Linguistic variation and change / Scott F. Kiesling.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Kiesling, Scott F.

Series:

Edinburgh sociolinguistics

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Sociolinguistics.

Language and languages--Variation.

Language and languages.

Linguistic change.

Physical Description:

xi, 200 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm.

Place of Publication:

Edinburgh : Edinburgh University Press, 2011.

Summary:

Designed for newcomers to the field as well as postgraduates looking for an entry point, this series covers the core topics in sociolinguistics. Volumes are discursive, accessibly written and offer both a critical overview and insights derived from the authors' own research. As a whole, the series provides a comprehensive introduction to sociolinguistics.

The study of variation and change is at the heart of sociolinguistics. Providing a wide survey of the field, this textbook is organised around three constraints on variation: linguistic structure, social structure and identity, and social and linguistic perception. By considering both structure and meaning, Scott F. Kiesling examines the most important issues surrounding variation theory, including canonical studies and terms, as well as challenges to them. Research in non-English and non-European contexts is also addressed.

Key Topics

The linguistic variable and its status

Sociolinguistic methods

The description of variable patterns

Linguistic and social structure

Social meaning and perception

With over 50 figures and a practical section on methodology, this textbook is an ideal solution for undergraduate and postgraduate students of sociolinguistics seeking a comprehensive study of variation and change. Book jacket.

Contents:

Part I Questions and method

1 Questions about language and variation, and where we got them 3

Questions about language 3

Where we got the questions: from comparative philology to variationist theories 4

Orderly heterogeneity and constraints on its form 8

2 The linguistic variable 13

Definitions and types 13

Linguistic variables at different linguistic levels 14

Variable rules and their 'quiet demise' 17

Criticisms of the notion of linguistic variable 20

3 Discovering and describing patterns of variation and change 26

Ethical linguistics 30

Finding language to measure 31

Speech communities and sampling 32

Getting speech: interviews and other talk 35

Recording and managing recordings 38

Coding variables 39

Describing patterns 41

Finding structure in variability 45

Testing statistical significance and modelling variation 45

Part II Variation and social relationships: Introduction to Part II 51

4 Social patterns I: interspeaker variation 53

Stratification 54

Canonical patterns: accommodation 64

Canonical patterns: differentiation 70

Challenges to canonical patterns 79

5 Social patterns II: intraspeaker variation 90

Intraspeaker patterns, community patterns, and style 90

Register, speech activity, speech event, genre, frame 94

Stance and identity 98

6 Meaning and social patterns 104

Indexicality: meaning in the sociolinguistic variable 104

Experimental evidence for meaning 107

Indexical webs, cycles, and fields 114

Dimensions of social meaning in language 117

7 Acquisition of variation 119

How is variation learned? 119

Early childhood 119

Older children and adolescents 123

Adulthood 124

Transmission and incrementation of changes 124

Part III Variation, change, and linguistic structure: Introduction to Part III 129

8 Structural patterns I: phonology and morphology 131

Phonological variation: patterns of change, structural effects, and explanation 131

Change in progress 131

Shifts and chain shifts 135

Mergers 141

Regularity vs. lexical diffusion 143

Phonological patterns of variety contact 144

Morphological variation 145

9 Structural patterns II: syntax, lexical variables, and suprasegmentals 153

Description: the problem of 'saying the same thing' 153

Syntactic variables 154

Pragmatic and discourse variables 161

Lexicon 164

Suprasegmentals: intonation and rhythm 166

Part IV Conclusion

10 The life and times of linguistic changes 171

Source and actuation of change 171

Early development and spread of change 172

Propagation, diffusion, transmission, and completion 174.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780748637614

0748637613

0748637621

9780748637621

OCLC:

505913351