Taming the Vernacular

Taming the Vernacular PDF Author: Jenny Cheshire
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317885805
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 270

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Book Description
Taming the Vernacular: From Dialect to Written Standard Language examines the differences between 'standard' and 'nonstandard' varieties of several different languages. Not only are some of the best-known languages of Europe represented here, but also some that have been less well-researched in the past. The chapters address the syntax of Dutch, English, French, Finnish, Galician, German and Spanish. For these languages, and many others, it is the standard varieties on which the most extensive syntactic research has been carried out, with the result that very little is known about the syntax of their dialects or the spoken colloquial varieties. The editors of this volume seek to redress the balance by taking a cross-linguistic perspective on the historical development of the standardised varieties. This allows them to identify some common characteristics of spoken language. It also helps the reader to understand the kinds of filtering processes that are involved in standardization, which result in the syntax of spoken colloquial language being different from the syntax of the standard varieties. Taming the Vernacular: From Dialect to Written Standard Language is suitable for undergraduate and postgraduate students of Linguistics, particularly those taking courses in sociolinguistics, dialectology, and historical linguistics. The focus on a variety of languages also makes this text suitable for students studying courses which cover the linguistic aspects of European languages.

Language Diversity in the USA

Language Diversity in the USA PDF Author: Kim Potowski
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 1139491261
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages :

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Book Description
What are the most widely spoken non-English languages in the USA? How did they reach the USA? Who speaks them, to whom, and for what purposes? What changes do these languages undergo as they come into contact with English? This book investigates the linguistic diversity of the USA by profiling the twelve most commonly used languages other than English. Each chapter paints a portrait of the history, current demographics, community characteristics, economic status, and language maintenance of each language group, and looks ahead to the future of each language. The book challenges myths about the 'official' language of the USA, explores the degree to which today's immigrants are learning English and assimilating into the mainstream, and discusses the relationship between linguistic diversity and national unity. Written in a coherent and structured style, Language Diversity in the USA is essential reading for advanced students and researchers in sociolinguistics, bilingualism, and education.

Modern English

Modern English PDF Author: George Philip Krapp
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : English language
Languages : en
Pages : 382

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Book Description


Writing in Nonstandard English

Writing in Nonstandard English PDF Author: Irma Taavitsainen
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
ISBN: 9781556199455
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 422

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Book Description
This book investigates linguistic variation as a complex continuum of language use from standard to nonstandard. In our view, these notions can only be established through mutual definition, and they cannot exist without the opposite pole. What is considered standard English changes according to the approach at hand, and the nonstandard changes accordingly. This book offers an interdisciplinary and multifaceted approach to this central theme of wide interest.The articles approach writing in nonstandard language through various disciplines and methodologies: sociolinguistics, pragmatics, historical linguistics, dialectology, corpus linguistics, and ideological and political points of view. The theories and methods from these fields are applied to material that ranges from nonliterary writing to canonized authors. Dialects, regional varieties and worldwide Englishes are also addressed.

Taming the Vernacular

Taming the Vernacular PDF Author: Jenny Cheshire
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1317885805
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 270

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Book Description
Taming the Vernacular: From Dialect to Written Standard Language examines the differences between 'standard' and 'nonstandard' varieties of several different languages. Not only are some of the best-known languages of Europe represented here, but also some that have been less well-researched in the past. The chapters address the syntax of Dutch, English, French, Finnish, Galician, German and Spanish. For these languages, and many others, it is the standard varieties on which the most extensive syntactic research has been carried out, with the result that very little is known about the syntax of their dialects or the spoken colloquial varieties. The editors of this volume seek to redress the balance by taking a cross-linguistic perspective on the historical development of the standardised varieties. This allows them to identify some common characteristics of spoken language. It also helps the reader to understand the kinds of filtering processes that are involved in standardization, which result in the syntax of spoken colloquial language being different from the syntax of the standard varieties. Taming the Vernacular: From Dialect to Written Standard Language is suitable for undergraduate and postgraduate students of Linguistics, particularly those taking courses in sociolinguistics, dialectology, and historical linguistics. The focus on a variety of languages also makes this text suitable for students studying courses which cover the linguistic aspects of European languages.

Standard Written English

Standard Written English PDF Author: Philip Gaskell
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 160

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Book Description
Using illustrative examples, this manual explains a form of the English language which is both distinct and common to the whole of the English-speaking world: Standard Written English (SWE).

Do You Speak American?

Do You Speak American? PDF Author: Robert Macneil
Publisher: Nan A. Talese
ISBN: 0307423573
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 242

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Book Description
Is American English in decline? Are regional dialects dying out? Is there a difference between men and women in how they adapt to linguistic variations? These questions, and more, about our language catapulted Robert MacNeil and William Cran—the authors (with Robert McCrum) of the language classic The Story of English—across the country in search of the answers. Do You Speak American? is the tale of their discoveries, which provocatively show how the standard for American English—if a standard exists—is changing quickly and dramatically. On a journey that takes them from the Northeast, through Appalachia and the Deep South, and west to California, the authors observe everyday verbal interactions and in a host of interviews with native speakers glean the linguistic quirks and traditions characteristic of each area. While examining the histories and controversies surrounding both written and spoken American English, they address anxieties and assumptions that, when explored, are highly emotional, such as the growing influence of Spanish as a threat to American English and the special treatment of African-American vernacular English. And, challenging the purists who think grammatical standards are in serious deterioration and that media saturation of our culture is homogenizing our speech, they surprise us with unpredictable responses. With insight and wit, MacNeil and Cran bring us a compelling book that is at once a celebration and a potent study of our singular language. Each wave of immigration has brought new words to enrich the American language. Do you recognize the origin of 1. blunderbuss, sleigh, stoop, coleslaw, boss, waffle? Or 2. dumb, ouch, shyster, check, kaput, scram, bummer? Or 3. phooey, pastrami, glitch, kibbitz, schnozzle? Or 4. broccoli, espresso, pizza, pasta, macaroni, radio? Or 5. smithereens, lollapalooza, speakeasy, hooligan? Or 6. vamoose, chaps, stampede, mustang, ranch, corral? 1. Dutch 2. German 3. Yiddish 4. Italian 5. Irish 6. Spanish

Language Diversity in the Classroom

Language Diversity in the Classroom PDF Author: Geneva Smitherman
Publisher: SIU Press
ISBN: 0809388995
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 183

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Book Description
It’s no secret that, in most American classrooms, students are expected to master standardized American English and the conventions of Edited American English if they wish to succeed. Language Diversity in the Classroom: From Intention to Practice works to realign these conceptions through a series of provocative yet evenhanded essays that explore the ways we have enacted and continue to enact our beliefs in the integrity of the many languages and Englishes that arise both in the classroom and in professional communities. Edited by Geneva Smitherman and Victor Villanueva, the collection was motivated by a survey project on language awareness commissioned by the National Council of Teachers of English and the Conference on College Composition and Communication. All actively involved in supporting diversity in education, the contributors address the major issues inherent in linguistically diverse classrooms: language and racism, language and nationalism, and the challenges in teaching writing while respecting and celebrating students’ own languages. Offering historical and pedagogical perspectives on language awareness and language diversity, the essays reveal the nationalism implicit in the concept of a “standard English,” advocate alternative training and teaching practices for instructors at all levels, and promote the respect and importance of the country’s diverse dialects, languages, and literatures. Contributors include Geneva Smitherman, Victor Villanueva, Elaine Richardson, Victoria Cliett, Arnetha F. Ball, Rashidah Jammi` Muhammad, Kim Brian Lovejoy, Gail Y. Okawa, Jan Swearingen, and Dave Pruett. The volume also includes a foreword by Suresh Canagarajah and a substantial bibliography of resources about bilingualism and language diversity.

A Course Book in English Grammar

A Course Book in English Grammar PDF Author: Dennis Freeborn
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
ISBN: 1349240796
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 363

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Book Description
The study of language in written texts and transcripts of speech is greatly helped by a student's abilityBB to identify and describe those prominent features of the grammar which make one variety of English different from another. A Course Book in English Grammar looks at many of the problems encountered by students and encourages them to find their own answers and to assess hypotheses about grammatical description. There are activities at each step, using authentic written and spoken data. Using 'real' texts avoids the faking of evidence to be found in some traditional grammar books, and interesting problems of analysis that arise in such texts are a source of useful discussion. The book has been thoroughly revised and expanded for this second edition, which contains additional chapters and material. A new opening chapter discusses the concept of 'grammatically correct English' and the differences between descriptive, prescriptive and proscriptive approaches to the writing of grammar books. The book is a systematic description of Standard English, and examples of contemporary spoken dialectal grammar are introduced and analysed to illustrate the differences between standard and nonstandard usage. A Course Book in English Grammar will prove invaluable to all students of English Language.

Varieties of English in Writing

Varieties of English in Writing PDF Author: Raymond Hickey
Publisher: John Benjamins Publishing
ISBN: 9027249016
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 391

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Book Description
This volume is concerned with assessing fictional and non-fictional written texts as linguistic evidence for earlier forms of varieties of English. These range from Scotland to New Zealand, from Canada to South Africa, covering all the major forms of the English language around the world. Central to the volume is the question of how genuine written representations are. Here the emphasis is on the techniques and methodology which can be employed when analysing documents. The vernacular styles found in written documents and the use of these as a window on earlier spoken modes of different varieties represent a focal concern of the book. Studies of language in literature, which were offered in the past, have been revisited and their findings reassessed in the light of recent advances in variationist linguistics.

Standards of English

Standards of English PDF Author: Raymond Hickey
Publisher: Cambridge University Press
ISBN: 0521763894
Category : Language Arts & Disciplines
Languages : en
Pages : 445

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Book Description
The first book-length exploration of 'standard Englishes' with contributions by the leading experts on each major variety of English discussed.