Abstract
Abstract English has been in India for over 400 years, and an adequate history must trace the emergence of distinct English-using communities over time. This chapter first outlines the evolution of English in India through four time periods: early presence, colonial ideologies, the independence movement, and independent India. Next, it describes the resulting linguistic features of contemporary Indian English (IndE) varieties. In closing, the chapter assesses recent claims about the variety’s stage of evolution. Rather than a single entity moving unidirectionally toward or away from a single norm, IndE is better conceived of as a series of overlapping domains of use, at different stages of nativization, and arising out of specific moments and shifts in power and social relations.
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