| WHY IS THE DISTINCTION BETWEEN LANGUAGE | | | | prescribing what they should be. |
| AND DIALECT A DILIMNA FOR THE | | | | A second, related premise is that |
| SOCIOLINGUIST TILL NOW? | | | | every naturally used language variety is systematic, |
| | | | | with regular rules and restrictions at the lexical, |
| There are no universally accepted criteria for | | | | phonological and grammatical level. Although |
| distinguishing languages from dialects, although a | | | | non-linguists sometimes assume that some |
| number of paradigms exist, which render sometimes | | | | dialects--unusually non-standard ones --don't have any |
| contradictory results. The exact distinction is | | | | rules, or that they are simply the result of their |
| therefore a subjective one, dependent on the user's | | | | speakers' laziness, carelessness, or cussedness, |
| frame of reference. | | | | linguists usually feel quite differently, both on empirical |
| Language varities are often called dialects rather than | | | | grounds, and on theoretical grounds. The theoretical |
| languages: | | | | reason is that the successful acquisition and use of a |
| - solely because they are not (or not recognized as) | | | | language variety in a community of speakers would |
| literary languages, | | | | be impossible if language were not systematic and |
| - because the speakers of the given language do not | | | | rule-governed. If every speaker could make up his |
| have a state of their own, | | | | or her own words and rules for pronunciation and |
| - because they are not used in press or literature, or | | | | grammar, communication between different speakers |
| very little. | | | | would be virtually impossible. |
| - or because their language lacks prestige. | | | | Note, too, that linguists use the |
| A regional or social variety of a language distinguished | | | | term dialect as a neutral term to refer to the |
| by pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary, especially a | | | | systematic usage of a group of speakers--those in a |
| variety differing from the standard literary language | | | | particular region or social class, for instance--and that |
| or speech pattern of the culture in which it exists. | | | | the term has within linguistics none of the negative |
| The problem with this definition is that it implies that | | | | connotations which it sometimes has in everyday |
| there is some sort of "standard" language from which | | | | usage of language. Everyone speaks a dialect--at |
| all of the various dialects of that language differ. In | | | | least one. |
| English, however, this is true. English language is far | | | | The third premise of linguistics |
| too widespread and varies too much for anyone to | | | | which we think it is important to emphasize is that in |
| say that the English spoken in _ is "standard" and | | | | trying to understand and describe the system of a |
| everything else is a "dialect." Even if it were | | | | language, we give primary attention. One obvious |
| narrowed down to a single country, there is still a | | | | reason for this is that the written to speech rather |
| great deal of variation within that country, and who is | | | | than writing language omits valuable information about |
| to say which region/city/state/province speaks | | | | the pronunciation or sound system of a language. |
| proper English? | | | | But there are other reasons, including the fact that |
| Dialect is simply this: "A variation of a given | | | | people all over the world learn to speak before they |
| language spoken in a particular place or by a particular | | | | learn to read or write, and the fact that competence |
| group of people." Therefore, when I use the term | | | | in the spoken variety of at least one language is |
| dialect, It is making any sort of judgment about the | | | | universal to all normal human beings, but literacy is a |
| quality or "correctness" of that variety of English. | | | | more restricted skill. Of course the written language |
| American, British, Canadian, and Australian English are | | | | is, to varying extents, related to the spoken |
| all dialects of the English language, and that none of | | | | language. Comparing and contrasting the two is a |
| them is any better or more proper than any other. | | | | fascinating enterprise and some of the evidence |
| In writing about English dialects on this site, my goal is | | | | which we will consider in this book will be drawn from |
| to make English speakers - both native and | | | | literature, as some of the excerpts considered above |
| non-native - aware of the differences in English as it | | | | already demonstrate. But because non-linguists |
| is spoken around the world. I don't think that the | | | | often attach greater authority to the written rather |
| English I speak is "right" English, nor do I think that | | | | than the spoken word it's important to emphasize |
| British and Australian are "wrong" English. I am | | | | that linguists tend to make precisely the opposite |
| fascinated by language in all its forms, and this site | | | | assumption. |
| provides me with the opportunity to discover more | | | | The fourth and final premise of |
| about the language I speak and how it varies from | | | | linguistics is that although languages are always |
| the English spoken by others. | | | | systematic, variation among their speakers is |
| Anthropological linguists define dialect as the specific | | | | absolutely normal. Although we sometimes think or |
| form of a language used by a speech community. In | | | | act as if there were one entity called American or |
| other words, the difference between language and | | | | British English--and grammatical handbooks help to |
| dialect is the difference between the abstract or | | | | reinforce this fiction--we know from actual |
| general and the concrete and particular. From this | | | | experience that the "language" varies from one |
| perspective, no one speaks a "language," everyone | | | | region to another, from one social group to another, |
| speaks a dialect of a language. Those who identify a | | | | and even when region and social group are held |
| particular dialect as the "standard" or "proper" version | | | | constant, from one occasion or topic to another. |
| of a language are in fact using these terms to | | | | The most significant variations or |
| express a social distinction. | | | | differences within languages occur at the level of the |
| Often, the standard language is close to the sociolect | | | | lexicon, phonology, grammar and usage. Moreover, |
| of the elite class.In groups where prestige standards | | | | they are not just qualitative, in the sense that dialect |
| play less important roles, "dialect" may simply be used | | | | A uses one feature and dialect B another, but they |
| to refer to subtle regional variations in linguistic | | | | may also be quantitative, in the sense that dialect A |
| practices that are considered mutually intelligible, | | | | uses one feature more often than dialect B does. |
| playing an important role to place strangers, carrying | | | | Finally, variation may be regional, social or stylistic in |
| the message of where a stranger originates (which | | | | its origins, and the methods that linguists have used |
| quarter or district in a town, which village in a rural | | | | to study each type differ slightly. We will now |
| setting, or which province of a country); thus there | | | | elaborate on these important concepts and provide |
| are many apparent "dialects" of Slavey, for example, | | | | examples. |
| by which the linguist simply means that there are | | | | |
| many subtle variations among speakers who largely | | | | Lexical variation |
| understand each other and recognize that they are | | | | Differences in vocabulary are one |
| each speaking "the same way" in a general sense. | | | | aspect of dialect diversity which people notice readily |
| Differentiating languages and dialects is almost | | | | and comment on quite frequently. They are |
| impossible. Some would define languages as being the | | | | certainly common enough as markers of the |
| main branch, while dialects are just variants to it. | | | | differences between geographical areas or |
| More specifically, I would say it's very politically | | | | regions--for instance the fact that "a carbonated soft |
| defined. Take Japanese for example, it's the official | | | | drink" might be called England, and cold drink, drink or |
| language of Japan, yet the Ryukyuan 'languages' are | | | | dope in various parts of the South. Or the fact that |
| just dialects to it, despite not being mutually intelligible. | | | | a person who was "tired" or exhausted" might |
| In other instances, such as Inuktitut, it's not quite | | | | describe themselves as being pop in the inland North |
| one language, but a whole set of dialects/languages. | | | | and the West of the United States, soda in the |
| From group or tribe to another, the language is still | | | | Northeast, tonic in Eastern New all in if they were |
| intelligible, but if you skip from East to West, the | | | | from the North or West, but wore out or give out if |
| Inuktitut language might be completely different. To | | | | they were from the South. Accordingly, lexical |
| further point that politics win over linguistics; There | | | | differences play a significant role in regional |
| are two tribes somewhere in Western Canada that | | | | dialectology, and in popular treatments of American |
| speak basically the same language, except for a few | | | | dialects like the documentary film American Tongues, |
| variants, which thus make them related to each | | | | lexical differences are given prime coverage. |
| other, if not the same language. But because they | | | | Lexical differences are not as |
| refuse to associate to each other, they're both | | | | salient in distinguishing the speech of different social |
| independent languages political-wise. Determining who | | | | or socioeconomic classes, and they have accordingly |
| the “language” is, and who speaks the | | | | played a much smaller role in social dialectology, which |
| "dialect" is basically impossible. Language is constantly | | | | has concentrated instead on differences in phonology |
| changing, evolving, merging, etc. While being mutually | | | | and grammar. Nevertheless they are certainly an |
| intelligible, or even historically related, are not alone | | | | aspect of ethnic differences--for instance, knowledge |
| strong enough factors to decide | | | | of the term ashy to describe the "whitish or grayish |
| . | | | | appearance of skin due to exposure to wind and |
| Spoken Chinese comprises many regional | | | | cold" is widespread among African Americans but less |
| variants, generally referred to as dialects. However, | | | | so among European Americans and several |
| the mutual unintelligibility of the sub varieties is the | | | | dictionaries of African American English have |
| main ground for classifying them as separate | | | | appeared over the past several years. Lexical |
| languages or dialect groups. Each dialect group | | | | differences are also a factor in stylistic variation, and |
| consists of a large number of dialects, many of which | | | | in what are sometimes called the "genderless" of |
| may themselves be referred to as languages. The | | | | men versus women. |
| boundaries between one so-called language and the | | | | Phonological variation |
| next are not always easy to define. Because each | | | | Phonological variation refers to |
| dialect group preserves different features of Middle | | | | differences in pronunciation within and across dialects, |
| Chinese (dating back to early or even pre-Tang | | | | for instance the fact that people from New York and |
| times), they have proven to be valuable research | | | | New England might pronounce "greasy" with an s, |
| tools in the phonological reconstruction of Middle and | | | | while people from Virginia and points further south |
| even to some extent its ancestor, Old Chinese. Most | | | | might pronounce it with a z. Or the fact that |
| Chinese speak one of the Mandarin dialects, which | | | | working class people across the United States are |
| are largely mutually intelligible. | | | | more likely than are upper middle class speakers to |
| | | | | pronounce the initial th of they and similar words with |
| It is wondering what the exact | | | | a d. |
| difference between a language and a dialect is. It | | | | One relevant aspect of |
| seems odd that there are mutually unintelligible | | | | phonological variation worth noting is that it is often |
| dialects and yet mutually intelligible languages. What | | | | conditioned by the phonological environment--that is, |
| prompts people to classify them can also be political, | | | | by where in a utterance, word-initially, word-finally, |
| too; having its own language, as opposed to speaking | | | | before r, and so on, the sound occurs. We've |
| a dialect of someone else's, can sound pretty | | | | already seen one example of this in the fact that |
| attractive. Why can't we all just say that this is a | | | | post vocalic [r] is not lost in Boston when the next |
| language and that is a dialect, and leave it at that? | | | | word begins with a vowel; this is sometimes referred |
| We don't have to get all this political and emotional | | | | to as "linking r". |
| and religious boop mixed up in a purely linguistic | | | | Phonological variation--particularly |
| problem. Somehow I'm really starting to like the | | | | insofar as it involves consonants--is central to social |
| whole 'different varieties' theory, since whether | | | | variation and stylistic variation too, and we will |
| something is a 'dialect' or a 'language' doesn't really | | | | provide relevant examples below. |
| say anything valuable at all in the end. Why can't we | | | | Grammatical variation |
| all just say that this is a language and that is a dialect, | | | | What we have been referring to |
| and leave it at that? We don't have to get all this | | | | as grammatical variation really involves two |
| political and emotional and religious boop mixed up in a | | | | sub-types: morphology and syntax. Morphology |
| purely linguistic problem. Such is the nature of man. | | | | refers to the structure or forms of words, including |
| Somehow I'm really starting to like the whole | | | | the morphemes or minimal units of meaning which |
| 'different varieties' theory, since whether something | | | | comprise words, for instance the morphemes |
| is a 'dialect' or a 'language' doesn't really say anything | | | | {un}"not" and {happy} "happy" in unhappy , or the |
| valuable at all in the end. Everyone agree, there is a | | | | morphemes {cat}"cat" and {s} "plural" in cats. |
| gradient scale of everything. Thinking about it, it | | | | Syntax refers to the structure of larger units like |
| would be really neat to see a genus-species chart of | | | | phrases and sentences, including rules for combining |
| all the languages and dialects in the world, from | | | | and relating words in sentences, for instance the rule |
| 'language' down to 'North Midwestern English'. | | | | that in English yes/no questions, auxiliaries must occur |
| | | | | at the beginning of sentences, before the subject |
| Since we will be drawing primarily on | | | | noun phrase, e.g. Can John go? versus the statement |
| linguistic research to tell the story of African | | | | John can go. |
| American Vernacular English, we need to explain | | | | One can find examples of regional |
| some of the premises under which linguists operate | | | | variation of both types. For instance, the form or |
| the kinds of principles which are usually covered in | | | | morphology of the past tense of catch, climb and |
| the first chapter of introductory textbooks on | | | | draw was sometimes catched, clum and drawed |
| linguistics. | | | | respectively in parts of the East but only caught, |
| The first such premise is that | | | | climbed and drew respectively in the Western US, at |
| linguistics is a descriptive rather than a prescriptive | | | | least according to a report more than forty years |
| discipline. By this we mean that our objective is to | | | | ago. In the Midwest of the US (including Wisconsin, |
| describe the systematic nature of language as used | | | | Ohio and Iowa) and other regions (parts of |
| by the members of particular speech communities | | | | Pennsylvania, New Jersey, West Virginia), one can |
| rather than to pass judgments about how well they | | | | use anymore with the meaning of "nowadays" in |
| speak or how they should or should not be using | | | | positive sentences like "He smokes a lot anymore," |
| their language. The study of people's attitudes | | | | but in the rest of the country, anymore can only be |
| towards one variety or another is an interesting sub | | | | used with the meaning of "no longer" and only in |
| field of linguistics, one which can help us to | | | | negative sentences, as in "He doesn't smoke a lot |
| understand the social distribution of dialects or the | | | | anymore" (Labov 1973). Perhaps even more |
| direction of language change, and one which can be | | | | dramatic is the use of "So don't I" in Boston and |
| helpful in formulating policy about which varieties to | | | | other parts of New England where other dialects |
| use in the schools and how. But even here, the | | | | would use "So do I". |
| linguist is primarily describing the attitudes rather than | | | | |