Language in Society:

An Introduction to
Sociolinguisitcs- CH
1
Tayseer ElZeiny
Course instructor: Dr. Norice William
 Table of contents

01 02 06
Introduction Conclusion
English: Language
and Dialect
01 Introduction
Syopsis of Chapter
The purpose of this chapter is to
explain why the notions of language
and dialect are fundamentally social
and not linguistic constructs

Questions to Consider
• Why are these presumed ‘linguistic’
notions dependent on social constructs?
• What is the relationship between these
constructs?
 English: laguage
02 and dialect
02
English:laguage and dialect
o What is the standard definition of the word “Language”?

The system of communication in speech and writing that is used by people of a particular country or

area

o What is the standard definition of the word “dialect”?

A particular form of a language which is peculiar to a specific region or social group. It is the form of

a language that is spoken in one area with grammar, words and pronunciation that may be different

from other forms of the same language

02
English: laguage and dialect
02
Politics of Language
o Are notions on language and dialect socially constructed?
o Is American English a dialect of English or a separate language?
o The answer depends on your point of view!
o When American journalist Henry Mencken named his book ‘ The
American Language’ and not, perhaps, ‘The English Language in America’,
he was making a political statement
o Announcing his stance on the question of whether or not American English
is a dialect of English or a separate language.
o Noah Webster shares similar sentiments when he wrote his dictionary of
American English and used spellings for certain words that were different
from British English. Ex: color/ criticize.(a decision that perhaps reflects
autonomy. )
02
English: laguage and dialect
o Similarly, the same thing happened in 1945 when Sidney Baker
published his book “The Australian Language”, confidently
asserting the autonomy of Australian English, and announcing his
stance on the matter.
o Before that had happened, in 1932, British English was used on
radio in the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and well-
established announcers on the ABC were Englishmen.
o The British accent is no longer used on the ABC, but back then,
the Australian accent was regarded as a ‘lesser’ variety of
English, and was often compared to educated southern British
English accents
o ‘Cultural Cringe’- ex: feeling embarrassed for sounding Australian
02
English: laguage and dialect
o Sometimes, you can observe ‘dialect continuums’ that can be
primarily social in nature
o A dialect continuum is a series of language varieties spoken across
some geographical area such that neighboring varieties are mutually
intelligible, but the differences accumulate over distance so that widely
separated varieties may not be.
o For example, in Jamaica, people at the top of the social scale- the
British- spoke English, while those at the bottom spoke Jamaican
Creole

o Over time, a ‘continuum’ slowly emerged between the two, and several
varieties filled the gap.
02
English: laguage and dialect
02
English: laguage and dialect
03 Conclusion
03
English:laguage and dialect
o Sometimes, deciding what qualifies as a language is pretty
political

o The terms ‘language‘ and ‘dialects’ can often contain value

judgements

o These differences in judgement reflect the inherent

sociopolitical value that falls onto these 2 terms

o Terms such as ‘language’ and ‘dialect’ are very difficult to define

objectively; there is no warranted ‘sameness’ at a level that
allows for the objectivity that we usually look for when
attempting to define something.
 Thanks for
listening!
Do you have any questions?
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References