Although dialects differ from the standard

Dialect form of a language, they are usually intelligible to

Have you ever noticed how English everyone who can speak that language. For
speakers tend to speak the language slightly example, someone from the South of England
differently? Perhaps you've noticed differences in would mostly understand someone from the North
pronunciation or the fact there are a hundred of England.
different ways to say 'bread roll' in the UK! Well,
these differences can be explained with the term Definition:
dialect. Intelligible = Can be understood.

Dialect definition The most common definition of a dialect is

- The most common definition for dialect is a regional variety of a language, but as we
a language variety used in a specific previously mentioned, that’s not the only type of
geographical location. This means the dialect. So, let’s look at the different dialects.
language (e.g. English) has been
influenced and changed by the group of Dialect examples
people using it. The most common factor - The term dialect can be considered a sort
the group of people often share is their of umbrella term for all the different
location. However, other social factors, language varieties that arise due to various
such as class, occupation, and age, can influential factors.
also produce and influence dialects.
- The most common types of dialect
Example: include;
 Geordie is a well-known English dialect in 1. regional dialects
the UK. People typically speak it in 2. sociolects
Newcastle upon Tyne and the surrounding 3. idiolects
Tyneside areas. 4. ethnolects

- Dialects can differ from standard forms of  Regional dialects

a language (e.g. British English [BrE]) in Regional dialects are the most common
terms of the lexicon (vocabulary), syntax and distinguishable dialects. They appear amongst
(the arrangement of words in a sentence), people who live close together and usually
grammar, and pronunciation. New develop over time due to linguistic change.
dialects form as groups of people Common causes for linguistic change include
communicate and adapt a language to suit communication with others outside the
their needs. These dialects can be community, changes in the environment, the
described as the everyday language used introduction of new languages, goods and
by people belonging to a particular area or cultures, etc.
social group.
Some well-known regional dialects in the UK
- British English (BrE) is considered the include:
most standard form of English and is often
associated with the Received  Received Pronunciation (RP)
Pronunciation (RP) accent. These are  Geordie
considered standard in the UK, but it’s  Glaswegian (This one is a dialect of
important to remember that they are still Scottish English, a variety itself.)
dialects.  Cockney
 Sociolects English Language dialects
A sociolect is a social dialect - this means Let’s look at some features and vocabulary of
that the language has been influenced by other some well-known dialects in the UK.
social factors, not just geographical location.
Sociolects typically develop amongst people who  Received Pronunciation (RP)
have something in common, such as Received Pronunciation (RP) is the accent
socioeconomic status (class), age, occupation, you probably have in mind when imagining a
gender, or ethnicity. ‘posh’ English speaker. RP is often associated
with the middle to upper-classes and with being
- An example of a sociolect is how the well-educated. Although this is true to a certain
younger generation often uses different extent, it isn’t always the case as RP is also the
vocabulary (e.g. slang) to older regional accent in the Southeast of England.
generations.
RP is often considered the ‘standard’
- People often use different sociolects and accent for British English and is used to teach
choose (consciously or subconsciously) English worldwide. Because of this, RP is one
how to speak depending on their social dialect that cannot always be associated with a
situation. geographic region.

 Ethnolects Features of RP include:

An ethnolect is a sociolect that has arisen - Use of the semi-vowel /j/ sound. For
due to the influence of a shared ethnic group. example, ‘Tuesday’ is pronounced with an
Typically, ethnolects are influenced by other ‘ew’ sound (/ˈtjuːzdɪ/).
languages that members of the ethnic group may - Use of the long 'ar' sound (ɑː) in words
speak or be accustomed to. For example, African such as ‘bath’ and ‘palm’.
American Vernacular English (AAVE) roots are - Not dropping /t/ and /h/ sounds. E.g.
English, but the variety is heavily influenced by a ‘water’ not ‘wa’er’ and ‘happy’ not ‘appy’.
number of West African languages. AAVE can be - It is a non-rhotic dialect (meaning /r/
considered a dialect, sociolect, and ethnolect sounds are only pronounced after a
because of the social and ethnic groups that use it. consonant).

 Idiolect RP is also referred to as the ‘Queen’s English’ or

An idiolect is an individual’s personal use ‘BBC English’ because that’s where you’ll hear it
of language. Idiolects are completely unique and spoken.
can be influenced by many different factors. The
way a person talks can depend on the usual  Geordie
factors, such as age, gender, class, occupation, etc. Geordie is the English dialect typically
But, many other things can also affect their found in Newcastle upon Tyne and the
speech, such as the movies they watch, the places surrounding Tyneside areas. The Geordie dialect
they’ve travelled to, the people they spend time is a continued development of the speech patterns
with, the list goes on. A person’s idiolect will used by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the North of
forever change and adapt depending on what’s England from the fifth century.
happening in their life at the time.
Features of Geordie include: Example:
- It is a non-rhotic dialect (meaning /r/  Gerry Cinamon – Canter
sounds are only pronounced after a "Because the hardest part of the game
consonant). Isnae even playing the game
- Pronunciation of pronouns, e.g. ‘yous’ It's caring enough to care about the things
instead of ‘you’ and ‘wor’ instead of ‘our’. that you're daein'
- Lengthening of vowel sounds, e.g. ‘toon’ Oh it's a wee crying shame
(/tuːn/) instead of ‘town’ (/taʊn/) Here comes the rain"

Common slang terms include: Dialect explanation

- Wey aye, man! = Yes! The fundamental cause behind dialects is
- Canny = Nice linguistic change. Linguistic change refers to the
- I divvina = I don’t know process of variation that happens to all languages
over time. Languages aren’t static things written
Example: in stone; in fact, quite the opposite is true.
 Sam Fender - Seventeen Going Under
"Drenched in cheap drink and snide fags Languages are constantly changing to fit the
A mirrored picture of my old man needs of their users in terms of:
Oh God, the kid's a dab hand  Lexicon - New words are added and
Canny chanter, but he looks sad" dropped from the Oxford English
Dictionary each year.
 Glaswegian
Glaswegian is a dialect of Scottish English  Pronunciation - The great vowel shift
spoken in Glasgow and the surrounding areas. (1400-1700) saw the pronunciation of
This dialect has roots in English but has been vowels in standard British English change
heavily influenced by Scots, Highland English, greatly. Diphthongs were introduced, and
and Hiberno-English. many short vowels became long.

Features of Glaswegian include:  Semantics (semantic change) - Over time,

- It is a rhotic dialect (most /r/ sounds are the meaning of words can change as they
pronounced). get picked up and appropriated by certain
- Use of contractions, e.g. ‘can’t’ becomes groups. An example of this is how the
‘cannae’; ‘don’t’ becomes ‘dinnae’; and words used to describe women often
‘isn’t’ becomes ‘isnae’. become negative. E.g. the word ‘hussy’
- The long ‘oo’ sound (/uː/) is often originally meant ‘housewife’; however, it
shortened to the shorter ‘oo’ sound (/ʊ/). now has negative connotations and is used
E.g. ‘food’ (/fuːd/) sounds more like ‘fud’ to describe women involved in sexual
(/fʊd/). encounters.

Common slang terms include: Linguistic change often occurs slowly over
- Hoachin’ = very full e.g. The bus was time, and many people using the language may be
hoachin’. unaware change is happening. However, in some
- Pish = not very good areas of language, such as slang and jargon,
- Swally = alcoholic drink change happens much quicker.
 Linguistic change also occurs because of semantic meaning. Languages can be written or
the migrations of people. As entire populations of spoken and usually have a standard form, e.g.
people moved across the world (e.g. the Anglo- English, French, German. Within a language,
Saxons travelling from Germany, Denmark, and many different dialects and varieties exist.
the Netherlands to Britain), they brought their
languages and speech habits with them. The more Dialect
these people communicated with others, the more A dialect is a variety of a language, e.g.
certain aspects of their languages were picked up, Geordie is a variety of English. Dialects are rooted
adapted, or dropped, thus, creating new dialects. in a language and usually differ in grammar,
vocabulary, and pronunciation. They are spoken
Reasons for dialects by groups of people who have something in
When a dialectical change is picked up and common, such as geographical location, age, or
used by members of a community, others may ethnicity.
(consciously or subconsciously) choose to speak
in the same way. Many linguists suggest this is Whereas languages belonging to the same
done to build a sense of unity and belonging with language family are not mutually intelligible,
the people around them. When members of a dialects from the same language are. For example,
community are in constant contact, they begin to Danish and Icelandic are both Germanic
sound similar to each other. In linguistics, this languages, but someone who speaks Danish
process is called accommodation. cannot necessarily understand Icelandic. On the
other hand, an English speaker should understand
Dialects can also give people a sense of most English dialects on a basic level.
identity. Many people feel proud of their dialects
and might make a conscious effort to use them Dialect - Key Takeaways
whenever possible. Today, we see more dialect  The most common definition for dialect is
levelling occurring, and many dialects are a language variety used in a specific
becoming lost. Because of this, we're seeing more geographical location.
people making a conscious effort to preserve their
dialects. A good example of this is how the  The term dialect can also be used as an
musicians Sam Fender and Gerry Cinamon (we umbrella term for language varieties,
looked at their song lyrics a few moments ago!) including regional dialects, sociolects,
are singing in their native dialects. idiolects, and ethnolects.

Definition:  Dialects differ from standard forms of a

Dialect levelling = The reduction in diversity or language in terms of vocabulary,
variation between dialects. pronunciation, syntax, and grammar.

Language and dialect meaning  Some well-known regional dialects in the

You might be wondering at this point what the UK are Received Pronunciation (RP),
difference between a dialect and a language is, so Geordie, Glaswegian, and Cockney.
let’s go ahead and clear up any confusion.
 Dialects typically form over time as people
Language change and adapt their speech to sound
Langauge is what humans use to like the people around them.
communicate - they typically have a set alphabet
and comprise of vocabulary, grammar, syntax, and