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65 Cards in this Set
- Front
- Back
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Is Linguistic Variation inevitable? Why do we have language differences?
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Yes, they are inevitable. We have language differences because of different lifestyles and we all grew up in different areas.
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Do we make judgments about people based on their language? Give an example.
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Yes we do. Example: the lady in American Tongues talking about sophisticated vs white trash/uneducated
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Dialect (author's definition)
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a variety of a language associated with a particular region or social group.
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Idiolect, Dialect, Language
(in terms of each other) |
Idiolect- a person's own personal language
dialect- a group of similar idiolect language- a group of similar and mutually intelligible dialects |
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Difference-Deficit contreversy
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difference- difference when in workplace or around friends (people can make bad assumptions), linguists believe difference
Deficit- some people believe its because people are uneducated |
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Other terms for dialect
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"language difference", "language variety", "language variation"
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Standard English
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widespread, normal variety that other dialects are based on, what we learn in school. professional/proper/prestige/prescribed
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Informal standard English
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Normally the spoken language, harder to define, a matter of degree
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vernacular
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using a language native to a region or country, not of literary quality; normal spoken form of a language; non-standard language of a country or region; non-mainstream
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stigma; stigmatize
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stigma-a mark of shame or discredit
stigmatize- an unfavorable way to label someone |
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Why study dialects?
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disinclined to stigmatize; dialects offer cultural and heritage value; naturally interested in it; easier to travel if you are aware of dialects and how people in a region talk
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Thomas Pickering
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1st person to write about differences between British and American English
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Linguistic Atlas of the United States and Canada
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most successful way to discuss regional differences; one of the 1st to divide the dialects; publication of maps of regional dialects. Based on: pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammatical differences
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DARE (Dictionary of American Regional English)
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distinguish dialects by vocabulary
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Linguistic Society of America (1997) resolution
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"all human language systems-spoken, signed and written-are fundamentally regular."
says that it is a difference and not a deficit |
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Linguistic Profiling
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Making judgments about people because of their dialect. ie. not giving a person a house because they talk with AAE
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Ann Arbor Decision (1979)
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Teachers need to teach students in their home language. AAE speakers might have lower scores and should be taught in AAE to learn standard English
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Because of mass communication, increased mobility and the continuing development of sophisticated electronic technology, the dialects of NA English are becoming less distinct and will eventually disappear.
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False. Languages are probably becoming more and more distinct.
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sociohistorical factor: settlement
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things are only available in certain areas, different groups need different words
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sociohistorical factor: migration
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dialect boundaries coincide with migration patterns; migration works hand in hand with settlement
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sociohistorical factor: geographic features
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mountains and rivers keep people divided
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sociohistorical factor: language contact
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people from other places bring language influence
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sociohistorical factor: economic ecology
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farmers are near farms; rangers are near ranching things; this influences difference because city-dwellers don't need words like rodeo
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sociohistorical factor: social stratification
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(William Labov) class has to do with a lot of differences
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sociohistorical factor: group and individual identity
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people identify themselves with the group
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Languages are dynamic systems that are constantly in the process of changing.
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True. We don't know why, but as long as a language is alive it changes
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What does language change have to do with language variation?
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Some changes can be dialect specific; therefore, it might change differently in different places. So it is a major cause of language variation
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arbitrary
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conventional; it is what we are taught.
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Four levels at which language can vary.
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Lexicon=vocabulary
Pronunciation/phonology Grammatical Pragmatics v Symmantics |
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Coining
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creating a new word; linguists believe creating a new word entirely. ie Kodak
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Lexical differences are typically considered "regional curiosities" for which people are not usually socially stigmatized. What is the exception?
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offensive words:
profanity, obscenity, vulgarity, racial slurs |
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Jargon
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detailed language used by professionals to communicate complicated matters efficiently and effectively to other professionals in the field
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Argot
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Criminal speak; secretive
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Slang
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more informal than jargon; easier; promotes group membership
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diphthong
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a combination of two vowel sounds; one glides into another (very susceptible to change)
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monothongization
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loose a vowel in a diphthong
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mergers
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two different words that sound the same or made to sound the same. ie Marry, Merry, Mary
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Most social stigmatized language variation
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Grammar- people judge on poor grammar usage (grammatical variation)
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morphology
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structure of words
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syntax
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order of words
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How many dialects are there?
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too many to count; impossible to pin down a number; 60 according to grammar hotline in video; depends on how deep you want to go
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First successful English settlement? What kind of English did they speak?
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Jamestown, VA (1607), British English
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Second successful English settlement? What kind of English did they speak?
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Massachusetts Bay (1620s), British English
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Where are traditional r-less regions
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Massachusetts area, Eastern NE, Eastern Virginia, NYC, South Carolina
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Pidgin/Creole
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Pidgin- a language used as a trade language among speakers of different languages; grammar and vocab simplified
creole- a pidgin with native speakers |
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Why AAE? What is Gullah?
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Because of slave creoles.
Gullah- a creole language spoken by African Americans in the Seas Islands off the coast of South Carolina and Georgia |
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Cajun
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(Nova Scotia) a French/English creole influenced by the Acadians (1765)
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American English v. British English
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structurally the same; pronunciation, vocab and spelling are different
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Noah Webster
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made the most spelling changes. Thought that we should be different than England since we were a different country
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HL Mencken
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satirist, journalist for Baltimore Sun. Wrote multiple language books: The American Language.
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Whats spurred a mild resurgence of interest in regional dialect study since the 1980s?
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a. publication of DARE
b. William Labov's switch from sociolinguistics to regional dialects |
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How was research conducted "back in the day"?
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Long questionaires, took days, participants were paid
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isogloss
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a line between dialect features.
* a bunch of isogloss creates confluence= bundle of isoclosses *the bigger the bundle the more distinguished the dialect is |
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William Labov
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switched interests to regional dialects. Changed research to be based on pronunciation and conducted telephone surveys instead of questionnaires
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compounding
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two or more existing words are combined to form a new word.
ie hatchback, butterfly |
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acronyms
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new words are formed by taking the initial sounds or letters from existing words.
ex. SONAR, DARE, MADD |
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blending
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parts of two words are combined to form a new word.
ex. liger, grapple |
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clipping
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words are formed by shortening existing words.
ex. zines, biz |
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conversion
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words are shifted from one part of speech to another without any change in their form
ex. run "they scored a run" |
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proper names
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proper nouns, which refer to a specific person, place, or thing, are changed into common nouns, which refer to a general class of items.
ex. kleenex, coke |
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borrowing
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words form other languages are incorporated into the language or dialect
ex. chipmunk, delicatessen, rodeo |
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folk etimology
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words are altered to make their meanings more transparent
ex. old timer's disease for Alzheimer's Disease |
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Back Formation
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shorter words are created from longer words based on the removal of what appears to be an affix but is in reality part of the original word.
ex. burgle from burglar, editor to edit |
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recutting
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words are reanalyzed into component parts which differ from the original parts
ex. a whole nother inside of another |
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derivation
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words created through the addition of a derivational affix
ex. kind is adj + ness is a noun |
