Exploring English as a Multicultural Language in Pakistan: A Sociolinguistic Profile

Abstract

This study aims at exploring Pakistani English as a multicultural language and the importance of grasping the reality of intercultural competence in English language teaching (ELT). It conceptualizes Pakistani English as a multicultural language in terms of the Three Concentric Circles model suggested by B. B. Kachru (1985). Innovative changes and deviations have been recognized as indigenized features of Pakistani English that emerge due to the influence of L1 and the Pakistani cultural context. This is a theory-based content analysis of textbooks of English taught at IX and X grades in schools of the four provinces in Pakistan. An analysis of lexical stereotypes in Pakistani English is carried out to explore a multicultural dimension of Pakistani English. Recruiting the notion of Pakistani English as a multicultural language this study suggests that representation of Pakistani culture in the textbooks elevates intercultural competence to fill the gap in cultural diversity using English in ELT.