Language Standardization

and the Development of a

Standard Variety
LECTURE 4
ENG 301
P R E S E N T E D BY :
I S M AT Z A R I N
A S S I S TA N T P R O F E S S O R
D E PA RT M E N T O F E N G L I S H
U N I V E R S I T Y O F A S I A PAC I F I C
 Language and Variation
Important part of sociolinguistics

Geographical variation :
Languages vary from one place to another

Social variation :
from one social group to another

Contextual variation
from one situation to another
 Standardization of
Language
•The process of making a language become standard is termed language
standardization.
•It is an ongoing historical process that develops a standard written and oral
language to be practiced by everyone in a society.
•Standardization can only occur when a society has an existing cultivation of
their own language and communicative methods.
•Following, the society must then express a desire for uniformity by filtering out
any irregularities and establishing a consistent communication system between
individuals.
Defining Standardization
Wardhaugh(2006) defines language standardization as “The process
by which a language has been codified in some way. That process
usually involves the development of such things as grammars,
spelling books, and dictionaries, and possibly a literature”.
Therefore, standard language is a particular language, which is
correct, acceptable and used by most people. It is much more
related to the written language, which involves the features of
orthographical: the system of spelling in a language; morphological:
the form of words; and syntactical: the way that words and phrases
are put together to form sentences in a language.
Standardization of Language
Establishing a standard language ultimately shapes
the standard ‘reality’ of the people (Fairclough, 203-
4).
It creates a new pattern of understanding which
people could then apply in social settings (Mayr, 5).
Standard and non-standard
variety
In relation to the formality or standardization point of
view, the language is divided into two kinds:

•Standard language/ variety and

•Non-standard language/ variety.
 Defining Standard Language
The adjective standard means ‘recognized as correct or
acceptable’, and
a standard language is a variety that in different ways is
recognized as more correct and acceptable than other
varieties.
In many ways, standard variety is an equally appropriate
designation. It has the following prototypical properties
Standard variety of language

Holmes (2001) defines standard variety is generally one which is

written, and which has undergone some degree of regularization or
codification (for example, in grammar and dictionary); it is
recognized as prestigious variety of code by a community.
Characteristics of a standard
language
•It is the variety of used by educated users, e.g.
those in the professions, the media, and so on.
•It is the variety defined in dictionaries,
grammars, and usage guides.
•It is regarded as more correct and socially
acceptable than other varieties.
Characteristics of a standard
language
•It enjoys greater prestige than dialects and non-standard
varieties: nonstandard
•varieties are felt to be the province of the less educated
•It is used as a written language.
•It is used in important functions in the society – in the
government, the
•parliament, courts, bureaucracy, education, literature, trade,
and industry
The Standard Language
•It is an idealized variety, but exists for most people as the
version that is accepted as the official language of their
community or country.
• In printed books and newspapers. =
•Used in mass media.
•Taught at most schools.
•Taught as a second or foreign language.
 Advantages of Standardization
Wardhaugh (2000) points out four advantages of language standardization. They
are as follows: 1) allows the language to serve as a model for everyone in the
community to agree upon in order to communicate;
2) having a common, mutually comprehensible language unifies the members of
a community; 3) can be employed to reflect and symbolize some kind of identity
and can also be used to give prestige to speakers; and
4) also makes the language easier to teach in schools.
From these points, therefore, it can be stated that the language standardization
has four main positive effects towards the speaker of that language: 1) language
model, 2) unifier of people, 3) the identity, and 4) practical in teaching
 Disadvantages of
Standardization
1) creates a sense of elitism among the speakers of the standard and
a feeling of inferiority in those who continue to use the non-standard
form;
2) tends to create an inferiority complex among the low status
speakers; and
3) also forces parents who wish for their children to be accepted by
the dominant group to conform to the standard variety, possibly
neglecting the language and culture they were born into.
Process of
Standardization
Stages of Language
Standardization
• Language standardization begins by selecting one
of the many forms of language that exist in a society
to be the standard.
• The chosen one is then accepted by the dominant
clans in society, who have the power to
control how and where this language is standardized
and diffused.
• They enforce authority towards this language
by codifying it—directly and indirectly—through
authorized documents, media publications,
and discrimination against other forms of language.
• Once it has gains general approval, the standard
language is rigorously maintained through several
means.
 Selection
Variability is a fact of life for almost all languages. There are different
regional dialects, class dialects, and situational varieties. Standardization
represents an attempt to curtail, minimize if not eliminate this high degree
of variability (Stadler: 1983).
The easiest solution seems to be to pick (although not arbitrarily) one of
these varieties to be elevated to the status of the standard. One of the
existing dialects is chosen for standardization purposes. The chosen dialect
is likely to be one spoken be the more powerful and better educated
groups living in or near the capital
Codification
The norms and rules of grammar, use, etc. which
govern the variety selected have to be formulated,
and set down definitively in grammars, dictionaries,
spellers, manuals of style, texts, etc. The selected
dialect is provided with a written grammar and a
dictionary, so that it can be used in official
documents, taught in schools and learnt by foreigners
(Holmes: 2001).
Elaboration
For the variety selected to represent the desired norms, it must be able
to discharge a whole range of functions that it may be called upon to
discharge, including abstract, intellectual functions (Holmes: 2001).
Where it lacks resources to do so, these are developed. Thus a standard
language is often characterized as possessing ‘maximal variation in
function, minimal variation in form’. Where necessary, ways of talking
and writing about technology and other development need for modern
education and commerce will be develop by an academy or language
bureau in the first instance it may be necessary to borrow or invent
vocabulary lists.
Acceptance
The ‘acceptance’ by the community of the norms of the variety selected
over those of rival varieties, through the promotion, spread,
establishment and enforcement of the norms. This is done through
institutions, agencies, authorities such as schools, ministries, the media,
cultural establishments, etc. (Holmes: 2001).
In fact, the standard language comes to be regarded not just as the best
form of the language, but as the language itself (e.g. consider the claim
that Mandarin is Chinese in Singapore). The other varieties are then
dialects, which tend implicitly to get stigmatized as lesser forms,
associated with the not too highly regarded people, who are seen as less
educated, slovenly, uncouth, etc.
Importance of
Standardization
In some countries in the world such as Indonesia, Singapore,
Malaysia, Philippine, etc. coding a language to be national
and official language is very crucial and has to follow the
steps of it: selection: choosing the variety or coded to be
developed; codification: standardizing its structural or
linguistic features; elaboration: extended its functions for
use in new domains; and securing its acceptance: enhancing
its prestige, for instance, and encourage people to develop
pride in the language or loyalty towards it.
References
Fairclough, Norman. “Political correctness’: The politics of culture and language.” Discourse &
Society 14.1. 2003.
Holmes, Janet (2001) Learning About language: An Introduction to Sociolinguistics. England: Edinburgh Gate
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Formality, accessed on March 26, 2010
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Written_language, accessed on March 26, 2010
Mayr, Andrea. Language and power: An introduction to institutional discourse. A&C Black,
2008.
Milroy, James and Lesley Milroy. Authority In Language. Routledge, 2000.
Morris, Charles (1946) Signs, Language and Behavior. Englewood Cliffs, NJ: Prentice-Hall. Stadler, B. (1983).
Language Maintenance and Assimilation: The Case of Selected German Speaking Immigrants in Vancouver,
Canada. Canadian Cataloguing in Publications Data.
Wardhaugh, R. (2006) An Introduction to Sociolinguistics. Malden, MA: Blacwell Publishing Woolard K. A. &
Schieffel in B. B. (1994) Language Ideology: An Annual Review of Anthropology. 23, 55-82.
Any Questions?

Thanks for your attention!