- Contains “lect” from Greek dia (across/between) and legein (speak)
- A regional or social variety of a language marked by differences in pronunciation, grammar, and vocabulary.
Dialect
- Refers to the variation in language use based on context and circumstances.
- Influenced by social occasion, purpose, audience, and context.
- Characterized by specialized vocabulary, colloquialisms, jargon, and variations in tone and pace.
- Colloquialisms – Informal expressions used commonly differ from slang, created by specific groups and is more informal.
Register
Informal expressions used commonly differ from slang, created by specific groups and is more informal.
Colloquialisms
- Specialized language used by professional or occupational groups; often unclear to outsiders.
- Defined by American poet David Lehman as a way to present old ideas as new, adding superficial novelty to otherwise straightforward concepts.”
Jargon
Types of Lects
- Regional Dialect
- Sociolect
- Ethnolect
- Idiolect
- A variety specific to a geographic area (e.g., Ilocano from the Ilocos region).
Regional Dialect
- Also known as a social dialect
- A variety of language (or register) used by a socioeconomic class, profession, age group, or other social groups
Sociolect
- Spoken by a specific ethnic group.
- Example: Ebonics, the vernacular spoken by some African-Americans
Ethnolect
- The unique language use of each individual.
- For instance, a multilingual person’s idiolect may include various languages and registers
Idiolect
Pidgin
- A blend of several languages created by a multicultural population, resulting in a mutually understood language.
- Formed from words of the speakers’ mother tongues and characterized by flexible, simplified grammar.
Refers to the language that contributes the majority of the vocabulary.
Lexifier
Example of Pidgin
Conyo
o A colloquial term with a meaning distinct from its Spanish origin,
not vulgar in nature.
o Refers to speaking Taglish or English with an accent, often
associated with upper-class citizens in Filipino pop culture
Conyo
- A language formed by mixing multiple languages, where the new language becomes the native tongue for most speakers.
- Vocabulary is borrowed from various languages, while the grammar often differs significantly from the source languages.
- The grammar and syntax are fully developed, and comparable to any established language.
Creole
Creole example
Chavacano/ Chabacano (Philippine Creole Spanish)
o A Spanish-based creole spoken in parts of the Philippines, especially around Zamboanga, with over 600,000 speakers.
o Also spoken in the Zamboanga dialect in Sempornah, Malaysia.
- Spoken by people perceived as uneducated.
- Considered nonstandard, though not strictly defined in linguistics.
- Refers to pidgins, creoles, dialects, or vernaculars, but not typically jargon or slang, which are vocabulary-based.
- In colloquial use, especially in France, the term suggests class distinctions, with “patois” referring to sociolects of uneducated rural
classes, contrasting with the prestige language (like standard French)
Patois
Example of Patois
“Hi, how yuh doing?” = “Hi, how are you?”
“Mi awright man” = “I am alright man”
