Varieties of English

Question 1

sociolinguistic variation

Answer 1

speech carries social meaning

Question 2

inter-speaker variation

Answer 2

people sound different from each other

Question 3

intra-speaker variation

Answer 3

people sound different in diffwerent situations

Question 4

synchronic variation

Answer 4

exists now - geographical variation

Question 5

diachronic variation

Answer 5

across time and generations

Question 6

Inner Circle

Answer 6

English and dominant/’native’ language

different Englishes have varying levels of influence eg, Canadian English influenced by scots
Australian English influenced by Southern English

~ social perceptions ~

Question 7

Outer Circle

Answer 7

English as official language,- learned as an additional language

Example: Indian English

• -> English used for trade from early 1600s
• -> 1700s English establised as language of administration
• -> 19th Century - English accepted as language of government, social elite and national press

Grammar:

• -> definite article not neccessary
• -> pluralisation of mass nouns
• -> direct translations from Hindi

Question 8

Expanding Circle

Answer 8

used as a foreign language –> business, industry

Example: English in Japan

• -> 17th Century onwards - trade with European countries
• -> 20th Century - English as principle source of new words
• -> 10% of all Japanese vocab is English loanwords –> adapted to Japanese linguistic structure