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Language Variety:

Specific language or specific form of language used by a particular community:

French, Italian, etc…or Appalachian English, African-American English, Southern English

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Language (s)• Is a system of arbitrary signals:

- voice sounds- gestures- written symbols

which communicate thoughts or feelings

• Human spoken – written languages:- system of symbols (lexemes) and the grammar (rules)- can be manipulated

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Learning language – normal – human childhood- use patterns of sound and gesture – communication- thousands of languages – share certain properties

Human and computer programs – constructed other languages:- Constructed languages: Esperanto, Ido, Interlingua, Klingon, programming languages and various mathematical formalisms

Ido: Me ne havas libro means, “I do not have a book” Esperanto: Mirinda Amo means Wonderful LoveKlingon: a constructed language used in ‘Star Trek’ spoken by

Klingon

- not necessarily restricted to the properties shared by human languages

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Standard Language• a particular variety of a language

that has been given legal or quasi-legal status

• the most correct dialect of a language

• Generally which is written, has undergone some degree of regularisation, and recognised as a prestigious variety by a community

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Steps of standardising language

• Selection• Codification• Elaboration of function• Acceptance

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• Selection- a variety or combination of varieties can be selected and developed- great social and political significance – recognised as prestigious by community

• Codification- agencies or academies – produce dictionaries and grammar – define what is correct and incorrect- For example: DBP - decisions made by these organisations – shared and accepted – users of the language

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• Elaboration of Function- selected variety must cater for various functions and situations- such as government, educational, business, scientific and others- require additional linguistic items – process of borrowing

• Acceptance- must be accepted as the standard language- acceptance is achieved : three factors may take place –

(a) serve as a strong unifying force(b) symbol of independence from other states(c) serve as a marker to differentiate one state

from another

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Features of standard languageSome features that identify a standard language:

• A recognised dictionary which embody a standardised spelling and vocabulary

• A recognised grammar – records the forms, rules and structures

• A standard system of pronunciation – free from regional marking

• An institution promoting the use of the language – given authority in defining the norms of its use

• Constitutions – language an official legal status in a country’s system of law

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Examples of the Development of Standard Languages

(a)In British English, the standard Received Pronunciation – based on the upper class – London area

(b) In Spain – Standard Spanish not based on the speech of Madrid- the northerly province of Valladolid

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(c) In Argentina and Uruguay, the Spanish standard is based on local dialects of Buenos Aires and Montevideo- known as Rioplatense Spanish – different from other standards of Spanish

(d) The US, federal government has no official language- many US states and territories have designated English – official language- Louisiana, New Mexico, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, Guam and America Samoa – recognise English and an additional language

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Language Variation

Factors that influence:(a)Dialect(b)Style(c) register

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Dialects• A variety of a language used by

people from a particular geographic area

• Number of speakers and area itself can be of arbitrary size

• Dialect in larger area can contain plenty of sub-dialects

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• A complete system of verbal communication – own vocabulary and grammar

• Concept of dialects – distinguised from:(a) sociolects : a variety of a language spoken by a certain social class(b) standard languages : are standardised for public performance

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Dialects

Regional Social

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Regional Dialect- Travel from one region to another –

encounter noticeable changes – language:

- Pronunciation, choice of words and syntax

- Distinctive varieties – regional dialects- Not a distinct language but rather a

variety of a language spoken in a particular area of a country

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Social Dialects- The variety of social group or social

class -the differences in speech- Can be used to refer to

(a) ethnic(b) occupation(c) status(d) caste(e) education, income, racial etc

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For example:Ethnic variation – the identification of a

dialect associated with a specific ethnic group such as “Black dialect” in cities such as New York, Detriot and Buffalo

In India, social caste – Brahmins and non-Brahmin caste – influence – variety of language – social differences

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Style

Below are two excerpts of two good friends, Ahmad and Jim, conversations at two different occasions.

(a) Having tea at the caféAhmad: Jim, what’s all this?Jim: Sorry! I will explain everything to you later.

(b) In court, where Ahmad is a lawyer and Jim, the judge

Ahmad: Your honour, I would like to request for an extension.

Jim: Extension, denied

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In both situations, Ahmad – making a request.

However, the form of request changes – according to the context.

In situation (a) – Both – having tea in a café, and the form is casual

In situation (b) – Both – are in – courtand the form – formal, despite having

established relationship

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Change and language varies:(a) the place(b) occasion

affects the choice of form – leads – stylistic differences

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Variables that influence style:

(a)Addressee(b)Social class(c) Context and social roles(d)Ethnics groups

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(a) AddresseeFamiliar person – (i) More casual(ii) Relaxed style is used(iii)More vernacular forms (non-

standard)

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Letter AHi! How are you?

Letter BHow are you?

Thanks for writing to me It’s has been a while since I last heard from you.

I am happy you are enjoying your holidays

From what I heard, it is an exotic place, with long stretches of white beaches

I really miss the beach and I can really do with a vacation

I wish I were there to soak in the serenity and tranquility

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Letter to the child:(a)Has shorter sentences(b)Common vocabulary(c) Simpler grammar

Letter to the adult:(a)Uses relatively more complex

sentences (b)More low frequency words used

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- the same applies to spoken conversation- Different – spoken interaction :

(i) an adult – child- opt for parentese

(babytalk)- sing-song intonation

(ii) an adult – adult - use wider vocabulary - more complicated

strutures

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(b) Social ClassIn Norwich, United Kingdom:- the pronunciation ‘ng’ [ŋ] is used

differently.- More frequently used:

(a) higher the social class(b) in the formal contexts

- Low frequency used(a) lower class – speech is more casual

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- Newsreaders – employ different linguistic styles – cater the need of the audience

- News – same, concept and context identical

- Difference in social background – influence the linguistic style

- Higher end of the spectrum – a more formal style

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(c) Context and Social Roles

Situation A – At an army campJim, a lance corporal has to report to his

father, a general.When his father called out his name, Jim

answered, “Yes, Sir!”

Situation B – In a lecture hallSuzy, the daughter of the respectable

lecturer, Dr LilyWhen asking a question, Suzy says, “Dr Lily,

can you please repeat the answer?”

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In both the situations:Etiquette requires (a) Jimmy to address his father ‘Sir’ (b) Suzy to address her mother ‘Dr Lily’

This shows – context of the situation – a powerful influence on speech style.

Formal situations:(a) the army(b) the classroom(c) the court(d) the church, etc –

override personal relationships

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For example:(a) In a court:(i) The judge is the parent of the solicitor –

the judge – addressed as ‘Your honour’, ‘Sir’ or ‘the Bench’

(ii) The child – addressed as ‘Mr’, ‘Mrs’ or ‘Miss’

(b) In a churchThe priest – ‘Father’ even by his own father during religious ceremony

- Social roles determined by the formality of the contexts

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- Social roles – determined by(a)a person’s status(b)Solidarity

For example:Michael Maddison – a prominent figure- Addressed by his first name –

Michael or Mike for short – close to him

- Social subordinates and others – address – using his title and last name ‘Mr Maddison’

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(d) Ethnic GroupsCertain ethnic groups have very distinct

styles of referring to different social groups.

For example:(i) The Japanese- Assess the relationship with the addressee- Adjust their style of speaking- Employ not only different pronunciation but

also different lexical choice and sentence structure

- Common to see Japanese exchange business cards – to find out each other’s social class and family background

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(ii) The Javanese- Distinguishes its pronunciation,

vocabulary and sentence structure – social class and status

- Three stylistic levels:formal or high (krama inggi) to mid to

the least formal or low (ngoko)- The pronoun ‘you’ referred as

(a) ‘nandalem’ – formal(b) ‘sapeyan’ – mid(c) ‘sliramu’ – casual speech

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Style analysed – formality or situational factors (addressee, setting, task or topic)

Register – speech related to a certain speciality

- concerns with how we use language to express our social identity and social competence

For example: Sports commentators, the language of

pilots, court room and classroom financiers, disc jockeys

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Registers – language of groups of people with common interests / jobs

- language used in situations associated with such groups

For example: Sports announcer talkCooley – steaming in now – bowls to Karim again – stroking it out into the covers – just thinking about a single – Dinesh stuttering steps down the wicket from the bowler’s end.

Language used – distinguishable from other contexts

Vocabulary - obvious distinguishing feature Terms : related to cricketsilly mid on, square leg, the covers – describe

positionsOff-break, googly, and leg break – describe deliveries

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Grammar – distinctive Sports announcers uses – ‘play-by-

play’ description- Focus on action- Involves features such as :

(i) syntactic reduction(ii) inversion of normal word order in sentences(iii) heavy noun modification(iv) routines and formulas

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(i) Syntactic reduction(a) [It] bounced to second base(b) [It’s] a breaking ball outside(c) Karim [is] in difficulty(d) [He’s a] guy who’s a pressure player

Sports announcers :(i) Omit the subject noun or pronoun (a)(ii) Omit the verb ‘be’ (b) and (d)(iii) Omit only ‘be’ (d)However – meaning is not loss

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(ii) Syntactic inversion(a) In comes Hassan(b) And all set again is Pat Haden(c) On deck is big Peter Lim

Reversal / inversion– another feature of sports announcer talk- Allows the announcer to focus on the

action- Provides him/her time to identify the

subject of the action

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(iii) Heavy noun modification(a)This much sought-after and very

expensive footballer(b)First class referee David Foreman(c) Clark, the new Chelsea skipper and

a player worth every pound they paid for him

Sports announcers – focus on the people instead of the action

- Heavily modified before the noun (a) and (b) or after the noun (c).

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(iv) Routines and Formulas(a) A very good morning to our principal

(name), teachers and friends. First of all I would like to thank (name) for giving me this opportunity to speak today. The topic of my speech today is (title)

(b) A very good afternoon to the adjudicators, the opposition team, ladies and gentlemen. We, the government, firmly believe that (title). Before I proceed any further, please allow me to define the word (word) Therefore, based on our definition, we, the government, firmly believes that the motion of today, (title)

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Routines and Formulas enable :(a) give the impression of fluency(b) to convey information with minimal

demand on short term memory(c) retain the listener’s interest and convey

the drama of the event

In short, the use of specialised registers:(a) Develop the desire – quick, efficient and

precise communication(b) Express shared meanings concisely and

precisely(c) Language to develop more and more

characteristics – lexical, syntactic and phonological

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