English As a Contact Language

by Schreier, Daniel; Hundt, Marianne

• ISBN13: 9781107001961
• ISBN10: 110700196X
• Format: Hardcover
• Copyright: 2013-03-11
• Publisher: Cambridge Univ Pr

Summary

Recent developments in contact linguistics suggest considerable overlap of branches such as historical linguistics, variationist sociolinguistics, pidgin/creole linguistics, language acquisition, etc. This book highlights the complexity of contact-induced language change throughout the history of English by bringing together cutting-edge research from these fields. Special focus is on recent debates surrounding substratal influence in earlier forms of English (particularly Celtic influence in Old English), on language shift processes (the formation of Irish and overseas varieties) but also on dialects in contact, the contact origins of Standard English, the notion of new epicentres in World English, the role of children and adults in language change as well as transfer and language learning. With contributions from leading experts, the book offers fresh and exciting perspectives for research and is at the same time an up-to-date overview of the state of the art in the respective fields.

Table of Contents

Introduction: nothing but a contact language ...

The role of contact in English syntactic change in the Old and Middle English periods

Multilingualism and code-switching as mechanisms of contact-induced lexical change in late Middle English

The contact origins of Standard English

English as a contact language in the British

English as a contact language in Ireland and Scotland

The contact dynamics of socioethnic varieties in North America

English as a contact language: the 'New Englishes'

English as a contact language: lesser-known varieties

The role of mundane mobility and contact in dialect death and dialect birth

The diversification of English: old, new and emerging epicenters

Driving forces in English contact linguistics

Substrate influence and universals in the emergence of contact Englishes: reevaluating the evidence

Transfer and contact in migrant and multiethnic communities: the conversational historical be + -ing present in South African Indian English

English as a contact language: the role of children and adolescents

Innovation and contact: the role of adults (and children)

Accelerator or inhibitor? On the role of substrate influence in interlanguage development

Speculating on the future of English as a contact language

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