UTS SOCIOLINGUISTICS

NAMA       : AYU ANGGITA

MATKUL  : SOCIOLINGUISTICS ( UTS )

• 1.      What is sociolinguistics?
• 2.      Why do we learn sociolinguistics ?
• 3.      What is the relation between language and society ?
• 4.      Please mention and explain the branches of linguistics !
• 5.      What is standard language ? Giving an example !
• 6.      Elaborating the language, dialect and accent, please !
• 7.      Giving an example of formal language and informal language !
• 8.      What aspects of language are sociolinguistics interested in ?
• 9.      When two or more people from different language met and tried to communicate, what should they do ?

a.       Pidgin

b.      Creole

c.       Lingua franca

• 10.  Why do people switch and mix a language ?
• 11.  Giving an example of code switching and code mixing !

ANSWER

1.      Sociolinguistics is a field of study which deals mostly with language use, particularly spoken language, but not the grammatical or phonetic structure of a language. Sociolinguists do not study a language or a linguistic variety as a closed system with no reference to speaker and social life. Sociolinguists emphasize that language use – the sociolinguistic language system – is always variable and heterogeneous.
Sociolinguists do not divide languages and speakers into "good" and "bad". They follow the so-called differentiation theory which says that all linguistic varieties (not only standard languages, but also dialects, urban languages, youth language, language of various social groups) are valuable. Their value depends on the social context and situation. Every linguistic variety performs necessary functions to its speakers, but their value differs, because their value depends on distribution of power, welfare and prestige in a certain society during a certain historical period of time under certain social, political, cultural and economic circumstances.

It is namely the social attitudes that determine which linguistic variety, language feature or style speakers choose in a certain situation. Even though people cannot command every possible linguistic resource, it is easier to achieve desirable aim if your linguistic repertoire is rich and wide. Here we talk about the communicative competence: we not only convey information, but also express our individual or group identity... and make use of it.

Studies, which investigate linguistic variants, are called micro-sociolinguistic. Studies, which investigate social aspects and language attitudes, are called macro-sociolinguistic. The range of sociolinguistic research is very wide, but all sociolinguistic studies are related to the superior aim – to identify which social factors determine the choice of linguistic variants and language change.

2.      many benefits to learning how language and society interact. First, they discover language is part of a broad social context and understanding this social context is complicated. Secondly, language learning involves the learning of a new phonetic language. Understanding one‟s mother tongue phonetic language assist in understanding some of the pronunciation issues related to learning English. Thirdly, students learn that learning English is a complicated processes; it is affected by the ability of the teacher to understand the students‟ language hurdles, and individual‟s motivation to learn the new language.

3.      Relationship between language and society

The connection between language and society is tightly anchored. The relationship of the two is deeply rooted. Language performs various functions in the society and the society does the same way. If one will not exist, the other one will be affected.

Language is the primary tool for communication purposes, for establishing peace and order in our society, for showing authority and power, and for attaining goals and objectives. But, it can also destruct the society if it will use inappropriately. It must follow the conformity governing the society to avoid conflict s and to meet the boundary of individual differences.

Society however controls our language by giving us preferences as what are acceptable and not, because each one of us has our own perception or point of view. A group of people may accept our language, but for others, it could be kind of offence or insult. We must know how, when and where to say it and for what purpose.

Social changes produce changes in language. This affects values in ways that have not been accurately understood. Language incorporates social values. However, social values are only the same as linguistic values when the society is a stable and unchanging one. Once society starts changing, then language change produces special effects.

4.      Linguistics is study of language. It is concerned with human language as a universal and recognizable part of human behavior and of the human abilities. Raja T. Nasr (1984).

The Branches of linguistics

1. General linguistic generally describes the concepts and categories of a particular language or among all language. It also provides analyzed theory of the language. Descriptive linguistic describes or gives the data to confirm or refute the theory of particular language explained generally.

2. Micro linguistic is narrower view. It is concerned internal view of language itself (structure of language systems) without related to other sciences and without related how to apply it in daily life. Some fields of micro linguistic:

a.       Phonetics, the study of the physical properties of sounds of human language

b.      Phonology, the study of sounds as discrete, abstract elements in the speaker's mind that distinguish meaning

c.       Morphology, the study of internal structures of words and how they can be modified

d.      Syntax, the study of how words combine to form grammatical sentences

e.       Semantics, the study of the meaning of words (lexical semantics) and fixed word combinations (phraseology), and how these combine to form the meanings of sentences

f.       Pragmatics, the study of how utterances are used (literally, figuratively, or otherwise) in communicative acts

g.      Discourse analysis, the analysis of language use in texts (spoken, written, or signed)

h.      Applied linguistic is the branch of linguistic that is most concerned with application of the concepts in everyday life, including language-teaching.

3. Macro linguistic is broadest view of language. It is concerned external view of language itself with related to other sciences and how to apply it in daily life. Some fields of micro linguistic:

a.       Stylistics, the study of linguistic factors that place a discourse in context.

b.      Developmental linguistics, the study of the development of linguistic ability in an individual, particularly the acquisition of language in childhood.

c.       Historical linguistics or Diachronic linguistics, the study of language change.

d.      Language geography, the study of the spatial patterns of languages.

e.       Evolutionary linguistics, the study of the origin and subsequent development of language.

f.       Psycholinguistics, the study of the cognitive processes and representations underlying language use.

g.      Sociolinguistics, the study of social patterns and norms of linguistic variability.

h.      Clinical linguistics, the application of linguistic theory to the area of Speech-Language Pathology.

i.        Neurolinguistics, the study of the brain networks that underlie grammar and communication.

j.        Biolinguistics, the study of natural as well as human-taught communication systems in animals compared to human language.

k.      K. Computational linguistics, the study of computational implementations of linguistic structures.

5.      A standard language or standard variety may be defined either as a language or the variety that has undergone standardization. In British English the standard, known as Standard English (SE), is historically based on the language of the medieval English court of Chancery. The establishment of this standard as the norm of "polite" society, that is to say of the upper classes. The spoken standard has come to be seen as a mark of good education and social prestige.Although often associated with the Received Pronunciation accent, Standard English can be spoken with any accent.

For examples :. In American and Australian English, for example, "sunk" and "shrunk" as past tense forms of "sink" and "shrink" are beginning to become acceptable as standard forms, whereas standard British English still insists on "sank" and "shrank".

6.      What is the difference between Accent, Dialect and Language?

This article looks at the differences between the three terms. People often confuse them and there is a certain degree of overlap (even linguists don’t always agree on what the difference is between them) but generally speaking we can talk about:

Accents

Accent is all about pronunciation. Two people may use the same grammar, the same syntax and the same vocabulary but pronounce the words in a different way. Effectively they have two accents.

For example, people in the north of England tend to say the word pathas:

pæːθ

with a short vowel whilst people in the south of England tend to say:

pɑːθ

with a long vowel. There are two different accents at work here.

Dialects

Dialects, on the other hand, have differences not only in pronunciation but also in grammar and syntax. Two people may both speak English but one might say:

He did well!

Whilst the other could say:

He done well!

Here this isn’t just a difference in pronunciation but also grammar; these are two different dialects. On another tack, one person might say:

He’s talking.

Whilst another says:

He’s a-mardlin’.

Here there are differences in vocabulary which separate standard British English from the Norfolk dialect.

Languages

There is a saying that a language is a dialect with an army. Linguists often talk about language in terms of political influence and power. By this they mean that a dialect with political power becomes a language.

Take, for example, Chinese and Spanish. They are two very different languages and most people would regard them as completely separate.

However, what about Spanish and Italian? They share a great deal and are obviously related however, most people would see them as separate languages.

What about Mandarin and Cantonese which are very different (far more different than Spanish and Italian for example) and yet some people regard them as dialects of Chinese.

Finally think about Hindi and Urdu which are regarded as separate languages since they “belong” to two different nations, India and Pakistan, and yet they’re linguistically extremely similar.

So linguistically speaking there is no real difference between a language and a dialect; however politically speaking the differences become of major importance!

7.      Formal and Informal language

We use formal language in situations that are serious or that involve people we don’t know well. Informal language is more commonly used in situations that are more relaxed and involve people we know well.

Formal language is more common when we write; informal language is more common when we speak. However, there are times where writing can be very informal, for example, when writing postcards or letters to friends, emails or text messages. There are also examples where spoken English can be very formal, for example, in a speech or a lecture. Most uses of English are neutral; that is, they are neither formal nor informal.

Formal language and informal language are associated with particular choices of grammar and vocabulary.

Contractions, relative clauses without a relative pronoun and ellipsis are more common in informal language.

Compare

She has decided to accept the job.	formal
She’s decided to accept the job.	informal: She’s = contraction

Compare

The girl whom I met in Singapore was interested in working in Australia.	formal
The girl I met in Singapore was interested in working in Australia.	informal: relative clause without the relative pronoun whom

Compare

We went to Barcelona for the weekend. We have a lot of things to tell you.	Formal
Went to Barcelona for the weekend. Lots to tell you.	Informal: ellipsis (more likely to be written or texted than spoken)

More formal vocabulary commonly involves longer words or words with origins in Latin and Greek. More informal vocabulary commonly involves shorter words, or words with origins in Anglo-Saxon. Most dictionaries indicate very informal and/or formal words.

formal	informal
commence	start
terminate	end
endeavour	try

We often choose to use certain modal verbs to be more formal and polite:

Can I suggest you try this new model? (neutral)

May I suggest you try this new model? (more formal)

Might I suggest you try this new model? (very formal)

8.      What aspects of language are Sociolinguists interested in?

Sociolinguists are interested in explaining why people speak differently in different social contexts. They are concerned with the way people signal aspects of their social identity through language. Sociolinguists study the effect of social factors -- such as social distance, social status, age, gender and class -- on language varieties (dialects, registers, genres, etc). Sociolinguists are also concerned with identifying the social functions of language and the ways it is used to convey social meaning.

9.      Lingua Franca

Lingua Franca might be the most commonly recognised of these three terms. In essence, a lingua franca is one that is used for communication between people who have no native language in common. This helps to facilitate trade and cultural exchange which helps to explain why lingua francas were also called “trade” or “bridge” languages.

While these days, the lingua franca of the world is undoubtedly English, it wasn’t always like that. Throughout history and in various places around the globe, various other languages have been used to the same effect: Greek was used in the heyday of the Hellenistic influence, Latin during the Roman Empire, Aramaic in Western Asia, and today, French, Urdu, and Swahili are used as the lingua franca in certain parts of the world. Actually, the term lingua franca originates from a particular language that was used for communication around the Mediterranean area for around eight centuries. It was based on a simplified version of Italian, with many additions from Spanish, Portuguese, Berber, Turkish, French, Greek, and Arabic. The words “lingua franca” themselves mean “language of the Franks” in Latin, although the term “Franks” covered the whole population of Western Europe.

Although quite often many pidgin and creole languages can function as lingua francas, lingua francas themselves most often are neither pidgin nor creole.

Pidgin Languages

Pidgin languages share the main characteristic of a lingua franca in that they are used as a means of communication between different communities. Where they differ from the previous is that pidgin languages have no native speakers. Often, pidgin languages are based on a simplified version of one main language, while borrowing vocabulary and grammar from several additional languages. So, the original lingua franca used around the Mediterranean was a pidgin language, for example – based on simplified Italian, with additions from Greek, French, Arabic, and others. Alternatively, they can originate from mixing together several simplified languages.

At their core, pidgin languages are a very simplified means of communication. Much of the “language” can come down to mixing voice and hand signals, in an effort to make oneself understood to someone from a different community. There are very few grammatical rules and the language can develop impromptu – during the course of a single encounter. Over the course of several encounters, a more conventional form of pidgin can develop; and creole languages take that step even further.

Creole languages

All creole languages are derived from forms of pidgins – they are simply pidgin languages that have been spoken across generations and which have developed a community of native speakers. While pidgins are characterised by an extremely simplified structure and are simply used to “get by” when communicating with someone whose native language you don’t speak, creoles start to re-introduce more complex grammar. They have their own vocabulary which is distinct from their origin languages’ and a fully developed system of grammar.

There is even a theory that English itself might be a creole language. When the language developed from Old English into Middle English, it underwent such drastic changes that some scholars believe it took on characteristics of a pidgin during the Norman Conquest. Since there are now native English speakers across the planet, it would mean that English is the most common creole tongue. Otherwise, the title is held by Haitian Creole – a language based on French with influences from Portuguese, Spanish, English, and West African languages – the native language of around 10-12 million people.

10.  1) Our lizard brains take over: The most common examples of code-switching were completely inadvertent; folks would slip into a different language or accent without even realizing it or intending to do it. One such story came from Lisa Okamoto, who told us she was born and raised in Los Angeles by two parents from Japan, a place she's visited all her life. 2) We want to fit in: Very often, people code-switch — both consciously and unconsciously — to act or talk more like those around them. While this can be effective, it can also be perilous, as John Davis told us:3) We want to get something: A lot of folks code-switch not just to fit in, but to actively ingratiate themselves to others. We can not tell you how many dozens of stories we got from people who work in service industries who said that a Southern accent is a surefire way to get better tips and more sympathetic customers. Apparently everyone who works in a restaurant picks up "y'all" immediately upon arriving at their job. If you can pull off the right accent in the right context4) We want to say something in secret: We collected many sweet stories of people code-switching in order to hide in plain sight, a habit most common among people in love5) It helps us convey a thought: Certain concepts need that perfectbon mot to come across effectively. Many people switch languages or employ colloquialisms to express particular ideas

11.  Code Mixing

X: S’cuse me. Are you waiting for someone? (1)

R: Yes, I’m picking up my wife. She’s studying here.(2)

X: Oh, why don’t you come in? It’s raining.(3)

R: No, No, terima kasih. Saya cuma tunggu sebentar istri saya.(4)

X: I don’t think so. It’s Friday. The classes won’t finish until 5 o’clock.

Come on in. By  the way, my name’s Joko.

I am one of the instructors here. (5)

R: Nice to meet you. I’m Jim. Boleh saya duduk disini? May I sit here?(6)

X: Of course, make yourself comfortable. By the way, which class is

your wife in?(7)

R: She’s in the Elementary class. Etty. She just started 3 days ago. (8)

X: Ooh, Etty. The one with long straight dark hair and glasses?

Your wife’s very pretty.(9)

R: Yeah, that’s my wife.(10)

Code Switching

X : Would you like to go out to dinner or to a movie ?

Y : Either one, it’s up to you

X : What would you prefer ?

Y : I really don’t care, i just want to get out of the house

X : Well, then how about dinner and movie ? 

Y : That’s a great idea !