I

Dialects,Standards,and
Vernaculars

Most of us have had the experienceof sitting in a public place and eaves-
dropping on conversationstaking place around us. Though we pretend to
be preoccupied, we listen intently. And we form impressions of who we're
listening to basednot only on the topic of conversation, but on how they are
discussing it. In fact, there's a good chance that the most critical part of our
impression comes from hoo the people are talking rather than phat they are
discussing. We make iudgments about regional background, social starus,
ethnicity, and a host of other social and personal traits based simply on the
kind of languagepeople are using. We may have similar kinds of reactions
in telephonc conversations, as we try to associatea set of characteristics with
an unidentified speakerin order to make claims such as, "It sounds like a
salespersonof some type" or "It sounds like the auto mechanic." In fact, it
is surprising how little conversation it takes to draw conclusions abour a
speaker'sbackground - a sentence,a phrase,or even a word is often enough
to trigger a regional, social, or ethnic classification.
Assessments of a complex set of social characteristics and personality
traits based on language differences are as inevitable as the kinds of iudg-
ments we make when we find out where people live, what their occupations
are, where they went to school, and who their friends are. In fact, there are
some who feel that language differences serve as the single most reliable
indicator of social position in our society. When we live a certain way, we
are expectedto match that lifestyle with our talk. And when we don't match
people's expectations of how we should talk, the incongruity between words
and behavior is itself a topic for conversation.
Language differences are unavoidable in a society composed of a variety
of social groups. They are a fact of life. And, like other "facts of life" in our
sociery, they have been passedon to us with a peculiar mixture of fact and
fantasv.
 Dialects, Standards,and Vernaculars Dialects, Standards, and, Vernocalars 3

3 "The kids in that neighborhood don't really speak English; they

l.l Defining Dialect speak a dialect.'
4 "The kids in this school all seem to speak the dialect."
Given the widespreadawarenessof languagedifferences in our society, just
about everyonehassome understandingof the term "dialect." However, the In one popular use, the term "dialect" refers simply to those who speak
technicaluseof the term in linguistics is different from its popular definition differently from oneself (Quote I above). When the authors of this book
in some important but subtle ways. Professionalstudents of languagetypically were children, growing up in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and Maryland,
use the term DIALEcTas a neutral label to refer to any variety of a language respectively, they didn't necessarilyrealize that they spoke dialects; it was
that is sharedby a group of speakers.Languagesare invariably manifested speakersfrom other hreaswho spoke dialects. Of course, we came to realize
through their dialects, and to speak a languageis to speak some dialect of that this perception could be a two-way street when we attended college in
that language. In this technical usage, there are no particular social or different statesand classmatespointed out particular featuresof our dialects.
evaluativeconnotationsto the term - that is, there are no inherently "good" The perception that only other people speakdialects is obviously shapedby
or "bad" dialects;dialect is simply how we refer to any languagevariety that personal experience,as one group's customary way of speakingoften turns
typifies a group of speakerswithin a language.The particular social factors out to be another group's languagepeculiarity.
that correlatewith dialect diversity may range from geographyto the com- In another common use, the term "dialect" refers to those varieties of
plex notion of cultural identity. Furthermore, it is important to understand English whose features have, for one reason or another, become widely
that socially favored, or "standard," varieties constitute dialects every bit recognized throughout American society (Quote 2). Society at large recog-
as much as those varieties spoken by socially disfavored groups whose nizes a "southern drawl" or a ttBoston accent." In other words, if the variety
language differences are socially stigmatized. The technical definition of contains some featuresthat are generally acknowledgedand commented on
dialect simply as a variety of a languagetypical of a given group of speakers by the society as a whole, then it may be recognizedas a dialect even by the
is not rigorous and precise, but it is a sufficient starting point in discussing speakersthemselves.If someonekeeps telling you that you speak a dialect,
languagevariation. after a while you start to believe that you do. Thus, native New Yorkers
often believe that they speak a dialect, becausetheir dialect has become a
topic of widespreadpublic comment in American society.Similarly, speakers
of an Appalachian dialect might recognizethat they speak a dialect because
1.2 Dialect: The Popular Viewpoint of the caricatures and comments that so often appear in the media. On
the other hand, the same perception does not hold true of middle-class
residents of Ohio whose speech does not receive popular attention. For a
Although linguists accept a loosely defined technical definition of dialect, variety of historical and social reasons,some dialects have become much
happily arguing about what languagefeaturesbelong to a particular dialect more marked than others in American society, and speakersof those varieties
or how two dialects may differ, non-specialiststend to use "dialect" in a therefore accept the dialect label more comfortably. However, this is often
somewhat different sense.At first glance, the differences between popular more a matter of beliefs and attitudes about languagedifferences than the
and technical usesseem inconsequential,but closer inspection reveals that nature of the differences themselves.
its popular uses carry connotations that differ from its technical meaning. In the most extreme case(Quote 3), dialect is used to refer to a kind of
At the sametime, its popular use gives insight into how dialect differences deficient or "corrupted" English. In this case, dialect is perceived as an
are perceivedin our society. Consider, for example, some commonly held imperfect attempt to speak "correct" or "proper" English. If, for example,
beliefs about dialects demonstrated by popular uses of this term in the members of a socially disfavored group use phraseslike threemile instead of
following quotes: the standard English three miles, or Her ears be itching instead of Her ears
itch, it is assumedthat they have attempted to produce the standardEnglish
I "We went to Boston for a vacationand the people there sure do speak sentencebut simply failed. The result is incorrectly perceivedas a "deviant"
a dialect." or "deficient" form of English. Based upon the careful examination of
2 "I know we speak a dialect in the mountains, but it's a very colorful such language structures, however, dialectologists take the position that
way of speaking." dialects are nzt deviant forms of language, but simply different systems,
4 Dialects, Standards,and Vernaculars Dialects, Standards, and Vernaculars
with distinct subsetsof languagepatterns. When we talk about language
patterning, we are referring to the fact that languagefeaturesare distributed Examine each of the sentence pairs in terms of the choices for the
in systematicand orderly ways rather than used randomly. That is, for any a- prefix and answer the following questions.
given languagefeature, there are contexts in which the form may be used j: -
j'
,' , ,
,t
and contextsin which it is not typically used.
' Do you think there is some pattern that guided your choice of
an answer?You can tell if there is a definite pattern by checkine
with other people who did the same exercise ,t.ir ;;;.---*-'"
Exercise l ' Do you think that the pattern might be related "" to parts
of speech?
a . .
To answer this, see if there are any parts of speech *hei. yo,,
An Exercisein Dialec:tPatterning ca,nnrt use the a- prefix. Look at -ing forms that function as verbs
In rural dialectsof the United States,including in Southern Appalachia, and compare those with -ing fo{*r that operateas nouns or adiect-
some words that end in -:ing cantake an o-r,pinounced as uir rtt rhrei ives. For example, look at the use of charmingas a verb and as an
to the beginning of the word (Wolfram 1980, 1988).We call this the adiective in sentence3.
a-prefixbecause it attachesto the front of the-cngword. The language
pattern or "rule'l f,or this form allows the a- to attach to,some w0rds The first step in figuring out the pattern for the a- prefix is related to
but not to others. In this exercise, you will figure, out this f"itly the part of speechof the -ing word. Now let's look at another difference
complicated rule by looking at the kinds of -ing,words that a- can and, related to
cannot attach'to, You will do this using your inner feelings, or ('gut -prepositions such as fro* and by. Based on the sentence
. t t l r
pairs in List B, say whether or not the a- form can be used after a
reactions," about language.These inner feelings, called rNTUrrroNS, preposition. {Jse the same technique you used for List A. Select the
tell us where we ca,n and cannof,us€ certain features. As linguists . sentencethat sounds better for each sentencepair and sav whethei it
trying to describe a dialect, our task is to figure out the reason for is the sentencewith or without the preposition.
these inner feelings and tb state the exact patterns that chara cterize
the usagepattern.
,: List B: A further detail for a- p,atterning
Look at the senterrc. pairs in List A and decide *hich sentence in la They make money by building houses.
lb
each pair sounds better with an a- prefix. For example, in the first They make money building houses.
sentencepair, does it sound better to say A-buitd,ingis hard,pork or 2a People can't make enough money fishing.
She pas a-building a house?For each sentencepair, iust choose one b People c1n't make enough money from fishing.
sentencethat sounds better with,the a-- 3'a People destroy the beauty of the mountains through
littering.
List A: Sentencepairs for a- pref,xing b -=- People destroy the beauty of the mountains littering.
I a hard work.
f,uildinS,is
b : She was building a house. We now have another detail for figuring out the pattern for a- prefix
2 He likes hunting. use related to prepositions.But there is still another part to the pattern
?
b He went huntinq. of a- prefix use. This time, however, it is related to pronunciation.
a-u
3a For the following -ing words, trr to figure out whar it is about the
b The child wasvery charming. pronunciation that makes one sentencesound better than the other.
A
4 a - He kept shocking the children. To help you figure out the pronunciation trait that is critical for this
b pattern, the stressedor accentedsyllable of each word is marked with
5 a They thought fishing was easy. '.
the symbol Follow the sameprocedure rhar you did in choosing the
b They were fishing this morning. sentencein each sentencepair that sounds better.
 Dialects, Standards, and Vernaculars Dialects, Standards, and Vernaculars

into operation (Lippi-Green 1997).According ro this principle, the speech

of a sociallysubordinategroup will be interpreted as linguistically inadequate
by comparisonwith that of the sociallydominant group. Linguists, who study
the intricate patterning of language apart from its social evaluation, stand
united against any definition of dialect as a corrupt version of the standard
variety. Thus, a resolution adopted unanimously by the Linguistic Society
: : : l . i ,
'.,1
t:r :. irf'":
of America at its annual meeting in 1997assertedthat "all human language
:T-i.:ir: systems- spoken,signed, and written - are fundamentally regular" and that
',t,,:.,'. :,'

characterizationsof socially disfavoredvarietiesas "slang, mutant, defective,

ungrammatical, or broken English are incorrect and demeaning."
When the term "dialect" is used to refer to a kind of corrupt English, it
obviously carries very strong negativeconnotations, as many of the popular
usesof dialect do. A clausesuch as "but it's a very colorful way of speaking"
in Qrote 2 may soften the negativeassociations,but such statementsmust be
made explicit to mitigate the commonly held assumption thar some dialects
aren't as good as others. With or without qualification, the popular use of
the term dialect carries connotations ranging from mildly to strongly negative.
Finally, the term "dialect" is sometimesused to refer to a specific,socially
disfavored variety of English. A person speaking a recognized, socially
stigmatized variety of English may be said to speak "the dialect" (erote 4).
r,,:':.r;
L ist D: Apptyingtiii;t, ;,iuk'|,.1,,,,1' -','
i:' p,tg7g,1 Such designationshave, for example, been used to refer to the speech of
I Shekept handingme more work. ' low-income African Americans or rural Appalachians asa kind of euphemistic
2 The teamwasrem6mberingthe game. label for this variety. With the definite article, the term "the dialect" func-
3 The teamwon,byphaying,gfealdeftnse,,,,, tions more like a proper noun than in the generic, neutral sensein which the
4 . The team*asrplaying.ftal,hgdii't',',tli', term is used by linguistic scientists.Notice that people would nor refer ro a
' '.,.
5 , The,coachwascharming. ,,;:;;::,;,,:,:,,',:,, socially acceptablevariety of standard English as the dialect.

At various points during the last half century, there have been heated
debatesin American societyabout the linguistic integrity of socially disfavored 1.3 Dialect Myths and Reality
languagevarieties.For example,during the late 1960sand 1970s,there were
many debatesin educationalcircles over the so-called "onrIcIT-DIFFERENCE What do these popular uses of the term "dialect" say about the general
CoNrRovERSY," with language scholars arguing passionately that dialect public's perceptionof dialect,especiallyas it differs from rhe neutral technical
variation was simply a matter of dffirence, not def,cit, and some educators definition presented earlier? As the preceding discussion points out, there
arguing that variation from the socially accepted standard constituted a is a popular mythology about languagedifferences thar is at odds with the
fundamental deficiency. Three decadeslater, in the mid-1990s, the debate linguistic facts about languagediversity. The following are some of these
flared up again,this time centeredon the status of the ethnic variety African myths, as they contrasr with linguistic reality:
American English, or Ebonics, as it was referred to in this debate. This
time, the controversy even spread as far as a Senatesubcommittee hearing Myru: A dialect is something that someunea/sespeaks.
on the topic and state legislation about the legitimacy of this variety in a Rrelrrv: Everyone who speaks a language speaks some dialect of the
schoolsetting. language; it is not possible to speak a language without speaking a
When dialect differencesinvolve groups unequal in their power relations, dialect of the language.
it is quite common for the rRTNCIILE oF LINGUIsTIc suBoRDrNATroN to come MvrH: Dialects alwayshavehighly noticeablefeaturesthat set them aparr.
 Dialects, Standards, and Vernaculars
8 Dialects, Standards, and, Vernaculars
with the current popular usesof the term dialect. Throughout this book, we
Rnnllrv: Some dialects get much more attention than others, but the
will use the term dialect in its linguistically neutral senseand confront the
status of a dialect is unrelated to public commentary about its special
issue of public education about language diversity as a separate matter.
characteristics.
Educating the public about language variation is an enormous challenge,
MvrH: Only varietiesof a languagespokenby socially disfavored groups
and we will return to this matter in our final chapter. For the time being,
are dialects.
it is sufficient to set forth the technical and popular uses of the dialect
Rret-ruy: The notion of dialect exists apart from social status or evaluation;
label and see how its popular uses have come to reflect some predominant
there are socially favored as well as socially disfavored dialects.
attitudes about dialect diversity in American societv.
MyrH: Dialects result from unsuccessfulattempts to speakthe ttcorrect"
form of a language.
Rret-lrv: Dialect speakersacquire their languageby adopting the speech
featuresof thosearound them, not by failing in their attempts to adopt 1.4 Standards and Vernaculars
standard languagefeatures.
MvrH: Dialects have no linguistic patterning in their own right; they are In the preceding discussion,it was difficult to avoid some reference to the
deviations from standard speech. dialect of English often referred to as SreNoeno AunRrceni ENcr-rsH. The
R-neltrv: Dialects, like all language systems, are systematic and regular; notion of a widespread, normative variety, or "standard dialect" is an import-
furthermore, socially disfavored dialects can be described with the ant one, but it is not always easy to define in a precise way, especially for
samekind of precision as standard languagevarieties. English. In some countries, such as France and Spain, languageacademies
MvrH: Dialects inherently carry negative social connotations. have been establishedand these institutions are responsiblefor determining
REeI-Iry: Dialects are not necessarily positively or negatively valued; what forms are considered acceptablefor the normative "standard." They
their social valuesare derived strictly from the social position of their determine, for example, what new words are allowed to be included in official
communities of speakers. dictionaries and what grammatical forms and pronunciations are included
as standard. In the United States we do not have such an institution, and
Though most dialect myths involve negative connotations, there are various attempts to establish this type of agency have failed (Heath 1976).
occasionalpositive connotations,though these are often basedon idealized, Labels such as standardEnglish and popular terms such as "correct English"
rather romanticized notions of "quaint" or "pure" or "authentic" dialects. For or "proper English" are commonly used but not without some ambiguity.
example,somepeoplebelieve that dialects in historically isolated regions, such At best, we can discusshow the notion of standard English is used and then
as those in the AppalachianMountains and in the islands along the South- offer a reasonabledefinition of the term basedon how it seemsto operate in
eastern coast of the United States, preserve Elizabethan or Shakespearean our society.
English. Though older forms of English sometimesendure in thesevarieties,
they are constantly undergoing change as well. In fact, we have found that
some aspectsof isolateddialectsmay changemore rapidly than more widely Exercise 2
dispersed,mainstreamlanguagevarieties. Language is a dynamic phenom-
Common popular labels for what we call standard English are "correct
enon, and the only static variety of languageis, in reality, a dead one.
English,'? "proper English," "good English," and ..grammatical
As we see, the popular uses of the term "dialect" strongly reflect the
English." lvhar do these labels tell us about the public perception
attitudes about language differences that have developed in the United
of standard dialects in terms of the mphs about dialects we discussed
States over the centuries. For this reason, some groups of educators and
above? What do they say about the ideology thar informs the inter-
languagescientistsprefer to avoid the use of the term dialect, using terms
pretation of dialects in our societyl By uNcuecE rDnoI-ocy here, we
such as "language difference," "language variety," ot "language variation"
mean ingrained, unquestioned beliefs about the way the world is, the
instead. Regardlessof the label, however, we still have to confront the
way it should be, and the way it has to be with respect to language.
significant discrepancybetween the public perception of linguistic diversity
What implications do these terms have for those dialects that are con-
and the linguistic reality. In fact, given popular attitudes about dialect
sidered t'corruptr" ttbadrttor ttungrammaticalttversions of the standaid?
diversity, there is a good chance that whatever euphemism we use will
eventually take on the kinds of pejorative connotations that are associated
l0 Dialects, Standards, and, Vernaculars Dialects, Standards, and, Vernaculars 11
Before we get too far into this discussion, we should note that whether standard usagein ordinary conversation. For example, one of the prescribed
or not there are specific institutions set up to guide the establishmentof a formal standard English rules prohibits the use of a pronoun following a
standard variety, languagestandardization of some type seems inevitable. subiect noun, rs in My mother,shetook me t0 the moaies,and many teachers
Ultimately, w€ can attribute this to underlying principles of human behavior will correct children who use this form. Yet we have documented these
in which certain ways of behaving (dressing, speaking,treating elders, and same teachers using sentencessuch as The studentswho returned,late from
so forth) are establishedas normative for the society. recess yesterday and today, they pill hazteto remain after schoolwithin a few
As a starting point, it is helpful to distinguish between the operation of minutes of correcting children for using similar types of sentences.The
standard English on a formal and informal level. In formal standardization, point of these illustrations is not to exposeas hypocrites those who assume
language norms are prescribed by recognized sources of authority, such responsibility for perpetuating standard English norms, bur to show that
as grammar and usage books, dictionaries, and institutions like language the prescribed formal variety is, in reality, not alwaysmaintained consistently
academies.In the United States,we don't have a languageacademy,but we in natural spoken language.Does this mean that standard English does not
have many grammar and usagebooks that people turn to for the determina- exist in our society, and that we should stop talking about this variety as if it
tion of standard forms. The key words in this definition are "prescribed" were a real entity? on the contrary, there is plenty of evidence that people
and "authority" so that the responsibility for determining standard forms is in our society make iudgments about other people's speech, including an
largely out of the hands of most speakersof the language.Whenever there evaluation of standardness,based on everyday, natural speech. So there
is a question as to whether or not a form is considered standard English, appearsto be another, more informal level, of standardnessthat operatesin
we can turn to authoritarian guides to usage. If, for example, we have a American society.
question as to where to use pill and shall, we simply look it up in our usage INronuel SreNoeno ENct-IsH,without recourse to prescriptive authority,
guide, which tells us that shall is used for first person questions(Shall I So.1 is much more difficult to define than formal standardEnglish, and a realistic
and oill is used in other contexts (He will go).At that point, the question of definition will have to take into account the actual kinds of assessmenrs
a particular usageis often settled. that members of American society make as they iudge other speakers'
Fonuel SraNoeno ENcr-rsH,or PRescnlprrvESreNpeno ENcLtsH, tends standardness.As a starting point, we must acknowledgethat the informal
to be based on the written languageof establishedwriters and is typically notion of standard English exists on a continuum, with speakersranging
codified in English grammar texts. It is perpetuated to a large extent in along the continuum betweenthe standard and nonstandardpoles. Informal
formal institutions, such as schools,by those responsiblefor English language standardEnglish is a continuous rather than categoricalnotion and speakers
education. It also is very conservativeand often resistant to changestaking may be iudged as more or less standard. For example, speakersmay be
place within the language.For some features, the prescribed usage will placed at different points on a standard-nonstandard continuum as in
border on obsolescence. For example, the subjunctive use of be in sentences figure l.l, with speaker A using few, if any, nonstandardforms, and speaker
such as If this be treason,I am a traitor is a structure that is largely obsolete, E using many.
yet this usecan still be found in some prescriptivegrammar books. Similarly, Ratings of standardnessnot only exist on a continuum; they can be fairly
the maintenance of the singular form of data as datum, or even the shall/ pill subjective as well. Basedon different experiencesas well as different regional
distinction, has largely disappeared from spoken language, but it is still and social dialect backgrounds, one listener may rate a particular speaker
prescribed in many usageguides and maintained in written language.Without as standard while another listener rates the same speaker as nonstandard.
an official agency responsible for the maintenance of a uniform formal For example, a Northern-born middle-class African American might rate
standard English in the United States, there will be some disagreement a Southern white as nonstandard, while a native of the region might rate
among prescriptive grammarians, but in most cases,there is fairly strong the same speakeras a standard speaker.By the same token, a person from
agreement.As set forth, formal standard English is most likely to be exemp- the Midwest might rate a native of New York City as nonstandard while
lified in impersonal written languageand the most formal kinds of spoken
languageoccasions,especiallywhere spoken languagehas been written first.
If we took a sample of everyday conversationalspeech, we would find
A C D
that there are virtually no speakerswho consistently speak formal standard
English as prescribed in the grammar books. In fact, it is not unusual for
the same person who prescribesa formal standard English form to violate Figure l.l A continuum of standardness
12 Dialects, Standards, and Vernaculars Dialects, Standards, ond Vernaculars 13
another New Yorker might rate the same speaker as standard. Further, They didn't do nothing),different verb agreementpatterns (e.g. They'sokay),
preconceptionsand prejudices about how different groups of people are and different irregular verb forms (e.g. She d,oneit), there is a good chance
expected to speak come into play as well. For example, researchers(e.g. they will be considered standard English speakerseven though they may
Williams 1973)haveshown that people may judge the sameaoicers "standard" have distinct regional pronunciations. In this kind of assessment,informal
or "nonstandard" depending on which video image it is paired with (e.g. a standard English is defined in more of a negative than a positive way. In
European American vs. African American face). other words, if a person's speech is free of socially disfavored strucrures,
Though there is certainly a subjective dimension to the notion of then it is considered standard.
standardness,there is, at the same time, a consensusin rating speakersat The definition of informal standard English as a variety free of stigmatized
the more extremerangesof the continuum..Thus, virtually all listeners will features tends to be supported by an additional observation about Americans'
rate SpeakerA in figure 1.1 as a standardEnglish speakerand SpeakerE as attitudes toward dialects.For the most part, Americans do not assignstrong
a nonstandardEnglish speaker.On the other hand, there might be consider- positive, or prestige, value to any particular dialect of American English.
able difference in the ratings which SpeakersB and C receive in terms of a The basic contrast in the US exists between negatively valued dialects
simple classificationinto standard or nonstandard categories.Furthermore, and those without negativevalue, not between those with prestige value and
we have found that the classificationof speakersat the extreme poles of the those without. Curiously, Americans still assign positive value to British
continuum (such as SpeakersA and E) tends to be consistent regardlessof dialects, which are not even viable options for wide-scaleuse in the United
the socioeconomicclassof the person making the judgment. States and Canada. It is difficult to say exactly why Americans look upon
Classificationsof standardnesswill alsobe somewhatflexible with respect British English so favorably, but one possibility is a lingering colonial effect,
to the specificfeaturesof the regional variety being judged. Thus, the r-less thus showing the enduring influence of traditional language attitudes a
pronunciations which characterizeEastern New England or Southeastern couple of centuries after the US gained its independencefrom British rule.
American pronunciation (as in cah for car or beah for bear) may be iudged Americans, in commenting on different dialects of American English, are
as standard English, as will the r-ful pronunciations that characterize certain much more likely to make comments about nonstandardness("That person
other dialects. And people may be judged as standard English speakers doesn't talk correct English") than they are to comment on standardness
whether they go to the beach,g0 t0 the shore,,org0 to the nceanfor a summer (e.9. "That person really speakscorrect English"). The notion of standard
vacation. On this informal level, standard English is a pluralistic notion, at English is certainly operative in American society on an informal level, but
least with respect to pronunciation and vocabulary differences. That is, it differs considerablyfrom the formal standard English norm that is often
there are regional standardsrecognized within the broad and informal notion taught as the standard. For the purposes of our discussion throughout this
of standardAmerican English. For example,there are regional standardsfor book, we will refer to this more informal definition of the srandard language
the South, for the Midwest, and for New England, though they may differ rather than the formal one, since it is the informal version that has a more
in terms of the particular items included in each standard. direct bearing on our everyday lives.
What is it about a speaker'sdialect that is critical in determining whether
the speakerwill be judged as standard or nonstandard?There is no simple
answerto this question,and people tend to give overall impressions,such as rf--- --! ,t
ttquality of voice,t' tttone of expression,tt ttcorrect grammar,tt
or when they
are askedto explain their judgments of standardnessand nonstandardness. There arc a couple of levels of standards that seem to be noticeable
Despite the vaguenessof such responses,there do seemto be a few relatively to people when they listen to speech. We don't usually comment on
specific criteria that people use in judging a person's speech as standard. . informal standard English, but we may conrment on a person's speech
For one, standardAmerican English seemsto be determined more by what if it is nonstandard. It is, however, possible to call attention to speech
it is not than by what it is. To a large extent, American English speech becauseit sounds too formal or "proper.t'Forms that are too standard
samplesrated as standard English by a cross-sectionof listeners exhibit a for everyday conversation are sometimes referred to as SupnnsrANDARD
range of regional variation in pronunciation and vocabulary items, but they ENcrrss. In the following sets of sentences,identify which sentences
do not contain grammaticalstructures that are socially stigmatized.If native characterize(l) nonstandard English, (2) informal standard English,
speakersfrom Michigan, New England, and Arkansas avoid the use of ,'1,and' (3),superstandard ,English. What forms in.the sentences,are,
socially stigmatizedgrammatical structures such as "double negatives" (e.g.
t4 Dialects, Standards, and Vernaculars Dialects, Standards, and Vernaculars l5
As with standard dialects of English, there are a number of different
responsible for your ass€ssment?Are there any sentencesyou?re not social and regional factors that go into the labeling of a vernacular, and any
sureabout?Why? attempt to define a vernacular dialect on a single dimension is problematic.
Ultimately, each dialect is delimited according to a complex arr:ayof factors,
1,,,..*' Hels not as smart as I. including matters related to social class, region, ethnicity, situation, and
.,] b Hets not so smaft as I. so forth. Furthermore, vernacularity, like standardness,exists on a con-
' , € : He aintt as smart ts fir€: tinuum so that particular speakersmay exhibit speechwhich is more or less
'.,, : , d He not as smart as me. vernacular. Thus, Speaker D in figure 1.1 may or may nor be classifiedas
' a vernacular dialect speaker,but we can expect a consensusof people (from
/ ,l;: He's not to do that.
''.b He not supposedto do that. the same and different dialects) to recognize Speaker E as a representative
He don't supposed to do that. of some vernacular variety. Nonetheless, it is possible for both vernacular
,'ttc
,,1,d" He's not supposedto do that. and non-vernacular speakersof English to identify paradigmatic speakers
, ' L : I'm right, ain't Il of vernacular varieties in a way that is analogousto the way that we can
,- I'm right, aren't I"?.,' identify representativesof standard dialects.
Unlike standard dialects, which are largely defined by the absenceof
, c I'm right, am I not?
socially disfavored structures of English, vernacular varieties seem to be
, . d I'm right, isn't Ii
4:,. a If I was going to do that, I would start right now.
: characterized by the presenceof sciciallyconspicuousstructures - at least to
',b speakersof informal standard English who do not typically use them. In
If I were going to do that, I would start right now.
, : c Were I to do that, I would start right now. other words, vernacular varieties are the converse of standard dialects in
'.'d that an assortment of marked nonstandard English structures sets them
I would start right now, if I was going to do that.
a A person should not change her speech. apart as being vernacular. Although each vernacular dialect seemsto have
. b One shsuld not change one:s speech. l its own core of vernacular structures, we have to be careful saying that all
, , C A person should not change their speech, speakersof a given variety will exhibit these core features.Not all speakers
d A person should not change his or her speech. of a given dialect necessarilyuse the entire set of structures associatedwith
their dialect, and there may be differing patterns of usageamong speakersof
Why do people sometimes comment about other people's speech the variety. In fact, attempts to isolate the common core of structures for a
becauseit sounds too proper? particular vernacular often lead to heavily qualified, imprecise descriptions.
Such qualification is typified in the attempt of Walt Wolfram and Donna
Christian to delimit "Appalachian English."

There may be somequestionas to whetherit is justifiableto differentiate

1.5 Vernacular Dialects an entity such as AE [AppalachianEnglish] from other (equallydifficult
to defineprecisely)varietiesof AmericanEnglish,particularlysomeof those
spokenin the South. Qrite obviously,there are many featureswe have
At the other end of the continuum of standardnessis nonstandardness. describedwhich are not peculiarto speakers within the Appalachianrange.
Varieties that seemto be typified by the use of nonstandard forms are often On the other hand, there alsoappearsto be a small set of featureswhich
referred to asvERNACULAR DIALEcrs.The term vernacular is used here simply may not be found in other areas.Even if this is not the case,we may iustify
to refer to varietiesof a languagethat are not classifiedas standard dialects. our distinctionof AE on the basisof the combinationof features.. . . Fully
It is used in much the sameway that the term aernacularlanguageis used to cognizantof the pitfallsfound in any attemptto attachterminologicallabels
refer to local or native languagesof common communication which contrast to the varietiesof English,we shall proceedto use the designationAE as a
with the official languageof a multilingual country. Other researchersmay convenient,if loosely-definednotion. (Wolframand Christian1976:29-30\
refer to thesevernacularvarietiesasNoNsTANDARD DIALECTS or nonmainstream
dialects, but we have chosen to use the term aernacularbecauseit seems Language scholarssometimeshave difficulty defining the set of features
more neutral than these alternatives. that uniquely distinguishes a given vernacular variety, but it is easy to
16 Dialects, Standards,and Vernaculars Dialecn, Smndards, and Vernaculars 17
demonstratethat both professionalsand non-professionalsidentify and classify be considered "lesser" forms of the languagethan classicalArabic, despite
quite accuratelyspeakersrepresenting the vernacular pole on the continuum. their widespread usage. Even in Great Britain, where ,,proper,; British
Vernacular dialects are identifiable entities in American society, despite our English, or "Received Pronunciation" (RP), seems the logicif choice as a
inability to come up with precise setsof structures characterizingthem. As standard variety for daily interaction, evidence indicat., irr.r."ring usage
we make our way through our description of the dimensions of American of several widespread standards that are quite different from Rp anJ which
English dialects,we will discussa number of the specific factors that go into do not have the same presrige value (e.g. Britain 2001; Milroy and Gordon
more precisedefinitions of these dialects. 2003:88-l l5).
We can summarize the features that set apart standard dialects and
vernacular dialects as follows:

Fonuer- SreNoeno: applied primarily to written language and the most 1.6 Labeling Vernacular Dialects
formal spoken languagesituations; obiective standards prescribed by
language"authorities"; standardscodified in usagebooks, dictionaries, Although the choice of a label for a particular vernacular dialect such
and other written texts; conservativeoutlook on languageforms. as African American English or Appalachian English may seem relatively
INronueI- SreNnenn: applied to spoken language; determined by actual unimportant, it can become a very important consideration when the broader
usagepatterns of speakers;listener judgment essentialin determining social, political, and cultural considerations associatedwith naming are taken
sociallyacceptablenorms; multiple norrns of acceptability, incorporating into account. For example, in the past half century, the verna.J", dialect
regional and social considerations;defined negatively by the avoidance associatedwith African Americans has had the following labels, given here
of socially stigmatized linguistic structures. in approximate chronological sequence: Negro Dialectr-substaniard Negro
VnnNecuren: applied to spoken language; determined by usage patterns English, Nonstandard,Negro English, Black English, Afro-American English,,
of speakers;listener iudgment essentialin determining socialunaccept- Ebonics,VemacularBlack English,,African American (Vernacular) Engtish,and
ability; usually defined by the presenceof a set of socially stigmatized African American Language.And believe it or not, this is nor a comf,lete list.
linguistic structures. On one level, one can correlate some of these name changeswith changes
in names for ethnic groups themselves that have takett pL.. in American
Since both formal and informal standard varieties are usually associatedwith society. But there are also more subtle dimensions, such as the choice
socially favored,mainstreamgroups, they are socially respectedin American between African American Language versus African American English.
society,but sincevernacular varietiesare associatedwith socially disfavored In this instance, the term "language" is used becauseof the legitimacy
groups, they are not considered socially respectable.This association,of ascribed to languagesas opposed to dialects. Furthermore, there aie often
course, simply reflects underlying values about different social groups in strong affective associationsrelated to particular labels. For example, the
our society and is hardly dependent on languagedifferencesalone. label Ebonics,originally introduced in the early 1970s,gained great notoriety
Before concluding our discussionof definitions of "standard" and "ver- in the mid-1990s in connection with a highly publicized resllution by thl
nacular," it is important to note that notions of standardnessand prestige Oakland Unified School District Board of Education. As a result of the
can operatequite differently in different societies.Although the US doesn't controversy, the label evoked many negative comments and derogatory
really have one single languagevariety that is accordedgreat socialprestige, parodies. In contrast, the synonymous terms typically used by linguists,
there are prestigevarieties in some other countries and other societies,and African American English or African American Language, do nlt tyiically
thesevarietiesmay or may not be used as widespreadnorms or "standards." evoke such parodies. Labels are always tricky becauseit can be difficult
For example, ClassicalArabic is not widely used in everyday communica- to delimit their referents in a precise way and because they may carry
tion in the Arabic-speakingworld; instead, there exist a number of national such strong affective connotations.Terms for vernacular dialecis, like other
and regional standardsthat are used in communicative interactions where aspectsof behavior, do not exist in an ideological vacuum and often reflect
a widespreadnorm is needed (e.9. in businesssituations). In such casesthe underlying attitudes about sociolinguistic asymmetries and linguistic sub-
standardsmay actually be somewhat devalued rather than socially favored (as ordination, as well as the social inequities underlying this subordination.
in the US), since they do not correspond with the prestige variety. Hence, In this text, we use the term ArRtceN AnarnlceNENcllsn (often abbreviated
the widespread standards in use in the Arabic-speaking world tend to AAE) to refer to that variety spoken by and considered to be a key part of
18 Dialects, Standards, and Vernaculars Dialects, Standards, and Vernaculars t9
parallels in many ways the belief, in discussionsof language and gender,
the ethnic heritageand cultural identity of many people of African descent
in the US. The term actually encompassesa number of sub-varieties,since that only women's gender matters and that men's linguistic and other
there is variation in African American English basedon region, social class, behavior is "neutral" rather than influenced by gender in any way (see
and style, among other factors. We choose this label chiefly because of its chapter 8). To the extent that we can apply any degree of precision to the
,r..r,rriiry and iti widespread usage in current linguistic scientific studies, term "European American," *e intend it to refer to those people in US
while reiognizing that other labels may be equally appropripte' or perhaps society of British or Continental European (especiallyNorthern European)
more so, foi different purposes (e.g. for promoting African American cultural descent who would label themselves or be labeled by others as "White."
heritage or sociopoliticalequality). Our choice of label should not be taken When a group identifies itself with an ethnic label (e.g. Jewish American),
,, ,rry sort of ,ttt.-.ttt regarding whether AAE should be considered we will use that term when relevant to the discussionat hand (but see,e.g.,
,,language" t'languagettand Modan 2001 on the complex and shifting relation between 'Jewishness"
a or a "dialect,tt since the distinction between
.,dialect" irnrrot be made on purely linguistic grounds but is intricately tied and "Whiteness"). Again, "European American" is no easierto define than
to sociopolitical and sociocultural considerations.In addition, decisions as "African American," and again the definition is relative in that who is con-
to whether a particular variety constitutes a languagein its own right can sidered "White" can changeover time or vary according to a variety of factors
changeover time. For example,in recent decadesin the former Yugoslavia, such as region, class,and speech situation. As will be made evident in the
following chapters,there is no single European American English any more
Serbo-Croatian,onceregardedasa single language,has come to be regarded
as at least three separatelanguages:Serbian, Bosnian, and Croatian, largely than there is a single African American English. In fact, researchindicates
as a result of recent political rather than linguistic changes. that European American varieties differ more widely from one another than
Parallel to the term "African American English," we use the term "African do the different varieties of African American English.
American" to refer to people of African descentin the US, most often those Labels for other ethnic and social varieties of English are introduced
with historic or cultural tiis to the slavetrade. It is not easyto determine the in subsequent chapters with definition and discussion where appropriate.
precisepopulation(s)coveredby the label "African American." For example, Despite the prominence of the Black-White distinction in American society
it is utt.lear whether the term should be applied to recent immigrants from historically and currently, America has always been a country of rich ethnic
Africa and their families; it is also not clear whether it includes those from and social diversity, and it is important to recognizeand gain greater under-
ttrorth Africa (e.S.Egypt)or only thosefrom Sub-saharanAfrica. In addition, standing of the many other cultures and languagevarieties that have shaped
many African Americans self-identify as "Black" rather than, or in addition American society and continue to shapeit today.
to, ,,ifrican American." Further, the classificationof particular people as
,.African American" may be different in different regions or among different ..: rjr't :::::

social groups and may changeover time; and people may even feel different Exercise4
:i tr t.,:t : r:

-
degreesof "African-American-ness" in different situations for example, Consider how the Hispanic or Latino population does or does not fir
*h.tt talking with family members about ethnically sensitive issues vs. into the above discussion of ethnic labeling. For example, do they fit
participating itt a classroom discussion about linguistics with people of the'designation "European American" as defined and discussedabove?
various ethnicities. It is interesting to note, in this connection, that in the Southwestern
Another label employed widely throughout this text is EunopneN US, Latinos and l".atinasare often referred to as Chicanos or Chicanas
AunnrceN, used to refer to speakerspopularly labeled "White" in American and White people are typically referred to as Anglos. Who might and
society. The term "White" defiesprecise definition and indeed often seems might not fit into the categofy of "Anglo" and why?
to be a catch-all to refer to anyone who does not consider themselves,or
is not consideredby others, to have a marked "ethnic" identity. In reality,
everyoneis of someethnicity. It's just that many people of European descent,
.rp.tirily of British or Northern European descent, have been dominant 1.7 Why Study Dialects?
in American societyfor so long that they have come to be seen(or to uphold
themselves)as the "default" or "normal" group (e.g. Hill 1998) against
which everyonewho is different must be compared (and, sadly, often iudged There are a number of reasonswhy the study of dialectsis an attractive field
lacking). The widespreadbelief that European Americans are not "ethnic" of inquiry. First, our natural curiosity is piqued when we hear speakersof
20 Dialects. Standords, and Vemaculars Dialects, Standards, and Vernaculars 2l
Motivation for studying dialects may naturally go beyond "objective"
different dialects. If we are the least bit interested in different manifesta-
social science inquiry and the description of different social and ethnic
tions of human behavior, then we are likely to be intrigued by the facets
heritages. In some cases, dialect differences may be studied as a part of
of behavior revealed in language. The authors have become accustomed
growing self- or group awareness.Thus, members of a particular social
to, if somewhat wary of, the responsesof people at casual social gatherings
group may seize upon language differences as a part of their identity and
*h.r, people find out that we study dialects. Such responsesrange from
challenges to identify where people originally come from (guaranteeing sense of place. It is no accident that language and gender issues have
instantiredibility) to the question of why particular groups of speakers become an important topic in the last several decades,as attention has been
talk as they do (usually a forewarning of an opinionated explanation to drawn to gender-differentiated social roles and asymmetrical power relations
fotlow). Furthermore, it is not uncommon to encounter individuals from based on sex and gender in our society. Similarly, a rise of interest in
varied walks of life who profess an interest in dialects as a "hobby" simply African American English coincided with the generaldevelopment of cultural
because dialects are so fascinating to them. The positive side to this consciousnessin other spheresof life in the late 1960sand early 1970s.The
emphasison the identificational issuessurrounding English dialect variation
curiosity is that the study of dialects can often sell itself; the negative
might strike members of the majority population or socially dominant
side, as discussed earlier, is that a corresponding set of attitudes and
cultural groups as somewhat overstated, until we realize how central lan-
opinions about American dialectq makes it difficult to deal with information
guage is to the identification of self and group. Issues of nationalism and
about them in a neutral way. In one form or another' most professional
identity often come to a head over langrfage,as demonstrated by the attention
students of dialects have simply cultivated the natural interest that resides
paid to the issue of French versus English in Canada. In a similar way, the
within us all.
As a manifesration of human behavioral differences, dialects may be status of the Dutch-based language Afrikaans in South Africa is hardly a
simple language issue; it reflects deeper issuesrelated to political and ethnic
studied becausethey provide the opportunity to extend social scienceinquiry
age)a q.rit" natural application for fields such as history, anthro- self-determination. In these cases,the conflicts are not about languageper
into langu
-sociology,
pology, psychology, and geography' Thus, one of the most se,but the power of languageto serve as a proxy for broader sociopolitical
and cultural issues.The transparencyof languageas cultural behavior makes
.xtensive series of studies ever conducted on the dialects of American
it an ideal stage for acting out much more fundamental issues and conflicts
English, the LingaisticAtlas of the tlnited Statesand Canada,carefully charted
the- geographical distribution of various forms in American English as a among different groups in society.
kind of dialect geography;in fact, studies of this type are often referred to A review of the development of the English language in the United
as LrNcursrrc cEocRApHy.At the same time, these studies attempted to trace Statesshows that the notion of American English itself was strongly tied to
as nationalismhistorically. Noah Webster, the parent of generationsof English
the English settlement patterns of America through languagedifferences'
these studies noted the distribution of forms in dictionaries, issued the declaration that "as an independent nation, our
a kind of hirtory. Further,
of speakers as a kind of sociology. It is easy to see honor requires us to have a system of our own, in language as well as
different socialcategories
government" and that "a national languageis a bond of national union." In
how dialect differences can be seen aS a natural extension of a number of
this context, studying American English as compared with British English
different fields within the social sciences since these differences are so
might be motivated by a feeling of patriotism and loyalty to the United
integrally related to all aspectsof human behavior'
Otttei studies have shlwn how the cultural and historical heritage of States.It is easy to compile an extensivelist of casesin which nationalism
particular cultural groups has been maintained through their dialects, such and group consciousnessmovements were motivating factors for studying
languagesand dialects.
,s th. cultural deta.h-errt historicatly linked with regions such as Appalachia
At the other end of the spectrum, the study of dialect differences might
and the island communities along the Eastern seaboardof the United States
- for example, Tangier Island off the coast of Virginia, the Outer Banks off be justified on a linguistic theoretical basis.Scholars may examine language
the coastoiNorth Carolina, or the SeaIslands along the South Carolina and variation in an effort to understand the basic nature of languageas a cognitive
a and human phenomenon. This theoretical concern may range from the
Georgia coast.From this perspective,interest in dialectsmay derive from
studies such as folklore, history, and English. investigationof how languagechangesover time and spaceto how language
basicioncern with humanities
reflects and affects the cognitive capabilities of a speakerof a language.In
The US government agency the National Endowment for the Humanities
has been a pri-ary ,o.rr.. of financial support for dialect surveys ovei the this context, the examinationof dialectsmay provide an essentialand unique
years,along with the National ScienceFoundation' database.William Labov, one of the pioneers in modern sociolinguistics,
22 Dialects. Stand,ards,and Vernaculars Dialects, Standards, and Vernaculars

articulated a linguistic scientific motivation for studying dialects in the

ii
,i

published version of his doctoral dissertation, The Social Stratffication of

Engtish.in Nep York City, when he stated that "my own intention was to
solvelinguistic problems,bearing in mind that theseare ultimately problems
in the analysisof social behavior" (Labov 1966:v-vi). Empirical data from
the study of dialects thus may contribute to our understanding of some
central issues concerning the nature of language variation. For example,
data from the study of variation within languageincreaseour understanding
of the kinds and amount of variation which may be contained within a
single languageand those which may not.
Finally, there is a practical, applied motivation for studying dialects.
Many students in education and the health professionshave become inter-
.rt.d in dialectsbecauseof the "usefulness" of the information as it relates
to another primary activity such as teaching or servicedelivery. Virtually all 1.8 A Tradition of Studv
fields of educationfocusedon language-relatedactivities, including reading,
languagearts, and languageserviceprofessionssuch as speechand language
pathology, have recognizedthe need to understand both general principles There is a longstanding tradition of collecting and studying data on variation
governing languagedifferencesand specificdescriptive details of the dialects in English, guided by the variety of motivations cited above. As we already
.hrtr.t.rizing students. In fact, in one caseof litigation that took place in mentioned, some of the earliest collections of American English were con-
Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1979,the iudge ordered teachersto attend work- cerned with those aspectsof American English that set it apart from British
shopson dialectsbecauseof the potential impact of such information on the English, particularly with respect to vocabulary. Vocabulary is one of the
inteipretation of readingbehaviorby vernacular-speaking students.Similarly, most transparent ways in which dialects differ, and vocabulary studies are a
a widely publicized resolution adoptedby the Oakland School Board in 1996 common way in which dialect differences are profiled. Typical of relatively
rnaintainedthat an understandingof the vernacularvariety spokenby African early works on dialect differences was John Pickering's 1816 work entitled
Americans should be used as an important bridge for teaching proficiency A Vocobulary,or Collectionof l(ords and Ph,rasesphich haae beenSupposedto
in standard English. In the early 2000s, several widely publicized casesof bePeculiar to the United Statesof America to which is Prefixed an Essayon the
"linguistic profiling" once again raised the issue of discrimination basedon PresentState of the English Languagein the United States. Some of the early
dialect differences(Baugh 2003). Speakersidentified as African American studies of the dialect structures of American English ais-td-z:isBritish Erg-
over the telephone were informed that apartment vacancieswere already' lish were based largely on vague impressions,but others representedfairly
filled, while European American callers were invited to visit the advertised meticulousand exhaustiveapproachesto the catalogingof dialect differences.
vacancies.Such casesremind us that dialect discrimination in one form or In addition, politicians and socialleadersoften becameinvolved in language
anorher is still a socialand legal problem in American society.Dialectologist issues.For example, Beniamin Franklin suggestedan early spelling reform,
Dennis Preston (back cover of Lippi-Green L997)goes so far as to observe andJohn Adams proposedan academyfor establishingan American standard
'dialectists' among us have done the same sorts of damage to as differencesbetween British and American English began to emerge and
that "the
individual advancementand self-esteemthat racists and sexistshave done." the social and political implications of this divergencewere considered.
After reading the previous paragraphs,we might wonder if there is any As the United States became securely independent, the focus changed
justifiable reasonfor not studying dialects.The glib answer to this question from the relationship betweenAmerican and British English to the diversity
is, "Probably not!" However, when we consider the full range of reasonsfor within American English itself. The American Dialect Society was formed
studying dialects,as well as the fact that there is a rich historical tradition in 1889 for "the investigation of English dialects in America with regard
underlying each motivation, it is easy to see why there are scholars who to pronunciation, grammar, phraseology, and geographical distribution"
feel that knowledge about dialects should be a central component of our (Grandgent 1889). This concern with geographical distribution coincided
educationalprocess,as fundamental as any other traditional topic coveredin with a period of fairly widespread migration and resettlement and was
our education. motivated by a strong historical rationale, as dialectologistsbegan to fear
24 Dialects, Standards, and Vernaculars Dialects, Stand,ard,s,
and, Vernaculars 25

that the original American English dialects would fade away as old boundaries Beginning in the 1960s,researchon dialects in the United States started
to intercommunication were erased. As we shall see later, this has hardly focusing more specifically on social and ethnic variation in American English
been the case,and some modern dialect boundaries still reflect the earliest than on regional variation. Part of this emphasis was fueled by a concern
European American settlement patterns. The initial hope of the American for language-relatedsocial problems, particularly problems related to educa-
Dialect Society was to provide a body of data from which a dialect dictionary tional issues concerning Americats lower social classes.Some linguistic
or series of linguistic maps might be derived. A considerable amount of descriptions of vernacular dialects such as African American English and
dara towards this end was published in the Society's original iournal, Dialect Appalachian English becamethe basis for programs which sought to remedy
Notes,,butit was not until 1928that a large-scalesystematicstudy of dialect educational inequalities. The use of sociolinguistic data and engagement
geography was undertaken, titted the Linguistic Atlas of the United States of sociolinguists in addressing social and educational problems remains
ini CinoAo. Along with the historical goals already mentioned, this survey a continuing concern. For some investigators, however, following the
aimed to correlate dialect differences with different social classifications,an pioneering work of Labov, the fundamental nature of linguistic variation
incipient stage in the development of a field of study that would blossom as a theoretical issue in linguistics became a rationale for sociolinguistic
fully several decadeslater. A comprehensive set of Linguistic Atlas surveys inquiry. Although some current investigatorsmotivate their dialect studies
for differenr areasof the United States and Canada was proposed and the exclusively on a theoretical basis, the more typical rationale combines
initial survey of New England undertaken. As one of the nation's initial theoretical and applied or social perspectives. Since the 1970s there has
areasof settlementby English speakers,New England was a logical starting been an unprecedented proliferation of studies of vernacular varieties of
place, given the proiect's focus on historical settlement patterns. Fieldworkers English. In fact, one comprehensive bibliography of African American
.o*b.d the region looking for older, lifetime residents from whom they English (Brasch and Brasch 1974) listed over 2,400 entries related to this
might elicit paiticutar items of pronunciation, grammar' and vocabulary' variety over three decadesago. Another annotatedbibliography of Southern
recording up to ten or twelve
Qu-ite typicaily, the fieldworkers ended up American English (McMillan and Montgomery 1989) listed over 3,800
hiurs of elicited forms. Of course, in the early stages these recordings works, the majority of which relate to the vernacular dialects of the South.
consisted of on-the-spot phonetic transcriptions without the aid of any The range of vernacular dialects considered over the past several decades
mechanicalrecording equipment. Some of this work is still ongoing, despite has been extended to include both urban and rural varieties of American
some criticism of the techniques for gathering data and the approach to English, as well as English varieties developed from contact situations with
describing languagevariation that were the basis of these studies' other languages.Both newly developing and older, vanishing varieties of
Over a century after the establishment of the American Dialect Society, English are included in this focus. Indeed, no vernacular dialect seems
one of its major goals is finally being tealized, namely, the publication of the safe from descriptive scrutiny, and no social or ethnic group is assured of
Dictionary d American Regional Engtish (cassidy 1985; Cassidy and Hall sociolinguistic anonymity given the current state of dialectology in the
1991, tgg6;Hall2002). Four volumes, covering the letters A-Sk, have now United States.
appeared,with the completion of the six-volume work proiected by the end Methods of data collection and the kind of data considered necessary
ofin. first decadeof the twenty-first century. This much-heralded, com- for adequate analysis have also shifted drastically during the past several
prehensivework datesits modern history to l962,when Frederic G. Cassidy decades.Spontaneous,casualconversationhas become a key source of data
was appointed generaleditor. It taps a wealth of data sources' including its for analysis,replacing the earlier emphasison direct probes to elicit particular
o*r, ."t.nsive dialect survey of the United States, the various Linguistic forms. Some fairly creative techniques were devised to enhance the possi-
Atlas projects, and the publications of the American Dialect Society' among bility of recording good "naturalistic" data, aided by advancing technology
others. The American birl."t Society remains a small but active orgtniza- in audio and video recording equipment. In addition, more careful and
tion concernedwith languagevariation in American English. Each year in systematic attention has been given to an array of social and interactional
of the Year" award, the
January, when it announces its annual "Word
-organization factors, ranging from the social relationships and practices of groups and
receivesa few minutes of national media attention. Its regular individuals to the social and sociopsychologicalfactors that affect speechin
puili.rtion of the quarterly iournal, American Speech, has been a staple of unfolding conversationalinteraction. Such developmentsnaturally were aided
three-quarters of a century. This journal balances
ii"l.ctology for more than by perspectivesfrom other fields in the social sciencessuch as psychology,
the traditional focus on regional variation with a more current emphasison anthropology,and sociology.In addition, researchersin recent decadeshave
social, ethnic, and gender-based variation in a readable format' been making increasing use of data from various media sources (e.g. film,
26 Dialects, Standards,and Vemaculars Dialects, Standard,s, and Vernaculars 27

Lippi-Green, Rosinr (1997) English pith an Accent: Language, Ideologjr, and

internet), as well as compiling and utilizing large computer-searchable data
Discrimination in the United States. New York/London: Routledge. Lippi-Green
collections.
offers an insightful description of linguistic subordination that ranges from language
Advances in the analysisof data now incorporate more rigorous quantitative ideology in the United States to institutional and personal discrimination based
methods, including the use of state-of-the-art automated search engines, on language differences.
statisticaiprocedurls,and mapping techniques.At the sametime, increasing Mencken, H. L. (1962) The Arnerican Language: An Inquiry into the Deaelopment
emphasisi, tto* being placed on developing and implementing qualitative of English in the United States,Supplement L New york: Alfred A. Knopf. The
-.ihodologies that wilt yield results superior to those achieved by impres- initial chapters of Mencken's classic work, chapters I through 4 in particular,
sionistic observations and anecdotal evidence concerning the patterning of provide an intriguing account of the early developments of American English,
isolated language forms. A traditional dialectologist, ftozen in the time with rich referencesto early commentary about this emerging variety by politicians
frame of a half century ago, would hardly recognize what constitutes dialect and general observers of language. Although the commentary is now dated, it is
study today. The underlying motivations for studying dialects in the present still worthwhile reading from a historical vantage point.
day may be well established in the historical record, but the field has
undergone someprofound changesin its focus and methods. Finally, current
dialeci study is ihatacterized by more of an "entrepreneurial" spirit than
in the past.-Specialistsin different areasof dialect study have cirved out
produciiv. ,rd useful niches for the application of information gleaned
ito- the study of dialects, ranging from dialect training programs for actors
projecting difierent regional and social roles to consultation servicesoffering
ih.-rtt"lyiis of language features for various legal purposes. And the range
of applicationsfor dialect study continues to expand'

1.9 Further Reading

Bauer, Laurie, and Peter Trudgill (eds.) (1993) LanguageMyths. New York:
penguin.This collectionof articlesexposesthe kinds of myths about language
andianguagediversitythat areperpetuatedin popularculture. Among the myths
relevantto this book (eachdiscussedin its own chapter)are "New Yorkerscan't
talk properly," "Black Americansare verbally deprived," "Southern speechis
slovenly,"and "shakespearean English is spokenin the mountains."
Baugh,;onn ltelt) The politicizationof changingterms of self-reference among
Ameiicanslave descendants. Arterican Speech 66 133-46. The author considers
the evolutionof changingterms of self-referenceamongAfrican Americansand
the sociopoliticalconiext of dialect labeling.This article should be read along
with a companionarticle in the sameissueby GenevaSmithermantitled "What
is Africa to mel Languageand ideology, and African American?" ('4merican
Speech66 ll5-32).
Labov,William,(lg72d)The logic of nonstandard English.Chapter5 in Language
in theBlachEngtish
in theInner City: Sturd1es Vernacular. Philadelphia:University
of pennsylvania Press, 201-40. This influentialarticle,which appearsasa chapter
in Labov's Languagein the Inner City, dealswith basic misconceptionsabout
vernaculardialeits.Historically,it constituteda critical argumentfor the linguistic
integrity and conceptualadequacyof vernaculardialect.It hasbeenreprinted in
numerousanthologies,including theAtlantic Monthly (June 1972)under the title
"Academicignoranceand Blackintelligence'"