Distinctive Features Of China English And The Chinese Linguistic Thinking In Official Speech

The English language, either for economical or political reasons, or for both, has proved to be a global language. The process of its globalization inevitably embodies its extensive indigenization in different social and cultural contexts. Therefore, it is also a process that has given rise to different varieties of English in the countries or regions that use it for cross-cultural communication. As a matter of fact, some of the English varieties have been well established and play important roles in international communication.In the case of China, the nativization of English is also assumed to go through a process of forming the Chinese features, though the features of such a variety are still open to question and study. It is labeled China English by some scholars, and considered to be a variety deeply influenced by Chinese culture and the people's way of thinking. Some scholars argue that China English, embedded with Chinese cultural characteristic, is an inevitable product of intensified interaction between China and other countries and should be treated as a variety of English. In the course of development, it experienced three periods: Pidgin English---Chinese English---China English, of which China English is the best developed stage.This paper is to give a general review of different opinions about China English based on analysis of two specific cases taken from the internet corpora (http://english.gov.cn and www.whitehouse.gov). By comparison, the author discusses the discourse characteristics of China English and tries to probe into the inner causes resulting in its distinctive features of grammar and discourse from the perspective of the relationship between language and thought. The study on China English is expected to have a great significance to the teaching and learning of the English language in China. It will also enhance cultural exchanges and facilitate intercultural communication.