When the definite article is used for possessive determiners in Kenyan English

Abstract

The literature on the use of articles in L2 varieties of English reports both the overuse and the underuse of the definite article. An excellent synoptic discussion of such apparently contradictory results is Sand (2004). Because L2 English varieties have developed in a sociolinguistic environment where they were in contact with indigenous languages, Sand (2004: 284–287) reviews what research findings show about ‘substrate influence on article use’. Two substrate languages she mentions (p. 286) as examples are Hindi (which is expected to have influenced Indian English) and Swahili (which is expected to have influenced Kenyan English). Regarding Indian English she writes: ‘Typically, we find reference to a “lack of articles” in descriptions of contact varieties like Indian English [ . . . ]’ (p. 286). But a few lines later she adds this: However, Sedlatscheck (forthcoming: 105) also finds for his Indian data that, apart from zero articles, the largest number of what he calls ‘article substitutions’ occur in the category of the definite article. Thus, the definite article is used instead of the zero or indefinite article expected according to standard English usage. (p. 286) The quotation above suggests that both some overuse and some underuse of the definite article can be observed in Indian English, thus making the possible influence of a substrate language like Hindi (reported not to have articles) not so relevant.