The Handbook of World Englishes, 2nd Edition

14East Asian Englishes

NOBUYUKI HONNA

1 Introduction

The English language situation in East Asia is being vitalized with a remarkable increase in the number of students learning the language in the whole region. While China witnesses an estimated 350 million people studying and using English (25% of the population; Bolton 2008: 6), Japan emphasizes English competence in its officially initiated globally minded Japanese development project. Korea and Taiwan are constantly committed to strengthening their primary‐school English language teaching (ELT) programs. In other parts of Asia where English serves as a language of intranational communication and where ELT spreads and succeeds, national varieties have invariably emerged. Although English is designated as an international (not intranational) language in East Asia, indications are that what amounts to a national variety is developing in each country in this region, too. One cause of this phenomenon can be attributed to the communicative approaches adopted in ELT programs regionwide. Those approaches are meant to put more value on mutual understanding than on simple mimicry and rigid pattern practice. Increased exposure to English‐using environments is also expected to make learners aware of varieties, thereby helping them to recognize that they can use English effectively without speaking like a native speaker. This chapter presents a brief description of the current English language situation and ELT innovations while referring ...