Language Variation

What is language variation?

the variety present within a language according to factors like geography, social class, gender, etc

Accent

Systematic variation in the phonological features of a language (ex: british english accent, american english accent, foreign accent)

Dialect

Variation of speech or language based on geographic are, native language background, and social or ethnic group membership

Idiolect

An individual’s unique way of speaking shaped by personal experience

Speech Community

A group of people speaking the same dialect influenced by what extralinguistic factors like region, socioeconomic status, age, gender, and ethnicity

Mutual Intelligibility

When speakers of different language varieties are able to understand and speak to one another

Style-shifting

used to describe the adjustment from one speech style to another (ex: formal, casual, company, etc) based on setting

Code-switching

a form of style-shifting, occurs when a person shifts from one style or dialect to another, or from one language to another

Jargon

Technical words often associated with an occupation or hobby. (rhinitis, dermatitits)

Sometimes becomes generalized (ex: countdown, strike out, bottom line)

Slang

Words or expressions used in informal settings, often to indicate membership in a particular social group

Common: neutral everyday language (fridge, TV)

In-group: specific to a particular group at a particular time (rizz, as if, girl bye, were cooked)

Standard dialect

Variety of language spoken in more formal situations (ex: politicians, media, etc) taught in school

Nonstandard dialect

Variety of language not considered representative of the standard variety

Bidialectal

Mastery of two dialects (standard and nonstandard)

Standard American English (SAE)

The “standard” dialect in US. Idealization of a number of varieties.

Both standard and nonstandard dialects are ____ and ____. Speakers of nonstandard dialects are not lazy, uneducated, or wrong.

systematic and sensible

Phonetic Variation

Differences in physical characteristics of a sound, despite the sound functioning the same in the linguistic systems of two varieties (ex: /t, d, n, s, z/ used un American English, but phonetics very)

Phonological Variation

Difference in phoneme inventories and rules; cot-caught merger

Morphological Variation

shows use of different morphemes like nonstandard reflexive pronouns ‘hisself’ and ‘theirselves’ (-ish like that sweater is Brynn-ish, do it tommorrow ish)

Syntactic Variation

Includes changes in sentences structure such as double modals and auxiliary verb usage

Lexical Variation

Differences in the words people use to mean the same things or to refer ti the same object, or differences in what the same word means or refers to