The traditional Philadelphia allophonic /ae/ system (henceforth: PHL shown in (1) below) is characterized by a set of complicated conditioning factors and a dramatic acoustic distinction between the two allophones. In recent years, some Philadelphians have begun to exhibit a new allophonic system (NAS, shown in (2) below). Like PHL, NAS is…

The present article compares and contrasts linguistic findings from longitudinal studies of low-income Americans derived from evidence of recorded family speech interactions. Hart and Risley (1995) employed research assistants who spent 1 hour per month observing language usage among families from different socioeconomic backgrounds in their homes…

This study examines the acquisition of target-like patterns of variation by 22 American learners of French during study abroad (SA) in France and correlates such acquisition with the creation of dense, multiplex, exchange-based social networks (Milroy 1980) with native speakers (NSs) during the SA period. In this longitudinal study, naturalistic…

Deals with the shift of the low-back vowel as in 'caught' to a low-central vowel as in 'cot' thereby merging such pairs as caught/cot, dawn/Don, and stalk/stock. The causes and the sociolinguistic implications of this shift are discussed. The majority of the informants were from West Los Angeles. (TL)

A study of 51 speakers in rural Illinois showed fronting and raising of (aw) to be considerably more advanced among countryside dwellers than among town residents. Discusses some of the social and economic changes contributing to this phonological shift. (EKN)

Originally appeared in Workpapers: Teaching English as a Second Language," Volume 5 (June 1971), Department of English, University of California, Los Angeles, California. (VM)

In this second of two studies conducted with portions of the National Speech and Hearing Survey data, the investigators analyzed the phonetic variants from standard American English in the speech of two groups of nonstandard English speaking children. The study used samples of free speech and performance on the Gold-Fristoe Test of Articulation…

Discusses an interview in which Marcyliena Morgan elaborates on the necessity to analyze both microlinguistic issues of grammar and phonology as well as larger issues of discourse pragmatics and language ideology. The interview touches on African American poetry, the convergence of African American and standard English, and oases and indirectness.…

Examines the nature of language diversity in the small, isolated community of Ocracoke Island, North Carolina, where a lone African American family has resided for over 130 years. (57 references) (Author/CK)

The aim of the research reported here was to describe dialect diversity in Appalachia (Monroe and Mercer Counties, West Virginia) and to examine the possible effect of this diversity on education. The present volume contains the first two parts of the report, the third being submitted separately. The first part includes chapters 1-5, the second…

This questionnaire presents about 450 phonological, lexical, and grammatical items that are used in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. In composing the dialect survey, terms pertaining to climate, topography, and ethnic groups were taken into account, as were other words and phrases which might be used by Upper Peninsula native speakers. The survey…

An article and a bibliography constitute this issue of the "Illinois English Bulletin." In "Keep the Natives from Getting Restless," Barry Gadlin examines native language learning by children from infancy through high school and discusses the theories of several authors concerning the teaching of the native language. The "Bibliography of…

In the transmission of a language from one generation to another, the specific role of the family is not clear. There is evidence that in cities parents have less influence on a child's vernacular than playmates do; in rural areas, members of the nuclear family might be the major source of language change and stability, if the people with whom…

A rejoinder is presented to Betty Lou Dubois' article entitled, "British-Tradition English in the American University," which considers English West African English. Objection is made to the characterization of West African English in terms of errors. It is argued that there should be recognition of a "standard" West African…