Accent and Dialect

Question 1

What is an Accent?

Answer 1

Variation in pronunciation, often associated with a particular geographical region.

Question 2

What is a Dialect?

Answer 2

Variation in words and grammatical structures associated with a particular geographical region.

Question 3

What is Code Switching?

Answer 3

When speakers who speak two or more different languages switch from one to the other, often in mid conversation. Can also be used to refer to switching between dialects of the same accent.

Question 4

What is Convergence?

Answer 4

When a speaker adapts their accent to move closer to the accent of the other speaker

Question 5

What is Divergence?

Answer 5

When a speaker adapts their accent to move away from the accent of the other speaker

Question 6

What is Covert Prestige?

Answer 6

The less obvious or hidden prestige associated with the use of certain non-standard varieties of a language within particular social groups.

Question 7

What is Overt Prestige?

Answer 7

The obvious prestige associated with the use of the standard variety of a language within a particular society. Connected to notions of speaking ‘properly’.

Question 8

What is Dialect Levelling?

Answer 8

The process by which language forms of different parts of the country converge and become more similar over time, with the loss of regional features and reduced diversity of language.

Question 9

What is an Idiolect?

Answer 9

An individual way of speaking with a distinct accent and dialect

Question 10

What is a Sociolect?

Answer 10

Dialect associated with the class of a speaker

Question 11

What is an Ethnolect?

Answer 11

Language associated with ethnic groups

Question 12

What is Prosody?

Answer 12

Non-verbal aspects of speech like pace, stress, pitch, intonation and volume

Question 13

What is a Register?

Answer 13

The situation or context in which a discourse event takes place which motivates the speaker or writer to adopt a particular register.

Question 14

What is ‘Th fronting’?

Answer 14

Pronounciation of ‘th’ as /f/ or /v/. e.g. ‘think’ becomes ‘fink’ and ‘with’ becomes ‘wiv’.

Question 15

What is Estuary English?

Answer 15

Accent spreading outwards, along the Thames, from London containing features of both RP and London speech.

Question 16

What is MLE?

Answer 16

Multicultural London English - an Ethnolect that has been identified by Jenny Cheshire in London and is trasmitted by the Grime music scene.

Question 17

What is the Post-Vocalic /r/ ?

Answer 17

The /r/ sound that appears after a vowel and before a consonant e.g. farm, or at the end of a word e.g. far. It is not pronounced in most English accents.

Question 18

What is George Bailey’s Dialect Writing Study?

Answer 18

Identified that Regional forms are being spelt in the way they are spoken. For example Man Citeh rather than Man City

Question 19

Explain Dixon, Mahoney and Cocks 2002 study

Answer 19

Used a ‘matched guise’ approach to explore the correlation between accent and perceived guilt. Suspects were perceived to be significantly more likely to be guilty when they spoke with the non-standard Birmingham form.

Question 20

What is Howard Giles’ Accommodation Theory?

Answer 20

The idea that people have different levels of formality of language at their disposal, and will converge or diverge their language depending on their situation.

Question 21

What is a Rhotic accent?

Answer 21

An accent which pronounces postvocalic /r/

Question 21

What did Jonathon Harrington track in 2000?

Answer 21

Tracked changes in the Queens speech over a thirty year period. Certain aspects of her speech have moved towards a more general southern British English variety, rather than RP.

Question 21

What is Paul Kerswill’s findings about dialect levelling?

Answer 21

Studied dialect levelling in Hull, Reading and Milton Keynes. The more people mix in different networks, the more people move in from elsewhere and the more scope there is for social mobility can have an impact on language used.

Question 21

What did Trudgill study in Norwich? (1974)

Answer 21

Studied the –ng sound at the end of words in Norwich. Found the –g was dropped more widely in lower social classes.

Question 21

What does Thomas Pear state about perceptions of speakers?

Answer 21

People had different perceptions of a speaker depending on the accent that they had heard them speak with.

Question 21

Outline Martha’s Vineyard by Labov (1960s)

Answer 21

The locals resisted dialect levelling due to ‘summer people’, claiming their identity as residents. Divergence was used to mark the change.

Question 21

Explain Labov’s Department Store Study (1966)

Answer 21

Studied the procononantal /r/ in New York City department stores. Found that the lower middle class were most susceptible to overt prestige.

Question 21

Define indexicality

Answer 21

The process by which pronunications are attached to social meaning

Question 21

What is a social meaning?

Answer 21

How we attribute certain social assumptions based on the way someone speaks.

Question 22

What is MBE, proposed by Drummond?

Answer 22

A variety of English used by people in the UK which incorporates features associated with MLE alongside features from local accent and dialect

Question 23

What is Accent Bias?

Answer 23

an unwarranted prejudice toward interlocutors based on the sound of their speech​

Question 24

What is a diaspora?

Answer 24

The spread of an accent to other areas

Question 25

What is SSBE?

Answer 25

SSBE – Standard Southern British English – a rival for RP?​

Question 26

What is a protected characteristic?

Answer 26

The Act provides a legal framework to protect the rights of individuals and advance equality of opportunity for all. It provides Britain with a discrimination law which protects individuals from unfair treatment and promotes a fair and more equal society.​

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Protected characteristics within the act include, race, gender, sexuality but not accent

Question 27

What is Dominic Watt campagining for?

Answer 27

A key campaigner and organiser of the Accent Bias in Britain research project is among some who are campaigning for this to be included.​

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Lobby Group – Equality Act Review – are taking this to Government to be addressed

Question 28

What is a criticism of this?

Answer 28

People can modify an accent but you cannot modify your skin colour/disabilities

Question 29

What did the Accent Bias Research Project aim to find?

Answer 29

Exploring whether the employability of a person can be dictated by the way they speak.

Question 30

What was the main finding of the Accent Bias Research Project?

Answer 30

Young people are more positive to non-standard forms than older people