Gonzalez (1997) argued that the fir

Gonzalez (1997) argued that the first languages of speakers of Philippine English could be identified. While it may not be possible to identify accurately in every case the mother-tongue dialects speakers of CE, speakers of CE currently have a range of accents that are determined to a large extent by their mother tongue dialects. It has already been noted that speakers of Hong Kong English speak with an easily identifiable accent and that the influence of Cantonese phonology can be detected. By definition, speakers of CE come from all over China and, as the Chinese language has seven major dialect groups and many more sub-varieties, it follows that speakers of CE may have different accents dependent upon their mother-tongue dialect. Little research has yet been conducted into this and here I shall not attempt to claim any distinctive phonological features that are common to all speakers of CE, except to say that CE speakers have a tendency towards syllable timing.