Dialectology

Refers to the study of a particular variety of language within a language

English is not a uniform or monolithic language

Many

national varieties exist American Australian British Canadian Irish New Zealand South African

English Varies
From

country to country Also varies within each country People refer to people in another part of the country as speaking with an accent different from their own To a linguist everybody has a dialect

Dialect
We

could define dialect as a mutually intelligible form of a language that differs in systematic ways from another form We could define dialect as a variety of language spoken by the members of a particular region or social community

Regional Dialect
Refers to a set of linguistic features spread over a specific geographic area

Social Dialect
Refers to linguistic features shared by speakers of a social grouping

Dialect differences
We

distinguish a one dialect from another through (regional or social) differences in: Pronunciation Vocabulary Grammar

Pronunciation Differences
Regional

Differences North /grisi/ South /grizi/ Inland North /ay layk frayd kn/ South Midland /a lak frad kn/

Vocabulary Differences
Inland

North Bean field South Midland Pea patch

Grammatical Differences
Black

English I have live three years in Atlanta (deletion of past tense morpheme) He be fooling around (Progressive form is different from the standard regional dialect)

Idiolect
Refers

to the peculiarity or characteristics of an individuals speech patterns pronunciation, grammar, or vocabulary My wife Julie pronounces vail as /vl/ sail as / sl/ and mail as /ml/

Dialectologist
We

define dialectologist as a scholar who studies varieties of language- both regional and social aspects Regional Dialects (Inland North, South Midland, etc. Social Class (Upper class, working class, male,female differences Ethnic differences (Black ,Hispanic Yiddish,etc.)

Informant
We

define informant as a representative speaker (specimen or guinea pig metaphorically) used for dialect information

Isogloss
We

define an isogloss as a line drawn on a map to show the outer -limits of a particular linguistic feature- or where a speech feature is found We should not think of an isogloss as a dividing line between two usages, but rather the approximate outer limits of a certain feature

Total Pattern
We

refer to a feature which is apparently distributed throughout the entire vocabulary- such as the loss of the r in word medial and final position in New England dialect Neighbor / neb /

Partial Pattern
Refers

to the behavior of a speaker who uses a variation in pronunciation which is not consistent throughout the entire dialect. The Midland speaker who inserts an r as in worsh for wash will not carry this feature into other analogous words

Jargon
We

refer to words used in a profession, trade, or occupation- like morpheme, allophone, syntactic category, or bilabial fricative in Linguistics Interface, boot up, format, down-load in computer talk Identifies the user as a student or practitioner in that field

Argot
Refers

to a variety of language used by members of a socially marginal group Narcotics dealers refers to : Hash for Hashish Mainline for injecting directly into the bloodstream Uppers amphetamines Downers barbituates

Euphemism
Refers

to a less offensive or more polite word or phrase which replaces a taboo word To pass away for die Powder room for toilet

Idiom
An

idiom is a fixed phrase or expression consisting of more than one word whose meaning cannot be inferred by knowing the meaning of each individual word Set her straight Be here in nothing flat By and large