Studied by 5 people
Random Fluctuation Theory
Developed by Charles Hockett.
Suggests that language is not always a linear, straightforward, predictable process. Language change does not always have a particular reason or explanation, but can result from various fluctuations in speech patterns such as spelling, grammar, pronunciation etc. that are part of a natural process. Fluctuations can be influenced by social, cultural and environmental factors.
Functional Theory
Developed by Michael Haliday.
Suggests that language changes according to the needs of its users and is highly influenced by social contexts and how new contexts may emerge. As societies evolve and new social contexts arise, language adapts to meet these changes such as the development of social media and texting.
Lexical Gap theory
Refers to the absence of a direct word or term in a language to express a new idea, object, or phenomenon - interconnects with functional theory and how language is adapting to meet the needs of it’s speakers. This gap means that speakers may borrow words from other languages, or create new words, reuse existing words or use circumlocution to name or express this new idea.
Substratum theory
Refers to the influence of a substate language (less dominant language) on a superstrate language (a dominant language) that can change the superstrate language in terms of structure, vocabulary and phonology due to long-term contact.
Internal and External changes
Developed by Suzanne Romaine.
Refers to the categorisation of two types of language change - internal and external. Internal relating to the changes within language itself eg. pronunciation, grammar, how new words are derived from existing ones etc. - suggests that this is often driven by a desire to maximise efficiency by the users of a language. External changes refer to the changes within a language that are influenced by social, cultural or historical factors eg. borrowing grammatical structures and words and phrases. Changes may be due to technological advances, migration, colonialisation, immigration, media etc.
Sociolinguistics/cultural transmission theory
Refers to the influence of social factors on language change that are believed to be based around social variables that may be linked to historic movements eg. gender, age, social class ethnicity etc.
Informalisation theory
Developed by Sharon Goodman.
Suggests that overtime, social communications across majority of industries are becoming increasingly informal, with the boundaries between formal and informal languages blurring which may be due to technological advances and an increase in conversational style in speaking.
Synthetic personalisation
Developed by Norman Fairclough.
Interconnects with informalisation theory that suggests theres an increase in personalisation elements in advertising industries in order to create more of a personal connection between the advert and the audience, so that the audience are more likely to buy the product. Is done using direct personal pronouns such as ‘you.’
Euphemistic Advertising
Developed by Dwight Bollinger.
Suggests an increase of euphemisms used in advertising compared to dysphemisms. This is because euphemisms can make products sound more appealing and safe. The media also favour euphemisms over dysphemisms as they may not want to distress viewers. These usages of euphuisms reflect how language is driven by social norms and values, and how language is becoming more socially sensitive to meet its users (interconnects with functional theory.)
Zipfs law
Developed by George Zipf.
Suggests that the most frequently used words are short, and that as usage of words increase and become more popular, the shorter it gets. This is due to language users changing language to maximise efficiently in communication and to refer to complex ideas in a more simpler manner by using shorter, more concise terminology.
Jean Aitchison
Suggests several prescriptivist perspectives of language change:
Damp spoon syndrome - changes in language are seen as lazy or careless - like the disgust one has when finding a damp spoon in a sugar bowel.
Crumbling Castle View - This perspective views language as a beautiful, ancient castle that is slowly deteriorating over time, losing its beauty and originality.
Infectious Disease Assumption - compares
language change to a disease that spreads uncontrollably and affects individuals without their consent, creating harmful corruption.
Unfolding of Language theory
Developed by Guy Deutscher.
Suggests that what may seem like language loss or simplicity is part of a complex process of language evolution that starts with the erosion of complex forms and structures, which might initially appear as a simplification or loss.
However, this erosion creates a need for new expressions and constructions to convey nuanced meanings, leading to the invention of new linguistic forms.
Tide metaphor
Developed by David Crystal.
Suggests that linguistic alterations occur in waves, similar to the ebb and flow of tides - some new forms of language may enter enter like waves rolling up onto the beach, and some forms of language may leave, like when a wave retreats back into the sea. Sometimes things make it onto the beach permanently, others only momentarily. These alternations represent complex processes of language change and how they can be influenced by social and cultural factors, and also represents how some older forms of language that previously left, may return again through the use of this tide metaphor.
Tree model
Shows how language is interconnected within each other, how they branch off each other, and how some forms of language may influence another language such as the French influence on the english language by introducing different types of meet such as pork and beef. Also shows how different language trace back to its origins and ancestors - shows linear progression of language change though its current and historical relationships with other languages.
Wave model
Suggests that language change evolves over time, much like a ripple of effects that spreads out, effecting other cultures and areas that are likely to adopt this change. just like waves in water, the strength of the change
diminishes the further it moves from its origin. This means that people living close to where the change started are more likely to adopt it, while those further away might not be influenced at all, or it might take
a lot longer for the change to reach them.
‘S’ curve model
Suggests that change starts in a limited way and then accelerates rapidly before levelling off overtime - this means that language spreads out among a population and becomes more widely used and accepted people are willing to adopt new forms of language.
Good theory to mention if you can see an ‘S’ curve shape on an n-gram graph.
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