Pure Fiji English (Fijian and part-European speakers)

In order to understand the phonology of the Fijian and part-European variety of Pure Fiji English phonology a brief overview of the phonology of Fijian needs to be considered. The phonology of Fijian has been described in detail by Geraghty (1983) and Schütz (1985). The consonant and vowel phonemes of Fijian are presented in Figures 1 and 2 respectively. Note that:

– Symbols in parentheses are found in English loanwords.

– Vowel length is phonemic.

– The diphthongs are /ai/, /ei/, /oi/, /ao/, /iu/, /eu/, /au/ and /ou/.

The following are the most common phonological features of the Pure Fiji English spoken by Fijians and part-Europeans. Many of these may be heard in the accompanying recordings on the CD-ROM.