Notes the positive effects of assigning students tasks that require them to find samples of language that exemplify some general theoretical principles. (RL)

Proposes a revision and expansion of Schumann's (1978b) model of pidginization as it relates to second language learning. A distinction is made between sociocultural aspects of the pidginization cycle and the acquisitional processes of pidginization, creolization, and decreolization. (Author/AM)

Discusses two basic areas of difference between British and American English, namely the complementation of certain participles and the complementation of certain verbs. Complementation after "concerned" and "interested" is illustrated by several examples taken from speech and from newspaper advertisements. (AMH)

Gives an overview of the language situation on Ponape, with reference to social structure. (AM)

Drawing on recent work in variationist sociolinguistics, sociology of language and linguistic anthropology, focuses on new approaches to explaining gender differentiated patterns of sound change and language shift, the success or failure of planned linguistic reforms, and changes in the social evaluation of gendered speech styles. (Author/VWL)

Presents the results of a cross-linguistic study of the role of scope phenomena in untutored second language acquisition, or how adult learners in different source and target language settings acquire the means to express which part of an utterance is semantically affected by scope-bearing elements such scope particles or negation. (Author/VWL)

Analyzes inter-dialect contact at the lexical level among the four largest Hispanic groups in New York City and investigates whether each group maintained its country's regional lexicon, assimilated that of the city's largest Spanish speaking group or the most prestigious variety, or produced another, "New Yorker Spanish" lexicon. (37…

A description and analysis of domain theory is outlined and evaluated to highlight the difficulties of using domain theory as a basis for research into variability in interlanguage. (34 references) (VWL)

Examines crosslinguistic variation in "filler-gap dependencies" (wh-questions and relative clauses) from a processing perspective, and integrates research findings from psycholinguistics, language typology, and generative grammar. Numerous implicational universals and hierarchies are proposed that receive a natural explanation in terms…

Examines some intergenerational changes in subordination (conditionals and subjunctive clauses) in a Cajun French community, exploring the gradual loss of nonindicative moods and the abandonment of finite clauses in subjunctive contexts in favor of innovative nonfinite clause types via a continuum of variation. (Author/MSE)

This paper is a general study of one of varieties of English--China English and its influence on English Language Teaching (ELT) for English majors. The status of English as an International language breaks the situation in which British English or American English is the sole standard. English becomes World Englishes, taking on a plural form,…

This article discusses the Singapore English speech continuum and its development, use and relation to sociolinguistic factors. An ethnic and linguistic background is also provided, as well as a discussion of a sub-variety known as Singlish. (CLK)

The nature of the Creole-to-English continuum for Guyana is examined with two aims. The first of these is to critically assess the validity of orthodox variationist approaches as applied to similar language situations and the second is to produce the outline of an alternative approach that would work in this and other language situations as well.…

In order to help explain language variation and promote an understanding of spatial networks and diffusion patterns, data from the records of the Survey of English Dialects (SED) are analyzed with respect to geolinguistics. The data include all recorded instances of words with morpheme-final consonant clusters for all 75 interviews with older…

Many linguists and sociolinguists are interested in the relationship between ethnocentrism and language and in how the desire of ethnic groups to maintain their cultural distinctiveness influences linguistic variation. This paper suggests diverse ways in which ethnocentrism and the desire to increase social distance may be realized on several…