Explain the difference between accent and dialect. Provide relevant examples.
1. Explain the difference between accent and dialect. Provide relevant examples
Accent:
- refers to how words are pronounced
- reflects variations in pronunciation due to speaker‘s geographical location, social background or first language
- accents can exist within same language or across languages
- Example: word „tomato“ is pronounced differently in British English (tə-MAH-toh) and American English (tə-MAY-toh)
Dialects:
- broader concept that refers to pronunciation, variations in grammar, vocabulary & spelling within a language
- dialects are often regionally or socially defined
- Example: British English phrase “I haven’t got any” might be rendered in American English as “I don’t have any.”
Key Distinction:
- An accent focuses on pronunciation.
- A dialect includes differences in pronunciation and grammar, vocabulary, and usage
Explain the difference between rhotic and non-rhotic dialects
• The distinction between rhotic and non-rhotic dialects concerns the pronunciation of the /r/ sound, particularly at the end of words or before
consonants
Rhotic Dialects:
- Rhotic dialects pronounce the /r/ sound clearly in all positions, including at the end of a word or before a consonant
- Example: In rhotic dialects, the word “car” is pronounced with a distinct /r/ sound at the end (/kɑr/).
- Examples of Rhotic English Dialects: American English
Non-Rhotic Dialects:
- Non-rhotic dialects drop the /r/ sound unless it is followed by a vowel
- In non-rhotic dialects, the /r/ sound is often replaced with a neutral vowel or simply omitted
- Example: In non-rhotic dialects, the word “car” is pronounced without the /r/ sound at the end (/kɑː/)
- However, in a sentence like “the car is here,” the /r/ may be pronounced due to the following vowel (a phenomenon called linking R).
- Examples of Non-Rhotic English Dialects: British English
Name 3-4 phonological, morphological & syntactic features typical of Northern varieties of English
• Phonological Features:
1. Foot–Strut Merger:
- In Northern English, words like foot and strut are pronounced with the same vowel, typically /ʊ/, unlike in Southern varieties where they
are distinct
- Example: luck and look may sound similar
2. Short Vowel in “Bath”:
- Northern English often uses a short /a/ in words like bath, grass, and laugh (e.g., /bæθ/), unlike the long /ɑː/ in Southern English
3. Monophthongization of Diphthongs:
- In some Northern varieties, diphthongs are simplified
- For example, face may be pronounced with a monophthong like /feː/ instead of the Southern /feɪ/
4. Glottalization:
- While less common than in London varieties, some Northern accents may feature glottal, though this varies by region
• Morphological Features:
1. Second-Person Pronoun “Thou”:
- In some traditional Northern dialects (e.g., Yorkshire), the older pronoun thou and its variants (thee, thy) persist, though this is rare in
modern speech
2. Lack of “s” in Third-Person Singular:
- Some Northern dialects omit the third-person singular -s in present-tense verbs
- Example: “She go to school” instead of “She goes to school.”
• Syntactic Features:
1. Use of “Them” as a Demonstrative:
- Northern varieties often use them instead of those
- Example: “Them shoes are mine” instead of “Those shoes are mine.”
2. Double Negation:
- Negative concord is common in Northern varieties
- Example: “I didn’t see nothing” instead of “I didn’t see anything.”
3. “Was/Were” Levelling:
- The verb to be is often leveled, with was used for all persons in some areas and were used for all persons in others
- Example: “We was” or “I were” instead of “We were.”
Name 3-4 phonological, morphological & syntactic features typical of Southern varieties of English
• Phonological Features
1. Non-rhoticity:
- Southern English varieties, especially in the South East, often omit the /r/ sound in non-prevocalic positions (e.g., “car” pronounced as /kɑː/)
2. Broad A in Words Like Bath:
- Southern speakers tend to use a long [ɑː] vowel in words like bath and grass compared to the short [æ] in northern varieties
• Morphological Features
1. Use of Ain’t:
- Southern English varieties, especially in the South West and South East, frequently use ain’t as a negator for be (e.g., “I ain’t going”)
and have (e.g., “I ain’t seen her”)
- This is pervasive across these regions
2. A-Prefixing of -ing Verbs:
- In the South West and South East, speakers may use a- before -ing verbs, such as “He’s a-working”
- This is attested but not pervasive
• Syntactic Features
1. Invariant Tags:
- The use of invariant tag questions like “That’s your coat, innit?” is common in the South East and pervasive
2. Relative What:
- Southern varieties, especially in the South West and East Anglia, may use what as a relative pronoun, such as “The man what came
yesterday”
- This is pervasive in East Anglia and attested in the South West
What is t-glottaling and h-dropping? Explain the process and provide examples
• T-glottaling
- Definition:
- T-glottaling is a phonological process where the voiceless alveolar plosive /t/ is replaced by a glottal stop [ʔ]
- This occurs particularly in certain accents of English, such as Cockney, Estuary English, and some Northern varieties
- Process:
- The /t/ sound is articulated by stopping airflow in the vocal tract using the glottis (the space between the vocal cords) rather than the tongue
- The result is a brief closure of the glottis and a “silent” or soft sound, [ʔ]
- Examples:
- butter → [ˈbʌʔə]
- bottle → [ˈbɒʔl]
- city → [ˈsɪʔi]
- Usage Context:
- T-glottaling is more common in informal speech and at the end of syllables or words (e.g., cat → [kæʔ])
- but in some accents, it can also occur between vowels
• H-Dropping
- H-dropping is the omission of the initial /h/ sound in words where it would typically occur
- This is common in Cockney, Estuary English, and other non-standard British varieties
- The /h/ sound, produced by expelling air through the vocal cords without any obstruction in the mouth, is omitted entirely
- The word begins with the following vowel instead
- house → [aʊs]
- happy → [ˈæpi]
- hotel → [oʊˈtɛl]
What is an isogloss? What is dialect continuum?
• What is an Isogloss?
- An isogloss is a geographic boundary that separates regions based on specific linguistic features, such as pronunciation, vocabulary, or
grammar
- Essentially, it marks where one linguistic feature ends, and another begins
• Key Points:
- Isoglosses often divide dialects or accents within a language
- They are not always absolute boundaries; overlap or gradual transitions between regions are common
- Multiple overlapping isoglosses can create dialect boundaries, distinguishing one dialect from another
• Example:
- In the UK, the foot–strut split is an isogloss
- In Northern England, the vowels in foot and strut are pronounced the same (/ʊ/)
- while in Southern England, they are different (/ʊ/ for foot and /ʌ/ for strut)
• What is a Dialect Continuum?
- A dialect continuum is a range of dialects spoken across a geographic area where neighboring dialects are mutually intelligible, but dialects at
opposite ends of the continuum may not be
- It illustrates how linguistic changes happen gradually over space, with no sharp divisions between dialects
- There is a gradual blending of linguistic features from one area to another
- Often occurs in regions without political or social boundaries that impose a standard language
- A dialect continuum may lead to mutual intelligibility between speakers of adjacent dialects but unintelligibility between speakers from
distant points in the continuum
- The Germanic dialect continuum in Europe:
- Low German in northern Germany transitions into Dutch in the Netherlands, then into Flemish in Belgium.
- Speakers in neighboring regions (e.g., northern Germany and the Netherlands) understand each other well, but speakers of Low German
and Flemish may not
• Relationship Between Isoglosses and Dialect Continua
- Isoglosses can mark differences within a dialect continuum, identifying where specific features shift
- A dialect continuum demonstrates how languages and dialects evolve and connect across regions, showing the dynamic nature of linguistic
boundaries
What was the role of other languages in the development of English dialects in the North?
• Role of Other Languages in Northern English Dialects
- Old Norse Influence
- Origins:
- During the Viking Age (8th–11th centuries), Norse-speaking settlers (mainly from modern-day Norway and Denmark) established
settlements in Northern England, particularly in areas like Yorkshire and the Danelaw
- Impact on Northern Dialects:
- Vocabulary: Many Norse-derived words entered Northern dialects, including kirk (church), beck (stream), and dale (valley)
- Pronouns: Norse introduced the third-person plural pronouns they, them, and their, which replaced the Old English equivalents (hīe,
hīem, hiera)
- Phonology:
- Certain Northern accents retain Norse-influenced sounds, such as the hard /k/ in kirk versus the soft /ch/ in church in southern dialects
- Grammar: Simplifications like the loss of certain verb endings and leveling of inflections may have been influenced by Old Norse
contact
- Celtic Influence
- Celtic languages were spoken in Britain before the arrival of the Anglo-Saxons and persisted in areas like Wales, Scotland, and Cornwall
- The influence of Celtic on Northern English was more limited compared to Old Norse but can be seen in place names (e.g., Pen- for hill, from Celtic pen)
- Some syntactic features, such as the use of periphrastic “do” or progressive constructions, may have indirect Celtic influence
- Scots and Scottish Gaelic
- In Scotland, the Scots language (a Germanic language related to English) and Scottish Gaelic (a Celtic language) influenced Northern
English through cross-border interaction
- Impact:
- Lexical items like bairn (child) and aye (yes) entered Northern dialects through contact with Scots
Discuss the origins of the dialectal diversity on the British Isles?
• Origins of Dialectal Diversity on the British Isles
1. Anglo-Saxon Migration
- After the Roman withdrawal from Britain (5th century), Germanic tribes (Angles, Saxons, and Jutes) settled in different regions, bringing Old
English dialects
- These dialects evolved into four major Old English dialects: Northumbrian, Mercian, West Saxon, and Kentish
2. Viking Settlements
- Norse-speaking Vikings introduced a significant layer of lexical and grammatical changes, especially in the North and East of England (the
Danelaw)
3. Norman Conquest
- The Norman Conquest (1066) brought Old Norman French, which had a profound impact on the English lexicon, particularly in the South
and Midlands
- French influence is less pronounced in the North, leading to greater retention of Old English and Norse-derived words
4. Celtic Substrate
- In regions where Celtic languages persisted (e.g., Wales, Scotland, Ireland), their influence is seen in place names and regional
grammatical features
- Dialects in these areas often retained Celtic phonological patterns, such as a more rhotic pronunciation
5. Geographic Isolation
- Natural barriers like mountains, rivers, and coastlines fostered linguistic isolation, leading to the development of distinct regional accents
and dialects
6. Later Migrations and Trade
- Migration patterns, including Irish immigrants in the 19th century, contributed to features in urban dialects like Scouse (Liverpool) and
Geordie (Newcastle)
Scottish English and Scots are two varieties of English. Explain the relation between them, define the major differences and provide relevant
examples
• Relationship Between Scottish English and Scots
1. Shared History:
- Both varieties have roots in the early Germanic languages brought to Britain by the Anglo-Saxons
- However, Scots evolved as a distinct language from the Northumbrian dialect of Old English, influenced by Norse, Norman French, Dutch, and Gaelic
- Scottish English, on the other hand, emerged later as a result of contact with Standard English following the Union of the Crowns (1603)
and Union of Parliaments (1707), when political and cultural ties between Scotland and England strengthened
2. Mutual Influence:
- Scots has influenced Scottish English in terms of vocabulary, idioms, and pronunciation
- Scottish English has exerted a standardizing influence on Scots, especially in formal and written contexts
• Major Differences
1. Linguistic Status
- Scots: Considered by many linguists a distinct language rather than a dialect of English
- It has unique grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation, and exists on a continuum from “broad Scots” (most distinct) to “Scottish
Standard English” (closer to English)
- Scottish English: A dialect or regional variety of Standard English spoken in Scotland, heavily influenced by Scots in terms of phonology
and vocabulary
2. Pronunciation
- Scots: Retains distinct phonemes and older pronunciations absent in Standard English
- Example: Scots retains the “ch” sound ([x]) in words like loch
- Scottish English: Pronunciation is closer to Standard English but with a distinctive Scottish accent
- Example: The Scottish rolled [r] sound is often present
3. Vocabulary
- Scots: Contains many unique words that are not found in Standard English or Scottish English
- Examples: bairn (child), ken (know), greet (cry)
- Scottish English: Includes some Scots words, but in a more limited or Anglicized way
- Example: loch (lake) is commonly used in Scottish English but is borrowed from Scots/Gaelic
4. Grammar
- Scots: Displays distinct grammatical features, such as
- Double negatives: I didnae see naebody (I didn’t see anybody)
- Different verb conjugations: He gangs (He goes)
- Scottish English: Follows the grammar of Standard English, though it may incorporate some Scots-influenced constructions informally
5. Orthography
- Scots: Can be written in its own spelling system, reflecting its phonology
- Example: The wee bairn wis greetin (The small child was crying)
- Scottish English: Uses Standard English spelling conventions
Analyse the following table. What does it present? What process does it illustrate? What distributional trends can be identified in the analyses data?
Explain in detail
• What does the table present?
- The table shows realizational variants of /t/ in London English speakers
- It provides a breakdown of how /t/ is articulated in two environments
- Medial position (e.g., “butter” or “city”)
- Final position (e.g., “but” or “what”)
• The table includes data collected in two types of speech contexts:
1. Conversation (informal speech)
2. Reading (more formal or careful speech)
• The variants of /t/ listed include:
- Glottal: Replacing /t/ with a glottal stop [ʔ]
- [t]: Realized as a typical voiceless plosive [t]
- [d]: A voiced plosive [d] (not commonly observed in this data)
- Tap: A flapped [ɾ], as in American English pronunciations like “butter.”
- Elided: The /t/ sound is omitted entirely
• What process does it illustrate?
- The table illustrates t-variation, particularly T-glottaling (the replacement of /t/ with a glottal stop [ʔ]) and T-elision (deletion of /t/)
- These processes are features of London English and other urban accents of English, reflecting ongoing sound change in informal and casual
speech
• Distributional Trends in the Data
1. Glottalization (T-glottaling):
- Glottal realizations are significantly more common in the final position than in the medial position
- Final conversation: 87.4% of /t/ is realized as a glottal stop
- Final reading: 85.2% (slightly less than conversation, likely due to formality)
- Medial conversation: 43% (less frequent in medial contexts)
- The informal context (conversation) shows higher glottalization rates than the formal context (reading), suggesting that T-glottaling is more
common in casual speech
2. Retention of [t]:
- The standard realization [t] is much more frequent in reading tasks than in conversation
- Medial reading: 91.6%
- Final reading: 11.7% (lower in final position, where glottalization dominates)
- In conversation, [t] is replaced by glottal or other variants more often, reflecting informality
3. Elision (T-deletion):
- Elision (omission of /t/) is rare but more common in final positions (5.15% in final conversation, 2.7% in final reading) than in medial
positions
4. Tap [ɾ]:
- The tapped variant is marginal in this dataset, appearing more frequently in medial contexts than in final ones (e.g., 4.5% in medial
conversation)
• Summary
- T-glottaling is dominant in final positions and more frequent in informal speech (conversation)
- [t] retention is more common in medial positions and formal contexts (reading tasks)
- Elision and tap realizations are minor processes compared to glottalization and standard [t]
- The data highlights how phonological variation in /t/ realization correlates with phonological environment (medial vs. final) and speech style
(formal vs. informal)
Explain the difference between dialect and language. Provide relevant examples
• Definition and Scope
- Language
- A language is a broader system of communication, encompassing grammar, vocabulary, and pronunciation, used by a significant
population or recognized officially
- It is often associated with a nation or cultural identity
- Example: English, French, Mandarin
- Dialect
- A dialect is a regional or social variety of a language, marked by distinct vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation, but mutually
intelligible with other dialects of the same language
- Example: British English vs. American English (both are dialects of the English language)
• Mutual Intelligibility
- Dialects of the same language are usually mutually intelligible
- For example, speakers of Geordie (a Northern English dialect) and Cockney (a London dialect) can understand each other despite differences
in accent, vocabulary, and grammar
- Languages, however, are often not mutually intelligible
- For instance, Spanish and Portuguese are distinct languages, even though they share similarities as part of the Romance family
• Standardization
- Languages tend to have a standardized form, often codified in grammar books and dictionaries, and are used in formal education, government & media
- Example: Standard Italian is based on the Tuscan dialect, but many regional dialects like Sicilian and Neapolitan are still spoken
- Dialects, on the other hand, are typically spoken in informal contexts and often lack a standardized written form.
• Summar
- A language is a larger, overarching system of communication often tied to national or cultural identity
- A dialect is a localized or social variation of a language, typically mutually intelligible with others
Explain the north-south-divide
• Definition
- The north-south divide is a term used to describe the social, economic and cultural disparities between the London and the south-east of England and the rest of the UK
- People living in the south-east typically have a longer life expectancy, higher income and better standard of living than those living in the north
- House prices in the south-east are higher due to high demand
- Rates of unemployment are higher in the north as regions continue to adjust to de-industrialization
• What caused the North-South-Divide
- The main cause of the north-south divide is de-industrialisation, as manufacturing industries, traditionally located in the north have closed
- As you can see from the data below manufacturing continues to be very important in the north whereas in the south it is ranked 7th
• What strategies are being used to address the north-south-divide?
- For several decades the UK government and the EU have attempted to reduce the north-south divide by investing in the north
- Assisted area status has been assigned to areas that are less economically advantaged
- New businesses setting up on these areas are eligible for financial assistance
- The Regional Growth Fund (England)
- Regional Selective Assistance (Scotland)
- The Welsh Government Business Finance (Wales)
- Selective Financial Assistance (Northern Ireland)
• Southern England
- refers to: South East England, South West England (including Greater London & East of England)
• Northern England
- refers to: North East England, Yorkshire and the Humber, North West England (including Meresyide & Greater Manchester)
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