PHONOLOGYCAL VARIATION AND CHANGE IN CONTEMPORARY ENGLISH: EVIDENCE FROM NEWCASTLE UPON TYNE AND DERBY

Authors

  • Lesley Milroy
  • James Milroy
  • Gerry Docherty

Keywords:

Phonological variation and change, sociolingüistic methods, instrumental

Abstract

This paper gives an overview of the principal findings of a recent project carried out on phonological variation and change in contemporary urban dialects, using quantitative sociolinguistic methods, instrumental phonetic, and phonological analysis. Conversational and word-list data were sistematically collected from 32 Tyneside and 32 Derby speakers, each sample being stratified to include equal numbers of men and woman, two age-groups and two social class groups. This sample design allowed us to assesss the impact of age, class, and gender on patterns of language variation and change as well as the geographical domains of specific changers. The principal results are described and their theoretical implications are phonetics.

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Section

Artículos