Causes of Dialect

Causes for the development of dialects
what factors lead to dialect diversity?

how can dialect diversity persist in the face of mass
communication, increased mobility, and growing cultural
homogenization?
linguistic mechanisms
OVERVIEW
http://www.ifla.uni-stuttgart.de/~jilka/ G4 Proseminar Dialectology
rule extension analogy
transparency grammaticalization
phonetic / phonological phenomena changes in word meaning
sociohistorical mechanisms
language contact economic ecology
social stratification geographical factors
UNDERLYING PRINCIPLES OF LANGUAGE STRUCTURE
all languages are dynamic systems that are constantly in the
process of changing
some groups of speakers adopt certain changes, while others do not (and
possibly adopt other changes instead)
creation of a dialect difference (if it continues: split into different languages)
changes from within: language-internal change on the basis of the
organization of a specific language system (see following
sections)
changes from outside: changes triggered by contact to another
changes from outside: changes triggered by contact to another
dialect or language
influence of underlying principles of language explains occurrence
of similar if not identical phenomena in unrelated
dialects/languages
use of was with all persons (we was), regularized plural (oxes),
simplification of final consonant clusters (desk as /ds/) in Hispanic
English varieties in California, Native American English in the Southwest,
African American English in northern urban areas
RULE EXTENSION
speakers seem to prefer language rules that are as general as
possible
over time a rule of limited application may come to apply in
more and more situations and to affect broader sets of items
English has two types of personal pronouns, one for subjects (I see), one
for objects (She saw me, He gave the book to me)
extension of object pronouns to subject situations: Its me, Me and
extension of object pronouns to subject situations: Its me, Me and
Charlie went to the store (It is I is unnatural and old-fashioned to most
speakers)
intrusive //: non-rhotic varieties drop final //, but insert it again when
next word starts with a vowel (e.g. / k stts/ vs. / k v /)
this insertion rule is often extended to words which do not underlyingly end
in // at all, e.g. idea in the idea[] of it or law in law[] and order)
ANALOGY
language forms which are similar in some ways (meaning,
function, sound), but not in others, are made more similar
Proportional Analogy
irregular processes are adapted to more regular ones
process of change expressed in a four-part relationship
x is to x as y is to y (x : x :: y : y)
cow : cows :: ox : oxes
cow : cows :: sheep : sheeps
cow : cows :: sheep : sheeps
walk : walked :: grow : growed
Minority Pattern Analogy: in rare cases minority patterns instead of the
most regular pattern may reshape other irregular forms or even regular ones
brought brang/brung (phonological model sing, sang, sung)
dived dove (phonological model: ride, rode)
Leveling
forms within the paradigm of a word/lexical entry are made more similar
simple past conjugation of to be in southern dialects:
I was, you was, he/she/it was, we was, you was, they was
THE TRANSPARENCY PRINCIPLE
simplifications such as those promoted by rule extension and
analogy are counterbalanced by the need to ensure that meaning
distinctions are as clear as possible to listeners
Transparency Principle
preserving or introducing distinctions to enhance comprehensibility
e.g. southern speakers who eliminate subject-verb agreement marking for to
be (all forms was) do not eliminate positive-negative marking (was vs.
wasnt) and even use different roots for the negative forms
was vs. werent (Outer Banks, North Carolina)
am/is/are vs. aint
can [ken, kn, kn] vs. caint [knt]
use of Multiple Negation (also Negative Concord)
e.g. I dont know nothing this form of negation is standard in many
languages such as Spanish (No s nada) and also used to be common in Old
and Middle English (ic ne wt nwiht)
GRAMMATICALIZATION
assigning new meanings to particular grammatical structures
double modals in Southern American English
I might could go with you expresses lessened intensity that can only be
circumscribed by a longer sentence such as I may be able to go out with
you but Im not really sure in Standard English
counterfactual liketa in Southern American English
It was so cold out there, I liketa died is used in a nonfactual way and
simply indicates that it was very cold (not that the speaker was was in any
simply indicates that it was very cold (not that the speaker was was in any
real danger). liketa comes from original like to have and is similar in
meaning to almost, however it is only used in a figurative, never in a
factual sense
habitual be in African American English
He (always) be coming to school late indicates a habitual or ongoing
action or state. In other types of sentences speakers of African American
English use finite forms (am, is, are etc.) or no form of be at all
(He coming to school right now)
PHONETIC AND PHONOLOGICAL PHENOMENA I
articulation-related changes
some speech sounds (or combinations thereof) involve more complex
movements of the tongue or other speech organs or more intricate
coordination of the articulators than others
substitution: a more natural sound replaces a marked one
e.g. use /t/, /s/ or /f/ for // and /d/ or /z/ for // (clothes as /klz/)
assimilation: neighboring sounds become more similar to each other
e.g. in + possible = impossible (labial place of articulation);
Southern business as /bdns/ (stop manner of articulation)
Southern business as /bdns/ (stop manner of articulation)
weakening: less blockage of airflow in the oral cavity (weaker obstruction)
e.g. tapping in American English: better as /b/
glottalization in Southeastern British English: bottle as /bl/
elision: deletion of a sound, frequently to simplify consonant clusters
e.g. final /s/ following consonant clusters: tests as /tst/
epenthesis: insertion of a sound
e.g. athlete as /li:t/ (breaking up consonant cluster)
insertion of homorganic stops adjacent to nasal (thunder vs. Donner)
PHONETIC AND PHONOLOGICAL PHENOMENA II
consequences of the organization of the phoneme inventory
phonological distinctions within the system are maintained if the functional
load is high, a change that makes one phoneme too similar to another can
induce a chain shift across the whole system (e.g. Great Vowel Shift in
Middle English, Northern Cities Chain Shift, Australian Chain Shift etc.)
sporadic sound changes
changes that do not occur broadly across the system but in individual cases
dissimilation: e.g. r-l-dissimilation (avoid multiple // or /l/ in the same word,
dissimilation: e.g. r-l-dissimilation (avoid multiple // or /l/ in the same word,
either by changing sound quality (colonel as /knl/) or elision (governor
as /gvn/)
metathesis: sounds changing position within the word, e.g. bryde > bird,
thridde > third, hros > horse, ask > aks
well-formedness of syllables
sequences of CV syllables are most natural, processes like elision and
epenthesis can create these structures, e.g. nuclear as nucular
CHANGES IN WORD MEANING
dialect areas do of course show lexical and semantic differences
same meaning, different word: often relating to food and drink items, e.g.
sub, hoagie, grinder, hero for submarine sandwich
same word, different meaning: to mommuck meaning to bother, harass
in Outer Banks, North Carolina, but to make a mess of in southeastern
North Carolina
environmental and cultural influences: some foods only exist in certain
areas, less marine-related vocabulary in land-locked areas
areas, less marine-related vocabulary in land-locked areas
new words can be made up (coined), e.g. meehonkey (game on
Ocracoke Island) or created by compounding, e.g. hushpuppies (bite-
sized pieces of deep-fried cornmeal batter)
dialect words may spread and become standard words: ranch
(southwestern US), bisque (cream soup, New England)
standard words may retract to regional use: garret (attic) or yonder
(over there) only survive in the rural South
SOCIOHISTORICAL MECHANISMS
language is a highly structured communicative code that also
functions as a kind of cultural behavior
social differentiation is likely to correspond to language
differences
dialects are most likely to develop in situations of physical and/or
social separation among groups of speakers
LANGUAGE CONTACT
language contact influences both language development and
specific dialect formation
lexical borrowings
mocassin, racoon, chipmunk (Native American languages)
bureau, prairie, depot (18th century French)
New Orleans: lagniappe (small gift or bonus)
Southern Pennsylvania: stollen (type of cake)
morphological borrowings
suffix -fest in songfest, beerfest, slugfest from German compound
Suffix -ee in draftee, trainee, enlistee from French
transferred syntactic structures
Southern Pennsylvania: Are you going with? from German
ECONOMIC ECOLOGY
ecologically based occupations such as fishing in coastal areas,
mining in mountain regions, or farming in the plains mainly bring
about the development of specialized vocabulary
effect on direction and rate of language change in grammar and
pronunciation:
metropolitan regions are typically centers of change, while rural areas are
more conservative and often maintain older language features
more conservative and often maintain older language features
as rural language features are often associated with long-established heritage,
they sometimes (in rare cases) spread as a counterreaction to an influx of
outsiders in the area:
e.g. in Oklahoma rural constructions like Shes fixing to go to church now have
spread to the cities as well, so native Oklahomans can assert their identity
SOCIAL STRATIFICATION I
members of different social classes distinguish themselves from
one another in a whole range of social behaviors including the
type of language they use
communication networks
who people talk to on a regular basis is an important factor in the
development of dialect differences
regions affected by patterns of transportational flow and population movement
social networks: Who do speakers interact with on a daily basis?
social networks: Who do speakers interact with on a daily basis?
High-Density: all speakers interact (everyone knows everyone)
Multiplex: speakers interact with the same speakers in different social arenas (e.g.
families live in same neighborhood + work in same place)
Low-Density: speaker all know a particular individual but dont interact with each
other
Uniplex: interacting with different sets of people in different social spheres
speakers in high-density, multiplex networks cling to to localized,
vernacular language varieties, while speakers in uniplex, low-density
networks are quicker to adopt new outside features
SOCIAL STRATIFICATION II
group reference
people often want to be considered part of a particular social group and
project their identity with this group in many ways including talking like
other members of the group
group membership may be voluntary or without choice, but often carries
connotations of pride and loyalty
e.g. members of established families on the Massachusetts island of Marthas
Vineyard heightened their usage of certain unusual vowel sounds in order to
distinguish themselves from tourists
motivation to switch between dialects (e.g. people returning home for
family visits)
personal identity
dialect features are often associated with certain character traits
e.g. Anglo teenagers who want to be cool adopt features of African American
English
GEOGRAPHICAL FACTORS I
natural boundaries (rivers, lakes, mountains, valleys) can separate
groups of speakers, determine the routes they take and where they
settle (sea islands off the Carolina coast are examples of isolated
dialects)
settlement
North American dialect differences can be traced back to dialect differences
that existed in the British Isles
that existed in the British Isles
Distinct phases of settlement
Phase 1: move into area with attractive environment, original culture
Phase 2: occupy all land, new cultural identity, cohesive society (may lead to
elimination of established cultures, e.g. Native Americans)
Phase 3: regional populations define themselves with respect to others (culture,
commerce, transportation), localized with unique identity
ORIGINS OF VARIETIES
Scotland: Northumbrian dialect of Old English Scots
decline begins around 1600; Union of Parliaments 1707 Scottish English
Ireland: English speakers since 1200, almost disappeared by 1600
rise of English with renewed political domination
North America: first crucial settlements in 17
th
century
rhotic non-rhotic
Australia/New Zealand: first settlers early 19
th
century
South Africa: 5000 English settlers in 1820
Wales: acquisition of English in mid-19
th
century
rhotic non-rhotic

Causes of Dialect

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Causes for the development of dialects

what factors lead to dialect diversity?

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