LIN 201 CANADIAN ENGLISH

ASSIGNMENT 1

Sociolinguistic variables and categories

The main goal of this assignment is to work with terminology so that we are all on the same page when we use language to talk about language.

Be sure to put your name and student number on the top of the first page of your assignment. You may work on this assignment with other students. (Just turn in 1 copy with all your names on it.)

You may handwrite your assignment if you have clear, legible handwriting. Otherwise, please type. You must turn in a hard copy of all assignments, unless otherwise specified. Late work will not be accepted.

Part 1: The linguistic variable

Variable
/	\
Variant 1	Variant 2
Type of variable

Think of five different ways that English varies. You might think of lexical, phonological, or syntactic variables. Choose at least one variable that is phonological (or phonetic) and at least one that is lexical. Model your responses on this example, showing the variable, all of its variants, and stating what type of variable it is.

(evening meal)
/	\
"dinner"	"supper"
lexical

Part 2: Sociolinguistic categories (sometimes called external factors)

For each of the 5 variables that you gave in Part 1, briefly discuss factors that correlate to the selection of each variant. Although not all will be relevant for each variable you think of, you'll want to think about:

• social factors (e.g., age, gender, socio-economic status, ethnicity)
• geographic factors (where the speaker is from)
• stylistic factors (how formal the situation is, who the speaker is talking to, what type of discourse the speaker is engaged in)

Sample response: For the variable (evening meal), the word "supper" is preferred by Canadians age 30-69 while "dinner" is preferred by Canadians over the age of 70. [from the Dialect Topography website].

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