Language in Society

Intro to English Linguistics

May 23rd and 30th, 2017
Jinsok Lee
 Sociolinguistics
The study of language in social contexts
Discourse analysis
Language variation and change (including dialectology)
Language policy and education
Language contact
Bilingualism
 What is Language Variation?
E.g., soda vs. pop vs. soft drink vs. fizzy drink vs. coke for carbonated drinks
 Language Varieties
The term Language Variety is used to refer to any form of language
characterized by systematic features

Dialect: When a group of speakers of a particular language differs noticeably in its speech
from another group, the groups are speaking different dialects

Dialect is not a negative thing - Everyone is a speaker of at least one dialect!

Dialect is not just different accents accent only refers to pronunciation
Dialect is not a slang
It can be regional, social, or individual
 Dialects
A group of people speaking the same dialect -> Speech community
Can be defined in terms of a number of extra-linguistic factors.
Region Southern English, NYC English, Canadian English, etc.
Socioeconomic status UK Received pronunciation (RP), etc.
Age Age grading of certain features (which may indicate language change)
Gender Gender differences in language styles and certain features.
Etc.
 Dialects
Different dialects? or different languages?
Mutual intelligibility
If two or more language varieties are mutually intelligible, they are likely to be dialects of the
language e.g., NYC English, Southern English, African American English
However, Mutual Intelligibility alone is not evident enough for those judgments e.g., Chinese
dialects, Spanish and Portuguese, Ainu dialects in Japan and Russia
Dialect Continuum in a large number of continuous dialects, each dialect is closely related to the
next, but the dialects at either end of the continuum are mutually unintelligible Borderline
between Holland and Germany

-> Mutual intelligibility does not account for all the facts. It is hard to come up with a clear
principle distinguishing languages and dialects
 Style and Register
Apart from the notion of dialects, people also speak differently depending on the
context (intra-speaker variation)

Speech Style Systematic variations in speech based on various factors such as

topic, setting, and addressee (formality, casualness, etc)

Register Special styles of language usage which is highly context dependent

(sports casting, customer service, baby talk, etc)

These speech styles can be adjusted -> style shifting

 Jargon and Slang
Jargon Technical language differing in only lexical items (clear, expressive,
and economical for speakers with a shared background)

Slang Stylistic choices in lexical items (often less formal)

Common slang Neutral everyday language most people can understand but usually
considered as not formal fridge, weed, prof, etc
In-group slang More specialized slang of a particular group at a particular time
(frequently marks ingroupness, or a group identity)
 Standard Dialects and Notion of Prestige
Standard (or correct) dialect does not exist in reality
All dialects are linguistically equivalent and no dialect holds higher position than another

The notion of standard dialect is rather an idealization

Standard dialect can be considered as a variety that serves as the primary means of
communication across dialects, which is constructed in peoples notion

The notion of standard dialect often is tied to prestige and power

This notion of standardness also changes over time and place
 Standard English
The form of the English language widely accepted as the usual correct form
(Oxford English Dictionary)

So, what is it? Can we describe it without being prescriptive?

 Prestige of Standard and Nonstandard Lg
Overt Prestige
Prestige associated with the standard dialect
Defines how people should speak in order to gain status in the wider community

Covert Prestige
Prestige associated with the nonstandard dialect
Defines how people should speak in order to gain status in a certain community
 Variation at Different Levels of Linguistic
Structure
Lexical Variation
Variations in the word level using different lexical items to mean the same thing
Carbonated drinks soda vs. pop vs. coke vs. soft drink vs. fizzy drink vs. juice
http://popv`ssoda.com/
Sub vs. Sandwich vs. Hoagy vs. Poboy vs. Hero

Lexical Variation
 Variation at Different Levels of Linguistic
Structure
Phonological Variation
Variation in the level of phonological system
Caught/Cot Merger // for both? or distinguish // and //
Pin/Pen Merger Merger of // and // in pre-nasal environment
Postvocalic // reduction Omitting // in post-vocalic environment
 Variation at Different Levels of Linguistic
Structure
American English vs. British English
 Variation at Different Levels of Linguistic
Structure
Morpho-syntactic Variation
Variation in the level of morphology and syntax
Invariant be I am happy vs. I is happy
Double negation I aint got nothing vs. I dont have anything
Combined modals might could vs. might be able to, might would vs. might perhaps
Big of a deal vs. Big a deal
 Regional and Geographic Factors
There are many extra-linguistic (or social) factors that influence variation
in language
Region is, obviously, one of them
Languages are spoken differently in different geographical locations
-> Regional Variation
 Regional Variation
Variations across countries
English UK, USA, Canada, Singapore, etc
Portuguese Portugal, Brazil, Macau...
Korean South Korea, North Korea, Yenbien...
 Regional Variation
Variations in a country
American English Southern English, NYC English, Boston English, etc
Korean Jeolla dialect, Gyeongsang dialect, Seoul dialect, etc...
Chinese Mandarin, Cantonese, etc
 Regional Variation
Why geography?
People who live close to each other will have considerably more influence on each
others dialects than people who live farther apart
Region itself does not affect the formation of a certain dialect
However, geographical conditions (mountains, rivers, etc) may affect the interaction
between two or more group of people, causing natural isolation
 Regional Dialect
Traditional regional dialect studies mainly focused on lexical variations
between dialects by looking at isoglosses (lines on maps marking areas
involved in producing particular linguistic form)
Regional Variation (of course) shows differences in phonological, lexical,
morpho-syntactic levels
 Regional Variation
Traditional dialectology map
-> from Kurath (1949) on Words for Dragonfly
in the Eastern States
 Regional Variation
More maps! from Coye (2009) on dialect boundaries of NJ
Regional Variation
 Regional Variation
Northern City Vowel Shift
 Regional Variation
New England Phonology (and some lexical items)
 Regional Variation
Southern Phonology
 Social Factors of Lg Variation
In addition to the regional factor, social factors often influence differences among language varieties-> Social
dialects
Socioeconomic class (status)
Age
Sometimes indicates language change
Gender
Female
Male
And more?
Ethnicity
African American
White
Latino
ETC
ETC
 Social Factors
Socioeconomic Variation
Different values can be associated with language varieties of people of different
socioeconomic status

Overt Prestige Generally associated with higher socioeconomic status

Covert Prestige Generally associated with certain group (can be socially prestigious or not
prestigious) for in-groupness
 Social Factors
Labovs (1972) NYC department store study postvocalic //
Examined three department stores
Saks (High prestige)
Macys (Moderate prestige)
S. Klein (Low prestige)
Asked salesclerks a question twice to elicit fourth floor
First response casual speech
Second response careful speech Excuse me, what floor
is this?
 Social Factors
Labovs (1972) NYC department store study postvocalic //
Showed a clear stratification of rhoticity among the salespeople according to
socioeconomic status
The lowest socioeconomic-class store (S. Klein) showed the lowest % or rhoticity
The highest socioeconomic-class store (Saks) showed the highest % of rhoticity
Careful style of speech associated with a higher percentage of rhoticity
 Social Factors
Age Variation
Younger speakers might speak differently
from older speakers
Often leads to a linguistic change
Age grading can also occur which
sometimes the difference is stable across
generations
 Social Factors
Age Variation
NYC English raised //
Older NYC speakers produce // with a raised nucleus while younger speakers produce
lower // nucleus

NYC English // split

Older NYC speakers produce split // governed by a complex set of lexical, morphological
and phonological conditions, while younger NYC speakers raise // only in pre-nasal
environments
 Social Factors
Gender Variations
Gender is a culturally constructed category, while sex is a biological category

Not a dichotomous category

Therefore, the association between the gender difference and variation is arbitrary

Some languages show relatively clearer division between female and male speech e.g.,
Japanese
 Social Factors
Gender Variations
(At least in some Western cultures) Female speakers tend to use more prestigious forms
than male speakers
e.g., word final /-/ in Norwich Eng, multiple negation in Sydney Australia
-> different level of insecurity of social status?

But at the same time, female speakers are often found to be as linguistic innovators in
the process of language change adopts new forms in their speech
 Social Factors
Ethnic Variations
Some ethnic groups are often associated with particular language varieties that represent
the groups heritage and culture
Not always true in a closer look
What about other ethnic groups?
Some well-known ethnolects in the US
African American English
Chicano English
Lumbee English
 Social Factors
African American English
A continuum of varieties spoken primarily by and among African Americans
The origin of AAE is controversial (Creoles of slaves, hybrid of various UK dialects...)
Features
// monophthongization side [s:d], sigh [s:], but less frequent before voiceless consonants sight [st]
Consonant cluster reduction cold [khol], best [bs]
Postvocalic // vocalization store [sto]
Absence of 3rd person sing -s He need to get a book
Multiple negation He aint got nothin
Copula absence He goin to the store
Habitual be He be late
 Social Factors
African American English
 Language Contact
Lingua Franca: A language variety used by common agreement among
speakers of different languages (started as a form of a trade language).
English language nowadays.
Chinese (at least writing) among many Asian countries in Asia in the past.
Latin among European countries in the past.
Yiddish among Jews around the world.
Swahili among many African countries.
Lingua Franca can arise naturally or by Government policy and intervention.
 Language Contact
Contact Languages
Pidgin: A hybrid language developed by speakers of mutually unintelligible languages
under specific socioeconomic and political conditions (the developed language native to
neither groups).
In almost all cases of pidgins, (socially) dominant language (superstrate or lexifier language)
provides most of the lexical items. Syntax may root in the other language (substrate
language). However, the syntax often gets simplified. Pidgins are domain specific language.
Creole: When a pidgin expands and develops it own linguistic complexity, and stabilizes
by obtaining native speakers of the language, it becomes a creole.
Unlike pidgins, creoles are not domain specific language.
 Language Contact
Bilingualism: When 2 (or more) languages are used by an individual
(individual bilingualism), or within a society (societal bilingualism), that
linguistic phenomenon is called bilingualism.
Individual bilingualism: A speaker with linguistic competence in 2 (or more) languages.
Societal bilingualism: A society or speech community with 2 (or more) languages used
in that society.
 Language Contact
Linguistic Phenomena often Involved in Bilingualism

Code Switching: Switching between 2 (or more) languages in an utterance (individual).

E.g., Mis amigos finished first. Spanish-English switching
Diglossia: Strict distinction in the usage of 2 (or more) languages by different domains
(social).
E.g., Classic Arabic vs. Egyptian Arabic (Egypt), French vs. Haitian Creole (Haiti), Standard
German vs. Swiss (German Swiss)