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The Phonological Features of Malaysian English (ME)

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The study of Malaysian English (ME) has gained significant attention due to its emergence as a distinct variety of World Englishes. However, while its lexical, phonological, and syntactical features are well recognised, the research still lacks scholarly attention, empirical exploration and longitudinal study. This paper focuses on the phonological features of Malaysian English described by previous researchers through comprehensive library research. The findings suggest that the phonological features of Malaysian English encompass three main areas which are vowels, consonants, and suprasegmentals. Nevertheless, this research also investigated the country’s diverse ethnicities on the standardisation of Malaysian English as a unique World Englishes and its influence on the phonological features. Thus, several research endeavours have delved into the segmental and suprasegmental aspects of Malaysian English. These investigations have revealed that the accents' characteristics vary notably based on factors such as the speaker's cultural and linguistic background, as well as the specific variety of English they are acquiring.

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