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Field Project 2 - Address Forms in British English

This field project will cover the main generalizations made in Ervin-Tripps article titled Sociolinguistic Rules of Address as well as will portray various forms of address distinguished in the register of British English taking into consideration the factors such as, formality, age, ethnicity, social class/status, rank and the relationship between the speakers. This will be illustrated using the collected data which presents the aforementioned forms of address using the embedded examples in the appendix. Furthermore, the presented forms of address will be analysed drawing upon the relevant literature.

The generalizations in Ervin-Tripps article

While presenting the forms of address used in British English it is significant to differentiate the generalizations made in the relevant sociolinguistic literature such as those found in the article of Ervin-Tripp titled Sociolinguistic Rules of Address. The major generalizations portrayed in the mentioned article concern the factors which are responsible for the forms of address while communicating including formality, the relationship between the interlocutor and the hearer, the ethnicity, age, status marked situations, familiarity and rank. As far as the formality is concerned Ervin-Tripp found that mostly the first name or the title and the second name have been used among business executives in the examined work environment in Boston. Nevertheless, other factors such as age and rank were responsible for the asymmetrical exchange.

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In general, the stronger ties between the speakers, the less formal form of address have been identified. Thus, the forms of address refer to the intimacy among the people. Moreover, the age has been identified as an important factor while talking about the forms of address. For instance, if the speaker is a child below the age of sixteen the rules do not apply and can be ignored as the child has to refer to adults with a polite form of address. Status-marked situations also contribute to the choice of the address forms according to Ervin-Tripp. They denote the settings of the situations were various forms of address are used based on the status of the individual in the society which is specified. Eg. Your honour is used in the Court. (Ervin-Tripp. 1969:19). Furthermore, familiarity is distinguished as a significant factor while talking about forms of address. It may be employed depending on the status of the speakers , for instance among colleagues while introducing a new person and making an acquaintance . In this way the acquaintances are able to communicate using their names . It suffices to say that both age and rank have no impact on the usage of first-naming. (Ervin-Tripp. 1969:20). Rank is the last factor which is worth mentioning while demonstrating the forms of address in British English. Ervin-Tripp describes rank as a factor which refers to a hierarchy within a working group, or to ranked statues like teacher-pupil. (Ervin-Tripp 1969:20). Therefore, depending on the status of an individual various forms of address can be used. In the case of a significant age difference no naming may be employed instead of using first name. There are diverse titles which can be used according to

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the rank of an individual. For instance, while referring to the entities such as: the priest, physician, dentist, or judge the title can be used on its own without their last name. On the contrary, while referring to an individual such as an academic person eg. professor or a civilian both the title as well as the last name should be applied. Eg. Professor Kemp. Therefore, various address forms may be employed in different situations according to the above factors and selectors. It is important to be aware of these factors as well as to know which form is suitable for different entity so that the status of an individual is recognized and his/her face is not threatened by being called an inappropriate name or using no title, as in Ervin Tripps example where a physician is being referred to as a boy twice by a policeman who did not apply to the rules of address forms . Not only did he omit the title of the physician but also he insulted the interlocutor by calling him a boy which is regarded as lack of politeness plus it could be seen as a Face Threatening Act .

Analysis of the examples presenting different forms of address in British English

After the introduction of the factors which influence the usage of different address forms in British English, a couple of patterns will be demonstrated using the examples embedded in the appendix. It suffices to say that the examples were found in diverse places around the UK, in particular London and come from daily lives of the society. The places where the examples were collected include a couple of public places such as: coffee shops, school/university, public transport, street and so forth. They were

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collected in a span of two weeks by the researcher who distinguished a few patterns in the registered utterances as far as the forms of address in British English are concerned. One of the patterns that has been found regards formality is illustrated in several examples such as, ex. 1, ex.8 and ex.13 (appendix) which took place in public places including a coffee shop, a restaurant and a plane. All of the aforementioned examples make use of the titles eg. Maam whilst referring to the interlocutors as they take place in public places eg. a restaurant. No-naming and using zero forms are also employed here since the names of the customers remain unknown. This is also illustrated in example 17 where the shop assistant calls a customer Miss. As Ervin-Tripp stated that when parenthetical items cannot be fully realized, as when last name (LN) is unknown, and there is no lone title, the addressee is no-names by the set of rules (...) Mister+ 0=> 0 etc. (Ervin-Tripp 1969:21). Employing such forms helps the speakers to express politeness towards the customers. Another pattern which is emphasised in the embedded examples illustrates the usage of the adequate address forms in British English depending on the factors such as, rank and age of the addressee. The examples including ex. 7 and ex.14 attached in the appendix demonstrate the usage of address form depending on the rank/age as in both examples the pupil refers to the teacher Miss Helen using a title and her first name (FN). In this way the child shows respect and politeness by referring to the teacher (adult) using a title and her first name.

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Furthermore, informality factor can be distinguished whilst looking at the attached examples in the appendix. Examples 2,4,5 illustrate the pattern of informality where the speakers refer to each other in an informal manner, without using any titles or even names as in example 2 (appendix) where two mothers greet each other at school while collecting their children. The utterance hi, you alright? (example 2, appendix) is being employed here and it is very common in British English among the individuals who are familiar with each other. eg. colleagues, flatmates and so forth. It is significant to underline that in English language there is no specific polite form of address for pronoun you as in other foreign languages, such as in French where polite form vous is applied for both singular and plural or as in German Sie or Spanish usted which contributes to expression of politeness. Delving further into the attached examples there are also the utterances which imply that ethnicity factor create another pattern as far as the forms of address in British English are concerned. Examples 3 and 11 (appendix ex3. and ex.11) indicate that the speakers communicate using some specific titles such as in ex. 11 where Filipino male refers to Filipino woman who is his friend Ate which in Tegalog denotes older sister whereas she refers to him kuya- older brother. This is a very well-known habit in speech among the community from Philippines residing the UK. Furthermore, there are a few examples which create a pattern based upon the gender of the speakers and which help to establish the differences between men and women in using various forms of address in British English. The embedded examples including ex. 6, 10, 12, 20, (appendix) illustrate the cases were male speakers employ the usage

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of informal speech as well as swearing while communicating with each other. The usage of informal names towards each other such as, dude or mate puts an emphasis on their vernacular type of speech among each other which differs from the speech of women who in general use more of a standard and more formal way of communication. This is illustrated in the following examples, ex. 16, 18 attached in the appendix. In both examples women refer to each other using politeness which is indicated by the usage of more of a formal, standard style of communication as well as employing the names for each other including honey depending on the relations among women. The stronger the ties, the more informal the style. The last pattern which one can distinguish in the attached examples concerns the intimacy between the speakers. Thus, the language used while communicating depends on the relationship between the individuals. This is demonstrated in examples ex.9, ex. 15 and ex. 19 where the intimacy is emphasised by the forms of address used towards the addressee as the speakers call each other various names eg. honey, sweetheart, handsome and so forth. This shows their intimacy and close bond between each other. In conclusion, this field project presented the factors responsible for the usage of various forms of address in British English. It demonstrated that depending on the setting, age, origin, formality, rank as well as the relations between the speakers different forms

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of address are employed. Some of them present more of a formal, standard language which indicates politeness while other ones may be more informal and vernacular as shown in mens speech interactions.

Bibliography

Dickey, E. (1997) Forms of address and terms of reference in Journal of Linguistics, V. 33 p.255-274, Cambridge University Press https://eric.exeter.ac.uk/repository/bitstream/handle/10036/29915/ DickeyFormsAddress.pdf?s

Ervin,T.,(1980) Sociolinguitic Rules of Address in Pugh, A. K; Swann, J and Lee, V. J., (ed) Language and Language Use,:a reader,London: Heinemann

McCready, Herr, H. (1999) Address Forms and their Implications in Communication Sciences and Disorders University Programs in Contemporary Issues in Communication Science and Disorders, V. 26, p. 82-93

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FP2: Appendix

Data: Examples of address forms & greetings taken from daily life, documented in the UK.

1. Speaker 1 (coffee shop assistant) Speaker 2 (customer)

S1: Hi, what can I get you Madam? S2: Hi, yes, can I have coffee latte and a croissant please? S1: Of course. With cream? S2: Without cream please. S1: Thats 2.50 please.

2. At school, while picking up the children. S1: Mother 1 S2: Mother 2

S1: Hi, you alright? S2: Hi, thank you. How have you been? S1: Good thank you. How about you?

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S1: Good thanks.

3. S1: A male in his early 30s on the phone. S2: A receptionist at medical practice. (overheard via skype)

S1: Good day Sir, just wanted to check if theres any free appointments for tomorrow morning. I need to book one for my Nana. S2: Yes, Sir. Let me double check for you... S1: Cheers.

4. S1: Flatmate 1 S2: Flatmate 2

S1: Morning.. S2: You alright? S1: Yeah S2: You going out somewhere? S1: Yeah, taking kids to the shops. S2: Ok then, see you in a bit.

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5. S1. Student 1 (on the way to university) S2: Student 2 (passing by the same way as student1)

S1: Alright? S2. How have you been? S1: Good thanks. Have you got a minute? I just wanted to ask you something? S2. Sure thing.

6. S1 male student (on the way to the exit of the library at Roehampton university, passing through wired coffee). S2 another male student (sitting at the computer in coffee wired, its midnight)

Student1: Howdy, what the heck are you doing here at this time? Student 2: Im f***ing working as you can see. Gonna be here all night. Student 1: Gosh, its midnight already. I thought I was a night owl staying here till late but look at you dude!! This is insane. You look completely out of it! Get some sleep man! Student 2: Thanks mate. Ill do tomorrow. See ya around.

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7. S1: a 5-year old child at Eaton school for boys at Sloane Square, child going home with his mum. S2: Miss Helen, a home room teacher of a year 1 standing next to the classroom door

S2: Good afternoon, Nikko. (shakes his hand) S1: Good afternoon Miss Helen. S2: See you tomorrow.

8. S1: Male flight attendant at the board of the plane. S2: Female passenger, boarding the plane, flying to Dublin.

S1: Morning, maam can I see your boarding pass? S2: Morning, here you go. S1: Thank you, please take any seat available in the plane except for the first four rows. (points out the rows). S2: Thank you.

9. S1: Male speaker talking to his g/f who just came in to the coffee shop where he was waiting for her. S2: S1s girlfriend

S1: Morning gorgeous (kisses her on a cheek) How was your night?

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S2: Oh honey, it was brilliant, we had a lovely night out with my girls. S1: Glad to hear that. S2: How was yours? S1: Hmm, fine but I missed you! S2: Oh sweetheart, I am sorry!

10. S1: Student, standing next to the vending machine at university. S2: Student2 passing by.

S1: Alright mate? S2: Man, how have you been. Havent seen you in years. S1. Oh man, Ive been f***ing busy. What about ya? Doing alright? S2: Yee, same old dude.

11. S1: Philipino male nurse on his way to his 12-hour shift at St Marys Hospital in Paddington, London W2 S2: Philipino female nurse sitting on the bus, on her way to work.

S1: Hello Atte Marjorie, howre you pet? Are you off to your shift?

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S2: Im good Kuja Deo. Yup, going to my shift. What about you? What time do you finish today? S1: Ah, Ill be done at 8AM next day. Its an all night shift. S2: Aww... poor you. Take care. See you around. S1: See ya

12. S1: A male in his late 20s at the gym. S2: A friend of S1 at the gym.

S1: Hey, whats up mate? S2: Just chillaxing in here and going to my f***ing 12-hour shift soon. What bout ya? S1: Same old. Same old. Got a day off,

13. S1: waitress at Cote Restaurant, nearby Westbourne Grove in Notting Hill, London. S2: female customer ordering for her and her partner

S1: Hello Madam, table for two? S2: Yes please. S1: Heres the menu. What can I get you maam? S2: Can we have 2 miso soup for the starter and 2 steak dishes for the main course please? S1: Of course maam. Would you anything to drink? S2: A bottle of red wine please.

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S1: Certainly, heres our list of drinks maam. S2: Thank you.

14. S1: Pupil coming into the classroom. S2: Home room teacher of year 1 at Eaton School for boys, Sloane Square, London.

S1: Good morning Miss Helen. S2: Good morning, Harry. How are you today darling? S1: Good. S2: Alright. You can take a seat.

15. S1: Pupil at school, waiting to be picked up by his mother. S2: Mother of a boy (pupil of Easton School)

S1: Mummy! Mummy! S2: Hello, sweetheart! Did you have a good day? S1: Yeah. S2: Lets go home.

16. S1: Female in her 20s or early 30s in a lift. S2: Female in her 20s who got on second.

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S1: Hi hun, how have you been? S2: Good thanks. What about you? S1: Great. Oh what a lovely coat! S2: Thank you. S1: Where did you get it from? S2: Oh this one? Its from Calvin Klein. S1: You look absolutely stunning in it. S2: Thank you.

17. S1: Female sales assistant in Boots. S2: Female customer in her 20s. S1:Hello Miss, would you like to hear about our Christmas special offer? S2: OK S1: Today weve got on offer Sanctuary set for only 19 pounds instead of the usual price of a 39 pounds. Would you like one of these? S2: Thank you, Ill look around first. S1: No problem.

18. S1: Body combat instructor, female in her 20s. S2: Gym member and a friend of S1, female in her 20s.

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S1: Hey honey, havent seen you in ages. Where have you been? S2: Hiya, yeah I know, Im ok. Long story, short Ive been flooded with work and uni work. S1: Oh wow, so I take it you quit my classes. S2: I have for the meantime but I promise to be back asap. I miss you and the combat with you! I really saw the difference when I was doing it. I feel so unfit now! S1: Oh hun, dont worry you will be alright. I will help you out. Im your trainer! S1: Thanks. Youre a star.

19. S1: A female in her 20s, talking to her partner S2: A male in his early 30s, partner of S1.

S1: Hi handsome, I wanted to ask you to do me a favour, could you pick up some flowers and a cake for Nancy. Its her birthday and were invited for dinner and drinks tomorrow night. I totally forgot and I got a busy day ahead of me tomorrow. S2: Sure thing. Just give us some hints on the colour/flavour and will get up to it. S1: Ill email you all the info later on. Thanks darling I love you. Youre a life saver! S2: No worries honey. Love ya!

20. S1: Homeless person, in his 40s. S2: Female passers by in her 20s.

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S1: Miss, do you have any spare change? S2: Sorry, I dont have any. S1: B****h.

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