BASIC TERMS

Variety, Dialect, Sociolect,

Idiolect, Register, Jargon and
Slang

Week 3
 VARIETIES OF ENGLISH
§VARIATION: Natural phenomenon
§Language is a form of social behavior and communities
tend to split up into groups, each displaying differences
of behavior
§Language manifests differences of behavior
§Language is the variety of speakers
§Speakers vary in their vocabulary and skills to use it
§ Linguistic variables have both social and style
variation, some only social, but none style variation
only.
DIALECT
§ No universally accepted criteria for distinguishing
languages from dialects.
§ The exact distinction is a subjective one, dependent on the
user's frame of reference
§Language varieties are often called dialects rather than
languages:
§Because
§solely they are not, or not recognized as literary languages
§ the speakers of the given language do not have a state of
their own
§they are not used in press or literature, or very little.
§because their language lacks prestige.
•It is applied most often to regional speech
patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by
other factors, such as social class
•Defined as: a sub-division of a language, used by
a group of speakers who have some non-linguistic
characteristics in common or the specific form of a
language used by a speech community.
•Most common characteristic: the regional one
•Link can also be occupational and social.
•The word "dialect" is sometimes used to refer to a
lesser-known language most commonly a regional
language, especially one that is unwritten or not
standardized.
§The difference between language and dialect is the
difference between the abstract or general and the concrete
and particular.
§ Identifying a particular dialect as the "standard" or
"proper" version of a language are in fact using these terms
to express a social distinction.
§The status of language is not solely determined by linguistic
criteria, but it is also the result of a historical and political
development
§Mandarin and Cantonese are often considered dialects and
not languages, because they share a common literary
standard and common body of literature.
 STANDARD AND NON-STANDARD DIALECTS
§A standard dialect: a dialect that is supported by institutions
§ Such institutional support may include government recognition
or designation;
§Presentation as being the "correct" form of a language in
schools;
§Published grammars, dictionaries, and textbooks that set forth
a "correct" spoken and written form;
§An extensive formal literature that employs that dialect in
prose, poetry, non-fiction, etc.
§Standard American English, Standard British English, Standard
Indian English, Standard Australian English, and Standard
Philippine English may all be said to be standard dialects of
the English language.
§A nonstandard dialect: has a complete
vocabulary, grammar, and syntax, but is
not the beneficiary of institutional
support.
§ An example of a nonstandard English
dialect is Southern English
§ The Dialect Test was designed by
Joseph Wright to compare different
English dialects with each other.
 REGIONAL DIALECT
ØIt is not a distinct language.
ØIt is a variety of a language usually
spoken in a particular area of a country.
ØSome regional dialects have been given
traditional names which mark them out as
being significantly different from standard
varieties spoken in the same place
ØEx: 'Hillbilly English' from the
Appalachians in the USA and 'Geordie'
from Newcastle upon Tyne in the UK.
 SOCIOLECT
§The variety of language having characteristics of
a social background or status
§ A dialect which evolves from regional speech
may also have sociolectical implications
§ Ex: standard Italian is a dialect in that it is
particular to Tuscany; yet, being the national
language of Italy, it is also a sociolect in that it
carries a certain prestige from being the lingua
franca throughout the country – both in
broadcasting, in the press, and by people of high
social status.
 IDIOLECT
§ A variety of a language unique to an individual.
§Manifested by patterns of word selection and grammar,
or words, phrases, idioms, or pronunciations that are
unique to that individual
§The grouping of words and phrases is unique, rather than
an individual using specific words that nobody else uses
§Idiolect can easily evolve into an ecolect—a dialect
variant specific to a household.
§Idiolects change through contact with other idiolects, and
change throughout their lifetime as well as from
generation to generation.
 REGISTER
•Term was originated by: Thomas Bertram Reid in 1956
•Become common: in the 1960s introduced by a group of
linguists who wanted to distinguish between variations in
language according to the user and variations according
to use,
•Each speaker has a range of varieties and choices between
them at different times. (Halliday et al, 1964)
•Focus is on the way language is used in particular situations
•Halliday (1964) identifies three variables that determine
register: field (the subject matter of the discourse), tenor
(the participants and their relationships) and mode (the
channel of communication, e.g. spoken or written).
 JARGON
§Jargon is terminology that relates to a specific activity,
profession or group
§Develops as a kind of shorthand, to quickly express ideas that
are frequently discussed between members of a group
§More precise or specialized usage among practitioners of a
field
§Used in various fields:
§sports broadcast
§to refer to concepts within the belief systems of organized
religion
§medical professionals
§Information Technology and the Internet
§Nautical Terms
§to refer to political strategies and tactics
 SLANG
§Slang is the use of informal words and expressions to
describe an object or condition.
§vocabulary that is meant to be interpreted quickly but not
necessarily literally
§slang words or terms are often a metaphor or an allegory
§sometimes regional in that it is used only in a particular
territory
§particular to a certain subculture, such as musicians, and
members of minority groups
§usage of slang expressions can spread outside their original
arenas to become commonly used
§some words eventually lose their status as slang, others
continue to be considered as such by most speakers.
§Slang is the complete opposite of jargon
§Criteria for true slang proposed by Dumas &
Lighter
§ Lowers, temporarily, the dignity of formal or
serious speech or writing or glaring misuse of
register.
§Its use implies that the user is familiar with
whatever is referred to, or with a group of people
that are familiar with it and use the term.
§A taboo term in ordinary discourse with people of
a higher social status or greater responsibility.