Entry #11: Notes on "The study of language"

Here is a transcript of my notes on the last chapters of the book "The study of language" by Yule, G. I've tried to respect the order of the tiltles in the original. Some entries contain material written in class.

Standard Language

It is a natural langue used for educational, political and economic purposes. This variety of langue is the one learned by not native speakers. It doesn’t depend on region. It is an idealized variety of the language.

Accent and Dialect

Accent is the variety of pronunciation according to region. Changes in accent do not change the meaning or the use of words. It is a myth that some speakers have accents and others do not. All languages have accents.

Dialect varies according to where the speaker lives, his social status and age. It describes features of grammar and vocabulary as well as aspects of communication.

Dialectology

It is the study of different languages. It is the variety of lexis, pronunciation and grammar in a language. Dialects depend on geopolitical areas and the cultural background of the speaker’s community. Dialectology is also the study of the differences between languages. There no language that is “better” than other, but from a social point of view, some varieties do become more prestigious. Dialectology also studies if people of different regions can understand the dialects of that region.

Isoglosses and dialect boundaries

An “Isogloss” is a line which determines the dialect according to areas. Both “isogloss” and “dialect boundary” refer to lines that separate differences that are significant in the speech of those living in different areas. When a number of isoglosses come together in a solid line, that line is called a “dialect boundary”.

Pidgins and creoles

It is the standard language used for business purposes. Creole is the result of the acquisition of standard dialect by children of pidgin speakers used for general purpose. Pidgin is a form of language used for specific purposes, such as trading among groups of people who had a lot of contact but do not know each other’s language.

The post-creole continuum

Just as there was development from a pidgin to a creole, known as creolization, there is now a retreat from the use of the creole by those who have greater contact with a standard variety of the language. This process, known as decreolization, lead s at one extreme to a variety that is closer to the external standard model and leaves, at the other extreme, a basic variety with more local creole features. Between these extremes there is a range of slightly different varieties. This range of varieties, evolving after the creole has come into existence, is called the post-creole continuum.

Speech accommodation

It is the adaptability of the leaner to change the use of speech according to the context and its requirements. It is our ability to modify our speech style towards or away the style of the person we are speaking to. It can be described as convergence, when we try to reduce the social distance between we and the listener, or as divergence, when we try to emphasise that distance.

Register and Jargon

Register is a conventional way of using language that is appropriated in a specific context, which may be identified as situational, occupational or topical. Jargon is special technical vocabulary associated with a specific area of work or interest.

Slang

Slang, or “colloquial speech”, describes word or phrases that are used instead of more everyday terms among younger speakers and other groups with special interest. Taboo terms, on the other hand, are words and phrases that people avoid for reasons related to religion, politeness and prohibited behaviour.

 

Social dialects

In the social study of dialect, it is the social class that is mainly used to define groups of speakers as haven something in common. Based on economic income, the two main groups are identified as “middle class” and “working class”. “Middle class speech” then refers to a type of social dialect or sociolect. Class is treated as a social variable and the pronunciation or word as the linguistic variable.

 

Speech style and style shifting

It is related to formality, contexts, register and linguistic codes. It is a social feature of langue use. The most basic distinction is between formal and informal, and a change from one style to the other is called style-shifting.