{"id":261,"date":"2019-03-17T22:42:16","date_gmt":"2019-03-18T05:42:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/linguamonium.com\/?p=261"},"modified":"2021-04-25T05:33:15","modified_gmt":"2021-04-25T05:33:15","slug":"accents-dialects-part-i-yinzers-and-jawn","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/linguamonium.com\/?p=261","title":{"rendered":"Accents and dialects (part I): Yinzers and jawn"},"content":{"rendered":"

What\u2019s the difference between an accent, a dialect, and a language? These concepts are prone to a multitude of misconceptions, often with adverse consequences for millions of people whose speech doesn\u2019t fall within the realm of what\u2019s considered \u201cstandard\u201d for their particular region. In this series of posts, I summarize three articles about accents and dialects, and I hope to pique your interest such that you check out the full pieces themselves!<\/p>\n

To answer the initial question: an accent<\/em> is one\u2019s pronunciation and prosody <\/strong>(intonation, tone, stress, etc.) particularized by individual, geographic, temporal, cultural, and socioeconomic factors. A dialect<\/em> is an accent PLUS all the other linguistic features of a language (syntax, lexicon, idioms, slang) also influenced by those factors. A language<\/em> is basically a convenient abstraction over a grouping of mutually-intelligible dialects. It helps us conceptualize things, but it\u2019s sometimes hard to draw fool-proof, scientifically valid lines between what\u2019s a language versus a dialect, and aspects like culture and nationality further muddle these line-drawing attempts.<\/p>\n

Consider the following two cases, mentioned frequently in linguistic realms: Swedish, Norwegian, and Danish are relatively mutually intelligible \u2013 in reality, they\u2019re probably closer to dialects of a single Scandinavian language \u2013 but because they\u2019re spoken in separate countries, they\u2019re considered separate languages. The opposite situation holds for \u201cChinese.\u201d There is actually no single \u201cChinese\u201d language. There\u2019s Mandarin and Cantonese, which are NOT mutually intelligible, as well as hundreds of other \u201cdialects\u201d across China which are also not necessarily understandable between their groups of speakers. However, because all of the speakers reside within a single nation (and share a writing system, among other things), Mandarin and Cantonese (and others) are usually considered \u201cdialects\u201d of a single, monolithic \u201cChinese\u201d language.<\/p>\n

To use an oft-quoted expression: \u201ca language is a dialect with an army and navy.\u201d This conveys the idea that the distinction between a language and a dialect is arbitrary, becoming possible only through a social lens; a language almost always has more official recognition, more cultural clout, more political power, etc. than a dialect.<\/p>\n

Okay, time for some articles. The piece linked and summarized below is an enjoyable read about Pennsylvania dialects. My Part II follow-up will discuss accents, and Part III will consider Black English (also called AAVE – African-American Vernacular English).<\/p>\n

\"greetings<\/p>\n

Pennsylvania dialects<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Article: \u201cWhere Yinz At\u201d<\/a> (Slate)<\/p>\n

\u201cPennsylvania, in case yinz didn\u2019t know, is a regional dialect hotbed nonpareil.\u201d<\/p>\n

While states have on average two to three dialects, Pennsylvania has five \u2013 the ones associated with Philadelphia and Pittsburgh being the most widely known.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Philadelphia dialect features a focused avoidance of the \u2018th\u2019 sound, the swallowing of the L in lots of words, and\u00a0wooder<\/em>\u00a0instead of\u00a0water<\/em>, among a zillion other things. In Pittsburgh, it\u2019s dahntahn <\/em>for downtown<\/em>, and words like nebby <\/em>and jagoff <\/em>and yinz<\/em>.\u201d<\/p>\n

(To sample the actual dialects, watch the funny clip embedded in the article \u2013 a skit of a Philly-Pittsburgh phone conversation between two pawnbrokers.)<\/p>\n

Geography and migration likely shaped the unique speech patterns found in the Keystone State. North of the Interstate 80 (which roughly bisects the state), ways of speaking were influenced by immigrants from southern England. Below that boundary line, people came from Northern England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. The Allegheny Mountains also created a barrier between Pittsburgh and other parts of the state. After a couple hundred years, Philadelphians and Pittsburghers have come to sound pretty distinct from each other.<\/p>\n

\u201c[\u2026] people from Pittsburgh are talking about \u2018gettin\u2019 off the caach and gone dahntawn on the trawly to see the fahrworks for the Fourth a July hawliday n\u2019at,\u2019 while Philadelphia folks provide linguistic gems like the one Monahan offered up as the most Philly sentence possible: \u2018Yo Antny, when you\u2019re done your glass of wooder, wanna get a hoagie on Thirdyfish Street awn da way over to Moik\u2019s for de Iggles game?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

University of Pennsylvania linguistics professor William Labov says the Philadelphia dialect is generally a source of pride for residents, most of whom are positive about the city. Pittsburghese is similarly well-regarded by its speakers. The unique dialect has received a good deal of attention since linguists began visiting the area in the 1930s.<\/p>\n

However, the fact that increasing numbers of young people are going farther away for college has resulted in Philly and Pittsburgh accents and dialects being dropped (since of course college kids want to fit in and be understood). Huge surges in online\/text communication do not speed that decline though (as is often thought), and in fact, additional exposure to multiple dialects means people don\u2019t judge others\u2019 speech as much as they used to. Both Labov and Carnegie Mellon University English\/linguistics professor Barbara Johnstone rightfully point out that the Philly and Pittsburgh dialects are (like all language) constantly evolving.<\/p>\n

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * *<\/p>\n

I\u2019ll leave you with a few extra Pennsylvania dialect delights:<\/p>\n