IV - Terms

lexical and smantic variation

words and meanings may sound different in other parts of the country

phnological variation

sound vary from place to place

grammatical variation

some syntactical stuctures may vary, mophoologically too

pragmatic variation

individual understandings of language rituals and experience may vary, alongside abstract differences in language

register

the expected variety of language associated with a particular situation of use, in line with contexts of reception

accent

how we pronounce sounds

dialect

the ways we vary uuse of vocabulary and grammar, as well as pronunication

the standard pronunciations of English

England: RP

America: GA (General America)

th-fronting

where someone uses /f/ or /v/ in place of ‘th’

postvocalic /r/

when an '/r/ sound follows a vowel; it is there in spelling but not always sounded in speech - some accents prooune this whilst others do not

monopthong

a vowel with only one sound throughout its duration

rhotic accent

an accent which pronounces the postvocalic /r/

prestige - ovret and covert

overt prestige - prestige in line with dominant social norms; the idea that RP is desirable

covert prestige - prestie that subverts the norm; thhe idea that MLE is desirable (especially when you converge down in Birmingham)

descriptivism

studying how language is used

prescriptivism

the idea that language has rules and notions of correctness

orthographical variation

difference in speech expressed in writing; for example LOL as an acronym

dialect levelling

the process of language forms converging and sounding similar over time, with the loss of diversity in language and regional accents

idiolect

an individual’s own language style

sociolect

the lnaguage used by a particular social group

field-specific lexis

an element of sociolects and Communities of Practice/Discourse Communities

disocurse community

a group of people with shared interests and belief systems who are likely to use language in similar ways

jargon

the vocabulary and manner of speech that defin and relect a particular perofession which may be difficult for others to understand

community of practice

a group of people engaged in a shared activity or practice whose language is shaped by the activities they are mutually engaged in

h-dropping

not pronouncing the /h/ at the start of words such as ‘hat’

multiple negation

a vernacular feature of English

repertoire

a range of language features available for speakers to choose from

ethnicity

a shared social dentity consisting of cultural practices, language, beliefs and history. There is some cuontrol over the ethnic affiliation.

race

perceived physical similarities and differences that groups and cultures consider socially significant.

heritage language

a language that is not the dominant language in the society in which somebody lives, yet it is the one spoken at home

intersectionality

the idea that social categorisations re all interconnected ad overlapping. Someone’s ethnicity cannot be seperate from their gender, social clas,, etc.

code-switching

when speakers who speak two or more different languages switch from one to another. Can also be used to refer to switching dialects of the same language

style-shifting

when people adjust the style of their language dependent on contextual factors

ethnolect

a variety of language that is associated with a particular ethinc group

marked term

a version of a term that stands out and is noticed as different from the norm

ethnolinguisttic repertoire

a set of linguistic resources available to be use by individual speakers in order to signal their ethnic identity

crossing

the practice of using particular features of speech that ‘belong’ to a different ethnicity from that of the speaker

yod dropping

elision of the /y/, for example ‘tune’ sounding like ‘toon’

lenition

the weakening of a sound

/l/ vocalisation

the /l/ becomes a /w/ sound, for example ‘wool’

reduction

shortening or omission of some sounds to ease pronunciation

elision

the merging of sounds that occurs in ontractions (overlaps with reduction)

age-grading

age-specific differences in language use

initialism

pronounce each letter individually; BBC

acronym

read all letters as one word; NATO, SCUBA

clipping

a word process where a word is shortened by dropping syllables; ‘exam’ from ‘examination’

ephemistic language

often used to avoid being too strong. lexical choices often carry a sense of approval (approbation) or disapproval (pejoration)

political correctness

the use of language in such a way that it is respectful and designed not to harm or mistreat, with a focus on inclusivity