Chapter 8 Sociolinguistics

1
Chapter 8 Sociolinguistics
the ninth week
2
Teaching Content8.1 Introduction8.2 Language
Variety

• Key points
• The definition of sociolinguistics
• Register
• Dialects
• Pidgins and creoles
• Difficult points
• Register
• Creole

3
8.1 Introduction

• Definition Sociolinguistics is the study of
  language in relation to society. It studies how
  social factors influence the structure and use of
  language.

4
8.2 Language Varieties

• Language variety refers to the various forms of
  language triggered by social factors.
• Language may changes from region to region, from
  one social class to another, from individual to
  individual, and from situation to situation. This
  actual changes result in the varieties of
  language.

5

• Thus, language varieties cover
• Standard language
• Dialects
• Registers
• Pidgins
• creoles

6
8.2.1 Standard language

• For social political reasons, a variety of
  language may be officially elevated as the
  national language, such a language variety is
  called standard language. In China, putonghua is
  respected as the standard language in Britain,
  the Received Pronunciation (RP) the SL, and in
  USA, Standard American English (SAE) the SL.

7
Nature of SL

• It is so called standard literally, but just as
  what the definition suggests, it is a variety of
  language, so it is also termed as standard
  variety /dialect.
• Linguistically, SL has no prestigious or dominant
  status nothing special with it. When socially
  interfered, a variety of lge has the luck to rise
  to be SL.

8
8.2.2 Dialects

• A variety of a language used recognizably in a
  specific region or by a specific social class is
  called a dialect.
• The study of dialect is called dialectology.
• Dialect and accent language and pronunciation
  and vocabulary.

9
Dialects are categorized into 4 types

• Regional / geographical dialects varieties of a
  language spoken in a geographical area.
• Temporal dialects varieties of a language used
  at particular stages in its historical
  development.
• Social dialects/sociolects varieties of a
  language used by people belonging to particular
  social classes.
• Idiolects varieties of a language used by
  individual speakers, with peculiarities of
  pronunciation, grammar and vocabulary.

10
There are 8 general regional dialects.

• Speech community a group of people sharing one
  given language or dialect.
• It ranges from a country to an individual.
• Sociolects, related to formality of speech, are
  catergorized as high and low sociolect.
• The formal speech is higher sociolect and the
  informal lower sociolect.

11
8.2.3 Registers

• Registers are varieties of language used in
  different situations, which are identified by the
  degrees of formality.
• The addresses on the NPC is a formal register a
  talk between friends is an informal register.
• The intentional mixture of different registers
  arouses conversational implicatures.
• Registers can vary from vocabulary, phonology,
  grammar to semantics.

12
The register theory by Halliday

• Register is determined by 3 factors
• field of discourse what is being discussed
• mode of discourse oral or written
• tenor of discourse relation between participants
• The 3 variables determine the features of
  language fit with the situation. When fitted, the
  right register turns up.

13
8.2.4 Pidgins and creoles

• Pidgin a mixed lge with a small vocabulary and a
  simple grammar used by speakers of two lges to
  communicate. So it is also called contact
  language.
• Two features of pidgin lges
• A pidgin has no native speakers.
• It is a simplified lge with reduced vocabulary
  and grammar.
• e.g. Long time no see.

14
Creole

• When a pidgin begins to acquire native speakers
  who use it as their primary lge, the pidgin turns
  to be a creole.
• The process by which a pidgin develops is called
  pidginization the process by which a pidgin
  becomes a creole is called creolization.

15

• Black slaves speaking African dialects
  communicated with the people speaking French or
  English in the plantations in the South America.
  The linguistic means of communication is called a
  pidgin. Pidginization happens there, and later
  the pidginization is widely accepted, then
  creolization happens. That is the Haitian Creole.

16
Lingua franca

• When more and more speakers of a creole adopt it
  as their everyday lge, the creole becomes
  standardized, or a lingua franca. The process is
  termed as decreolization.

17
Language Planning

• There are various regional or social varieties in
  a country, which needs a systematic attempt to
  solve the communication problem. The policy
  designed for the proper selection and appropriate
  use of these varieties is called lge planning.
• Putonghua is one of the results of lge planning.
  Yuwen course set in the Chinese schools is
  another.

18
Lge planning into 2 kinds

• Status planning changes the function of a
  variety and the right of those who use it.
• Regional dialect is prohibited in class in
  China Chinese was banned in class when Japan
  occupied the Northeast China.

19

• Corpus planning seeks to develop a variety of
  lge, usu. to standardize it.
• There are many lges in Canada, but only
  english and French were standardized.
• There are many dialects in China, only the
  mixture of Beijing and NE dialects is corpus
  planned.

20
Exercises

• Question 3 and 4 on Page 212
• Thank you!