Key Terms

Question 1

What is the term for the language of the colonial power that is sometimes perceived as oppressive?

Answer 1

English

In many countries, English has been embraced, appropriated, and transformed.

Question 2

Define World Englishes.

Answer 2

Denotes all varieties of English spoken around the world, including British, Nigerian, Malaysian, and New Zealand English

The perspective is usually national, with regional dialects qualifying indirectly.

Question 3

What are New Englishes?

Answer 3

Distinct forms of English emerging in postcolonial settings, especially in Africa and Asia

Examples include Tanzanian and Indian English.

Question 4

What do Postcolonial Englishes emphasize?

Answer 4

Shared origins in British colonization activities

Excludes British English but includes American, Australian, and related creoles.

Question 5

What is English as a native language (ENL)?

Answer 5

Language spoken as the mother tongue by the majority of the population

Examples include the UK, USA, Australia, and New Zealand.

Question 6

Define English as a second language (ESL).

Answer 6

English rooted historically in countries, assuming important internal functions alongside indigenous languages

Examples include India, Malaysia, Nigeria, and Uganda.

Question 7

What is English as a foreign language (EFL)?

Answer 7

English widely taught for its international usefulness, lacking internal functions

Example: Japan.

Question 8

What does the Three Circles Model represent?

Answer 8

Separates World Englishes into three categories: inner, outer, and expanding circles

Inner circle: ENL countries; outer circle: ESL countries; expanding circle: EFL countries.

Question 9

What is a PRO of Kachru’s model?

Answer 9

Challenges the predominance of the Inner Circle, arguing English belongs to all users

Highlights the global nature of English.

Question 10

What is a CON of Kachru’s model?

Answer 10

Static visualization of distinct categories, limited in reflecting the spread of English

Fails to account for regions fitting multiple categories.

Question 11

What does Schneider’s Dynamic Model propose?

Answer 11

Emerging varieties of English in postcolonial contexts follow a uniform evolutionary process

Includes stages like Foundation, Nativisation, and Differentiation.

Question 12

What occurs in the Foundation stage of Schneider’s model?

Answer 12

English is brought to a new territory, leading to incipient bilingualism and borrowing

Involves the introduction of toponyms.

Question 13

Define Exonormative stabilization.

Answer 13

During colonial stability, the mother country determines linguistic norms

Elite bilingualism spreads among some indigenous representatives.

Question 14

What is Nativisation?

Answer 14

Development of local characteristics in a language variety, weakening ties to the settlers’ country

Involves increased interethnic contacts.

Question 15

What does Endonormative stabilization imply?

Answer 15

A new linguistic norm is codified and accepted in society after independence

Often used in cultural and literary representations.

Question 16

What is Differentiation in Schneider’s model?

Answer 16

Internal social group identities become important, leading to dialectal differences

Reflects the growth of distinct social identities in a stable young nation.

Question 17

Define Rhoticity.

Answer 17

Explicit articulation of a postvocalic /r/

Rhotic speakers pronounce the postvocalic r, while non-rhotic do not.

Question 18

What is the focus of phonetics?

Answer 18

Description of human speech sounds and their production

Involves articulatory detail.

Question 19

Define phonology.

Answer 19

Study of the sound system of a language, focusing on phonemes

Assumes a limited number of recognizable sounds are used to build words.

Question 20

What does morphology study?

Answer 20

How complex words are built from smaller meaningful entities (morphemes)

Subdivided into grammatical and lexical morphology.

Question 21

What is syntax?

Answer 21

Set of rules regulating how words combine to form sentences

Determines word classes and permissible sequences.

Question 22

Define morphosyntax.

Answer 22

Study of the interaction between morphology and syntax

Often referred to as grammar.

Question 23

What does lexis refer to?

Answer 23

The vocabulary or word stock of a language

Viewed as a level of language organization equivalent to phonology and grammar.

Question 24

What is the focus of pragmatics?

Answer 24

Study of language use in context, including situational reference and politeness

Examines conversational conventions.

Question 25

What is **language contact**?

Answer 25

Occurrence of bilingualism and multilingualism, influencing languages in a region ## Footnote Languages exist side by side and influence each other.

Question 26

Define **borrowing** in linguistics.

Answer 26

Use of loan words from one language in another ## Footnote Reflects language contact and influence.

Question 27

What is **transfer**?

Answer 27

Retention of properties of one language when acquiring another ## Footnote Often occurs during language shift.

Question 28

What does **language shift** refer to?

Answer 28

A socially inferior group adopts a dominant language, losing their ancestral language ## Footnote Typically occurs in postcolonial contexts.

Question 29

What is **language death**?

Answer 29

Phenomenon where a language becomes extinct, losing its last native speaker ## Footnote Reflects the impact of language shift.

Question 30

Define **koineization**.

Answer 30

Emergence of a koiné, a neutral compromise dialect from contact between related dialects ## Footnote Aims for communicative success among speakers.

Question 31

What is **colonial lag**?

Answer 31

Conservatism in colonial societies regarding traditional forms of behavior ## Footnote Example: retention of rhoticity in some American dialects.

Question 32

What is the **founder effect/principle**?

Answer 32

Early members of a community have a disproportionate impact on emerging norms ## Footnote Influences the development of language varieties.

Question 33

What is a **preverbal marker**?

Answer 33

Short particle placed before a verb to express tense and aspect relations ## Footnote Common in creoles.

Question 34

Define **monophthongization**.

Answer 34

Phonetic process where a diphthong is pronounced as a monophthong ## Footnote Alters vowel pronunciation.

Question 35

What is a **diphthong**?

Answer 35

A vowel characterized by a gliding movement of the tongue ## Footnote Example: /ei/ in 'day'.

Question 36

What is a **monophthong**?

Answer 36

A single, pure vowel sound ## Footnote Example: /i/ in 'hit'.

Question 37

What is **article reduction**?

Answer 37

Reduction of the definite article 'the' to a stop in northern speech ## Footnote Example: 't’chair'.

Question 38

What are **language-internal factors**?

Answer 38

Conditions purely internal to language, such as vocal tract nature and cognitive foundations ## Footnote Influence language variation.

Question 39

What are **language-external factors**?

Answer 39

Conditions external to language, including historical and sociolinguistic settings ## Footnote Affect language use across different demographics.

Question 40

What is a **linguistic split**?

Answer 40

A phonemic split where a single sound divides into two distinct sounds over time ## Footnote Example: 'trap-bath' split in Southern England.

Question 41

Define **linguistic merger**.

Answer 41

Sound change where distinct sounds are replaced by a single sound ## Footnote Example: 'pin-pen' merger in the Southern US.

Question 42

What is a **substrate**?

Answer 42

Language of a socially inferior group that influences a newly adopted language ## Footnote Often seen in language shift contexts.

Question 43

What is a **superstrate**?

Answer 43

Language of a socially superior group that influences language acquisition ## Footnote Plays a role in language shift.

Question 44

What is a **vowel shift**?

Answer 44

Systematic change in a language’s vowel pronunciation ## Footnote Example: Great Vowel Shift in English.

Question 45

What does it mean for English to be an **official language**?

Answer 45

Recognized by a government for use in public life and formal domains ## Footnote Used in courts, schools, and other official contexts.

Question 46

What was the **scramble for Africa**?

Answer 46

Competition among European powers for control over African lands in the late 19th century ## Footnote Involved rapid land-grabbing and colonial expansion.

Question 47

What was the **Berlin conference**?

Answer 47

1885 meeting where major European powers divided up territory in Africa ## Footnote Borders were drawn without considering ethnic compositions.

Question 48

What is **reduplication**?

Answer 48

Doubling a form to intensify its meaning ## Footnote Example: Swahili 'pole, pole' means 'slowly, slowly'.

Question 49

Define **trade colony**.

Answer 49

Established for exchanging goods with locals, often using pidgin languages ## Footnote Examples include trading posts along the West African coast.

Question 50

What is an **exploitation colony**?

Answer 50

Set up to gain political influence and exploit indigenous resources ## Footnote Involved educating an indigenous elite while withholding from the masses.

Question 51

What is a **plantation colony**?

Answer 51

Facilitated large-scale cultivation of agricultural products, often using slave labor ## Footnote Examples include sugar cane plantations in the tropics.

Question 52

Define **settler colony**.

Answer 52

Characterized by large-scale population relocation and permanent English-ancestry settlements ## Footnote Motivated by various factors, including religious dissent and land hunger.

Question 53

What are some **particular motives** for settlement mentioned?

Answer 53

* Religious dissenters, e.g., the Pilgrim Fathers * Petty criminals sentenced to deportation, e.g., Australia’s First Fleet * Debtors and deportees obliged to serve as “indentured labourers” * Individuals and families hungry for land and new opportunities * Commercially organized large-scale settling activities, e.g., the “New Zealand Company” ## Footnote These motives highlight the diverse reasons behind migration and settlement in new territories.

Question 54

What is **Koineization** in the context of settler communication?

Answer 54

A compromise variety developed from different dialects spoken by settlers, omitting rare forms and increasing useful ones ## Footnote This process reflects how settlers adapted their language for better communication.

Question 55

What does **Nativisation** refer to?

Answer 55

The process triggered by indigenous groups becoming bilingual or undergoing language shift towards English due to the presence of a dominant group ## Footnote This often involves contact phenomena such as indigenous-language transfer producing new varieties of English.

Question 56

Define **indirect rule**.

Answer 56

A principle of governance in British colonies where indigenous rulers are formally in power but serve the interests of the colonial power ## Footnote This system allowed colonial powers to maintain control while appearing to respect local governance.

Question 57

What are **language attitudes**?

Answer 57

Beliefs, feelings, and evaluations about a particular language, dialect, or variety ## Footnote These attitudes can lead to linguistic discrimination and affect speakers' confidence and identity.

Question 58

What are the two types of **linguistic prestige** suggested by Labov?

Answer 58

* Overt prestige: attributed to formal language usage, standard English * Covert prestige: assigned to admired speakers often at the opposite end of the social scale ## Footnote These forms of prestige reflect social evaluations of language use.

Question 59

How can **language be used as an instrument of power**?

Answer 59

Language knowledge is viewed as a gateway to economic opportunities and a better life ## Footnote This reflects the economic power of the language in global contexts.

Question 60

What does the concept of **language & identity** signify?

Answer 60

Speakers establish group coherence and distinguish themselves from others through symbolic means, including dialect usage ## Footnote Linguistic differences serve as identity markers and reflect social group membership.

Question 61

True or false: **Linguistic differences** serve no social function.

Answer 61

FALSE ## Footnote Linguistic variants carry a socially symbolic function and can reflect or project desired identities.