Abstract

In outer circle Englishes, the boundaries between nativised loanwords and code-switched lexical items are often blurred. This article attempts to gauge the degree of nativisation of a set of common Fijian and Hindi loans by surveying expatriates’ use and knowledge of these words. Results indicate that loans forming part of expatriates’ active vocabularies also occur most often in the media and in conversation. These words also are pragmatically essential for effective day-to-day communication in Fiji. Differences in the types of words used and known by women, men and teenagers also reflect the immediate pragmatic value they have for each of these groups. The number of loans expatriates acquire increases steadily over the first seven years of residence. After this few new Fijian or Hindi words are learned.

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