SOCIAL DIALECT

Submitted By : Renaissance Ahmed

Sayma Department of English,

Comilla University.Email : saymalombu@gmail.com

DIALECTA variety of a language .A dialect is distinguished by its vocabulary,

grammar, and pronunciation and by its use by a group of speakers who are set off from others geographically or socially.

A dialect is very different from accentDialect can be divided into two types :

Regional and Social.

Social Dialects vs. Regional DialectsSOCIAL DIALECTS REGIONAL

DIALECTSDifference in use of language due

to social class discrepanciesDifferent in use of language due to

geographical discrepanciesSocial Barriers Geographical Barriers

Distance is not an important factor

Distance is an important factor

The distinction is not clear-cut The distinction is clear-cutCan be easily influenced by

external factorsNot easily influenced by external

factors

WHAT IS SOCIAL DIALECT ?  a variety of language that reflects social

variation in language use, according to certain factors related to the social group of the speaker such as education, occupation, income level etc.

Social dialect is also known as sociolect. According to Peter Trudgill,” Sociolect is a

variety which is thought of as being related to its speakers’ social background rather than geographical background.”

FACTORS AFFECTING SOCIAL DIALECT

Social class Religion Education Profession Caste Age Gender

HOW LANGUAGES VARY IN SOCIAL DIALECT?

VocabularyPronunciationGrammar

Examples of Social Dialects in England(1) Words that initiate with ‘h’ Two types of pronunciations for ‘h’ in words such as ‘house’ – [h] or Ø

The rate of ‘h’ omission in word initials increase as we go lower in social class

Social Class Rate of ‘h’ omission1 17

2 21

3 43

4 64

5 96

< Comparison between social class and the rate of ‘h’ omission>

(2) ‘r’ that comes behind a vowel

Two types of pronunciations in ‘r’ in words such as ‘car’ or ‘card’ – [r] or Ø

People of high social class have the tendency to omit the sound ‘r’ behind a vowel

Social Class Reading1 0

2 28

3 44

4 49

< The realization of [r] in words >

(3) Suffix ‘-ing’

Two types of pronunciation in ‘-ing’ in words such as ‘swimming’ and ‘sleeping’ – [in] or [iŋ]

Higher social classes use more [in] compared to [iŋ]

< Use of pronunciation [iŋ] for suffix ‘-ing’>

Social Class Norwich West Yorkshire1 31 5

2 41 34

3 91 61

4 100 83

EXAMPLE OF SOCIAL DIALECTS IN BANGLADESH “Upper Class’ people and ‘Lower class’

people in Bangladesh speak different variety of “BANGLA”.

Upper Class Lower Class

খাচ্ছি� খাইতাচ্ছি�

জানালা জানলা

ভাত খাব ভাত খামু

SOCIAL CLASS : VOCABULARY AS A SOCIAL MAKER In the 1950s in England, many pairs of words

were to identify the social group the speaker belongs to.

The word either placed the speaker in the “Upper-class speakers” or the “non-upper class speaker”.

Upper Class Speaker Non-Upper class speaker

Sitting Room LoungeLavatory ToiletSofa Settee

SOCIAL CLASS: GRAMMAR AS A SOCIAL MARKER In English speaking communities, it was

found that children from lower-class families used more vernacular verb form than children from middle-class families.

Examples:

FORM HIGHER CLASS LOWER CLASSPresent Tense He walks to

college everyday.

He walk to college everyday.

Past Tense I finished that book yesterday.

I finish that book yesterday.

Negative Forms Nobody wants any chips.

Nobody don’t want no chips.

CASTES AND SOCIAL DIALECT

Social dialects can be seen clearly in Indonesia or India where caste systems determined by birth.

People’s language reflect their social grouping when they use different social dialect.

These social distinctions are also reflected in speech and a person’s social dialect reflects his social background.

EXAMPLES FROM CASTES In Indonesia, the Javanese language reflects

the social status not just in the choice of linguistic forms but also in the combination of forms which each social group uses. There are 3 distinct social groups-

1)The dialect of lowest status group(peasants, uneducated town people)

2)The dialect of urbanized people with some education.

3)The dialect of the highly educated people.

CASTE SYSTEM DETERMINED SOCIAL CLASS speech system is determined by

socioeconomic class and social context. In the Tamil Speaking Caste in India,

Iyengar (Brahmin)--scholarly and higher in the caste hierarchy

Mudaliyar (non-Brahmin)—Lower caste.

word Brahmin non-BrahminDrinking Water tirrto tannifood saado sooruworship puuje puuse

LANGUAGE VARIATION DUE TO EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND Well Educated people’s Language : --- Formal --Appropriate --Grammatically Correct -- Talk Like a book. Less Educated people’s language : --- More Casual --some times ungrammatical--infrequent words in speech

SOCIAL VARIATION (AGE) Within the same social class,

differences may link with theage or sex of the speakers.

Grandparent-grandchild time span.

SOCIAL VARIATION (ETHNIC BACKGROUND) A variety of a language spoken by a particular

ethnic group. For Example, African American Vernacular English

(AAVE),also called Black English or Ebonics. Absence of copula “be” : “You crazy”. Multiple negation : “I don’t know nobody”. Omission of the 3rd person –s/es: e.g. “he like

reading”.

/R/ SOUND REFERS TO CLASS DISTINCTION According to Trudgill ,Lower-Higher == omission of /r/soundHigher Lower == use of /r/ sound According to Labov, higher socioeconomic status==use more

/r/sound lower socioeconomic status == use fewer /r/

sound.

REGISTER RELATED TO SOCIAL DIALECT

The concept of linguistic register has been described by Trudgill as follows:

“Linguistic varieties that are linked to occupations, professions or topics have been termed registers. The register of law, for example, is different from the register of medicine, which in turn is different from the language of engineering and so on.

They are characterized solely by vocabulary differences; either by the use of particular words, or by the use of words in a particular sense.”

KINDS OF SOCIOLECT The following are the several kinds of

sociolect : 1) Acrolect : This is the social dialect that is

considered to be higher or more prestigious than others. For examples, the Javanese with Kromo dialect is considered to be in the higher level than Ngoko dialect.

2) Bacilect : It refers to the social dialect that is considered to be lower or less prestigious than others.

KIND OF SOCIOLECT(CONTINUED) 3)Vulgars : contains features that are

used by less educated or even uneducated people.

4) Slang : Non-standard words that are used by a certain group of people.

5)colloquial : It means the social dialect used in daily conversation or used in speaking and not in writing.

THANK YOU !