Best English to Learn

Dialects and the Notion of Standard English

According to British sociolinguist Peter Trudgill, the term dialect usually refers to diversity in the varieties of a language in which vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation may change. For example, British and American English are two different dialects, with differences in lexical items (e.g., lift/elevator, petrol/ gasoline, bonnet/hood), syntax (the past tense of the verb to learn: learned/learnt), and phonology (pronunciation). Dialects are found in other languages, such as the Spanish dialect used in Mexico compared with the Spanish dialect of Argentina, in which features such as verb conjugations and some word meanings differ. Trudgill also compares the concept of dialect with accent, explaining that the latter merely refers to differences in pronunciation within a language. Linguist Rosina Lippi-Green explains that geographical location is often used as a boundary to mark different accents (e.g., a Chicago accent), but other features may be used to mark boundaries as well, such as social class, gender, or race. These may also mark different dialects, provided there is variation in other language components, such as different vocabulary or syntax.

In the historical study of dialects, or language varieties, a more neutral term, as Trudgill explains, two approaches in linguistics have existed historically: (1) prescriptivism, a view that favors a certain dialect to be used and “prescribed,” a standard form of language, and (2) descriptivism, a view that focuses on diversity in language and the description of language without placing a higher value on one variety over another. David Crystal has written that grammarians in Europe studied languages from a prescriptive perspective in the 18th century, in an attempt to label language use as correct or incorrect, establishing grammar rules. He highlights the role of language academies in keeping the use of language “pure,” such as in the case of France, Spain, or Italy. The notion of a standard language to be prescribed implies aspects of power that are not intrinsic to the linguistic structures. They have to do with conferring legitimacy on the language variety spoken by dominant groups in a society, as sociologist Pierre Bourdieu explains. In the case of English, Trudgill explains that the variety known as “standard” was used by the upper classes and became the model to emulate. Standard English, he stresses, is one dialect out of many, the dialect associated with educated and powerful people.

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