LIN 1340 Lecture Notes - Lecture 1: Sociolinguistics, Diaphoneme, Ethnolect
Document Summary
Sociolinguists study the relationship between language and society, or sociolinguistic patterns. Language variation to convey social meaning. way parents, teachers, or professors think we should speak. Sociolinguists are concerned with the social functions of language and how language is used. The way that real language is used in everyday social settings. Explaining why people speak differently in different contexts. The ways in which ethnic backgrounds use language. (cid:494)real language(cid:495) can be understood as referring to the way we actually speak, rather than the. The sound system (cid:523)phonology(cid:524): (cid:498)cah(cid:499) vs. (cid:498)car(cid:499) The grammar (cid:523)syntax(cid:524): (cid:498)) will watch x-factor tonight. (cid:499) vs. (cid:498))(cid:495)m going to watch x- At the heart of sociolinguistics lies the notion of variability. All languages vary, even within what we consider the same language. And this variation can be found throughout all levels of language: Of central importance to sociolinguistics is the following question: (cid:498))s variation free (cid:523)i. e. random and unpredictable(cid:524), or is it structured and rule-governed? (cid:499)
