit the hawng nam", " I really can't stand katoeys" or "The Thais are copying farangs again"?  The more I think in Thai, the more of it comes out of my mouth.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

None of that sounds exceptional. Indeed, notice the plurals! I think the questioner had in mind expressions more like the well known 'Long time no see', which has actually become Standard English.

[Axel]

Could you please be so kind and handle this case for me?

In 'good' English: Can do yes, or can do no?

Another classic, of course: She no come, I no come, baby come... How come?

[Gazza]

15 years ago after living in my wife's NKP village for 18 months, I returned to England for a few months. I had to see a careers officer who asked me what kind of work I was looking for.

I replied "Anything. I just want make bigs money".

Had to quickly explain to him why I was talking jibberish when I realised what I'd said.

This probably won't count but anyway. Couple of times I've very nearly replied to people with a "Yes, I very very understand" but have stopped in mid-sentence.

Also a couple of times I've muttered "Khoopkhun Maak Khap" quietly, when receiving change in a shop. I think I got away with the slip on both ocassions.

[tuky]

how I can do?

I thinking big hard about dis but I no good idea.

Wait, I check my mobile phone me. I can talking my tukyleith me he no understand what is this.

ooie, I forget what I say ok mai bpen rai kha I want know how about you today? today what you do?

Well, that is something like how my wife talks. It is really hard not to fall in with her, especially after a few shandies. The problem with this is that she is a bit too lazy to study english with a tutor so 99% of the english she speaks she has learnt off me, she will never get any better if I continue to speak with her the same way she speaks with me.

However, on that note at times it seems to be the fastest and most reliable way to communicate at times.

She has promised me to study English as soon as she has got a few other things out of the way (but the list keeps growing), she really needs to do this for the sake of our daughter.

I end up coming back to work after my leave every 6 weeks and speaking half Thai half English for the first few days, totally absent mindedly.

A lot of guys in my industry have worked in non english speaking countries for years, not only Asia but Russia and so on. Most seems to revert to some kind of pidgin when talking to non native English speaker.

It is a funny life isn't it?

[fourbaht]

"My best friend you" from a motorbike rental lady

[toklong]

ME:"When do you want to go to the market?"

Wife:"Today"

Me:"But today is Monday,You know I have to work."

Wife:"No,2 day is Wednesday,You no work."

Wife:"Chicken eat shampoo!" "Chicken eat shampoo!"

Me:"Chickens don't eat shampoo."

Wife:"Champoo on the tree, not shampoo!"

Me:"Oh"

[think_too_mut]

Until a few days ago, my signature was reading:

"Boyfriend send you money. No send money, him customer."

Pidgin is actually a semi-official language in PNG, Solomon Islands and around there.

The name comes from "Beijing", the way Dutch tradesman centuries ago used to deal with Chinese.

With 1100 words altogether it makes a great substitute for English and mutualy non-understandable tribal languages (PNG has over 700 languages, about 3000 people speak each).

In "real pdgin", the expression "gabamen katchin fella" is used to say "policeman".

Lived there 10 years ago, still remember.

[thatguy]

so many, and all too often.

talk to an english speaking farang, and wander into thaiglish.

hailing from south florida, spanish often dominates my speach.

one of my first visits to a thai bar, i ordered a beer,

they asked "a bia ?"

i answered si

i got 4

mao

xtg

[NedKelly]

On a similar track....when going home to Oz.......I sometimes get stuck with things like money......eg. in the bottle shop (off license for the poms) ....the guys says 11.95 for the bottle of wine.........I look at the pile of change in my hand and cant figure it out......so I hold out my hand and let him take the required amount.

Th elook on his face says it all....like "what drugs are u takin man ?"........I just tell him I am inThailand for a few years and then he says....."oh"......and thats it. I walk out feeling like a git !!

[honeyen]

my worst case--

went back home few months ago, mom woke me up early in the morning (obviously I was still dopey), I said :"aou, ta mai tong te chau ne ah? jet mong aeng!" (why so early? it's only 7am!)

[Khutan]

I hope I don't get banned for this - but I am about to go on holidays.

This is actually an Idiom my wife has invented herself....

"Darling"

-"Yes"-

"Your friend Khun Fat &lt;deleted&gt;".

Well it always gets me, particularly since she says that to his face.

[jackr]

Doesn't really count, but when I went back to Europe to work after a 12-month stint here; popped into mcDonalds in Orleans, France, and got the first bit right...Bonjour, but then ordered in Thai...ao Chicken Royale krap followed by gracias (Spanish). H3ll of a mess, but couldn't stop myself. Speak a bit of Spanish but haven't been there in years. When back in the UK, the amount of times I've said "bai" to the lads when time for the next bar.

[Jimbo_uk]

Coooo... Coooo... Cooo... - pidgeon english

[davethailand]

David, Do you want pork beef or chicken beef?

"It's not beef its either chicken or pork and its all meat"

Oh ok then.

3 years= no change (apart from when we have tom yum "heres some meat, do you want some?"

[Phil Conners]

Pidgin English makes my skin creap.

Yes I know most British subjects don't speak very proper English but it can't be much worse than the Pidgin heard in Pattaya.

[erasmus]

I wonder what the Thai say about the way we speak Thai (for the ones who speak Thai), pigeon Thai...?

[jackr]

I wonder what the Thai say about the way we speak Thai (for the ones who speak Thai), pigeon Thai...? 

I think they appreciate it when we make the effort, but I'm sure deep down they think we're a bunch of imbeciles for totally &lt;deleted&gt;-up the most basic of sentences.

[tuky]

The wife tells me I am understood a lot better than a friend that speaks in his occa accent. However I sure wish I could break the habit.

I actually picked it up in Korea several years ago.

[350torana]

My wife has a western education but stills speak pidgeon frequently , afraid i encourage her.

Old lady " My shoe bite me"

Me " Shoe not bite you , we call blister "

[mowlem]

This happened to me twice in the same week.

Go into a bar showing football

Me: Mee menu mai? (Have you a menu)

Her: No, menu mai mee. (No menu) It world cup.

She thought I wanted to watch Manchester United, Man U (not menu) as people often refer to the team!!

[george]

Thank You Very Much = Thank You Very Big

[Jeff1]

And one time my friend asked for 'eggs and bacon' and ended up with a 'ham and cheese sandwich'... Gawd knows how that one came about?

The same thing happened to me !! At the landmark hotel . I got a ham and cheese sandwich !

The one that i'll not forget in a LONG time was when My wife first came to the states , her english was not to good ( at all ) We met some friends of mine that just had a baby . My wife looks down and say's " Oh what a sexy baby "

[udon]

Ask your Thai partner to say "Elvis Presley" and/or "Sylvester Stallone"

It's a hoot!

[britmaveric]

I enjoy the occasional wine cooler- SPY Red.

I say can I have "Spy" Lady says "Spy" back. Next thing I know I have a Green Bottle Sprite in front of me. LOL I had that happen a number of times- I drank the sprite anyways, but still funny. Finally if you say SSSSSSpy Red u end up getting what you originally ordered, not Spite!!!

[Jeff1]

Ask your Thai partner to say "Elvis Presley" and/or  "Sylvester Stallone"

It's a hoot!

Those are good ones

We once stayed at the Royal River hotel . When she said it , I almost fell out of the boat !