This paper seeks to explore the extent of definite article usage variation in several varieties of English based on a classification of its usage types. An annotation scheme based on Hawkins and Prince was developed for this purpose. Using matching corpus data representing Inner Circle varieties and Outer Circle varieties, analysis was made on…

This paper reports on a comprehensive corpus-based study of regional and stylistic variation in the distribution of the English present perfect. The data represents ten English varieties of both the Inner Circle and Outer Circle, covering four major text types: conversation, news reportage, academic and fictional writing. The results are discussed…

Suggests second language writing research on English-as-a-Second-Language (ESL) learners' transfer of registers into their academic written discourse is predicated on a native speaker/nonnative speaker dichotomy. Addresses shortcomings of this strict native speaker/nonnative speaker ESL dichotomy by examining the extent to which creole-English…