Linguistic Varieties & Multilingual Nations Study Notes PDF

**Study Notes for Chapter 4: Linguistic Varieties and Multilingual Nations** **Key Concepts** **1. Vernacular Languages** - **Definition**: Native languages or dialects used for everyday, informal communication within a community. - **Characteristics**: - Learned at home as the fi...

**Study Notes for Chapter 4: Linguistic Varieties and Multilingual Nations** **Key Concepts** **1. Vernacular Languages** - **Definition**: Native languages or dialects used for everyday, informal communication within a community. - **Characteristics**: - Learned at home as the first language. - Typically unstandardized and lack official status. - Used in informal domains and for specific cultural or social functions. - **Functions**: - Express solidarity and group identity. - Serve as markers of ethnic or social belonging. **2. Standard Languages** - **Definition**: Codified forms of a language recognized as the prestigious norm within a community. - **Characteristics**: - Undergo processes of standardization, including codification through grammars and dictionaries. - Used in formal settings such as education, government, media, and literature. - Serve as a common medium across dialectal diversity. - **Development**: - Often based on the dialect of influential social, economic, or political centers. - Example: Standard British English emerged from the London dialect due to its association with the Court and commerce. **3. World Englishes** - **Inner Circle**: - Countries where English is the native language (e.g., USA, UK, Canada, Australia). - **Outer Circle**: - Countries where English has an official or historical role (e.g., India, Singapore, Nigeria). - English serves as a second language, often influenced by local languages. - Development of localized varieties (e.g., Singlish in Singapore). - **Expanding Circle**: - Countries where English is learned as a foreign language for international communication (e.g., China, Russia). - **Significance**: - Reflects the global diversity and adaptation of English in different sociolinguistic contexts. **4. Lingua Franca** - **Definition**: A common language used for communication between speakers of different native languages. - **Examples**: - **Tukano** in the Vaupés region of the Amazon. - **Swahili** in East Africa. - **English** as a global lingua franca. - **Functions**: - Facilitates trade, diplomacy, and multicultural interactions. - May eventually influence or replace vernacular languages in multilingual communities. **5. Pidgins** - **Definition**: Simplified languages that develop for communication between groups without a common language, primarily for specific purposes like trade. - **Characteristics**: - No native speakers. - Simplified grammar and limited vocabulary. - Used in restricted domains. - **Development**: - Arise out of necessity in multilingual settings. - Typically have low prestige and may be viewed negatively. **6. Creoles** - **Definition**: Fully developed languages that originated from pidgins and have become the first language of a community. - **Characteristics**: - Acquired by children as their native language. - Expanded vocabulary and grammatical complexity. - Used across all domains of communication. - **Creolisation**: - The process by which a pidgin evolves into a creole as it gains native speakers and functional expansion. **Aspect** **Pidgins** **Creoles** ---------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- **Definition** Simplified languages that develop as a means of communication between speakers of different native languages; no native speakers. Fully developed languages that originated from pidgins and have become the first language of a community; have native speakers. **Native Speakers** No native speakers; used as a second language for specific purposes. Have native speakers; acquired by children as their first language. **Function and Usage** Used for limited and specific functions, such as trade, commerce, or other restricted domains; primarily transactional and referential. Used across all domains of life, including home, education, government, literature, and media; serve both referential and affective functions. **Structural Complexity** Simplified grammatical structures; reduced vocabulary; minimal or no inflection; focuses on essential communication needs. Expanded grammatical structures; increased complexity with development of inflections and affixes; elaborated to meet all linguistic needs of native speakers. **Vocabulary Size** Limited vocabulary, often drawing words from a dominant language (lexifier) with meanings extended; high degree of polysemy. Expanded vocabulary to express a wide range of concepts and ideas; may develop new words and borrow from multiple sources. **Stability and Lifespan** Often unstable and short-lived; may disappear when the specific need for communication diminishes. Stable and enduring; can develop into official or national languages; continue to evolve over time. **Attitudes** Generally low prestige; often viewed negatively or as \"broken\" language by outsiders; may face stigmatization. Attitudes vary; may still face negative perceptions, but speakers often have a strong sense of identity and pride; some creoles gain recognition and official status. **7. Linguistic Features in Pidgins and Creoles** - **Lexifier (Superstrate)**: - The language that provides most of the vocabulary (e.g., English in Tok Pisin). - **Substrate**: - The languages that influence the grammar and pronunciation. - **Common Linguistic Processes**: - Simplification of consonant clusters. - Reduction or elimination of inflectional morphology. - Use of particles or separate words to indicate tense, plurality, etc. - Development of systematic grammatical features in creoles. **8. Post-Creole Continuum** - **Acrolect**: - The variety closest to the standard language. - **Basilect**: - The variety most distinct from the standard; the \"deep\" creole. - **Mesolect**: - Intermediate varieties. - **Decreolisation**: - The process where a creole language gradually becomes more like the standard language. **Sociolinguistic Dynamics** **Attitudes Towards Language Varieties** - **Pidgins**: - Often stigmatized and considered \"broken\" or inferior. - Misunderstood by speakers of the lexifier language. - **Creoles**: - May have negative perceptions but can also be embraced as symbols of identity. - Some creoles gain prestige and official recognition (e.g., Tok Pisin in Papua New Guinea). **Language Maintenance and Shift** - **Factors Influencing Language Survival**: - **Social Identity**: Strong ethnic or group identity can support vernacular maintenance. - **Functionality**: Usefulness of a language in various domains encourages its preservation. - **Policy**: Government recognition and promotion can enhance a language\'s status. **Language Selection for Official Use** - **Non-Linguistic Factors**: - Political, social, and economic considerations are primary. - Selection often reflects the language of the dominant or most influential group. - **Linguistic Factors**: - While important, they are secondary and can be addressed through language planning and education.