Reading Working Papers in Linguistics 4 (2000) - The University of ...
Reading Working Papers in Linguistics 4 (2000) - The University of ...
Reading Working Papers in Linguistics 4 (2000) - The University of ...
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SOCIAL NETWORKS IN A RURAL SETTING<br />
language variation is not random, but rather strictly controlled, <strong>of</strong>ten by extral<strong>in</strong>guistic<br />
factors, and the specification <strong>of</strong> these factors may help us account for<br />
change (McMahon 1994: 226).<br />
<strong>The</strong> purpose <strong>of</strong> this study is to discover more about these very extra-l<strong>in</strong>guistic<br />
factors. What is <strong>in</strong>terest<strong>in</strong>g is which <strong>in</strong>dividuals are more ‘resistant’ to change<br />
than others, ignor<strong>in</strong>g age and sex grad<strong>in</strong>g. This has become the central focus<br />
<strong>of</strong> the Doric study: to expla<strong>in</strong> which social ‘mechanisms’ predict language<br />
change, at least <strong>in</strong> rural speech communities.<br />
3. Topic Selection<br />
<strong>The</strong> selection <strong>of</strong> the topic came about as a reaction to the abundance <strong>of</strong> studies<br />
<strong>of</strong> l<strong>in</strong>guistic change and the social mechanisms <strong>in</strong>volved <strong>in</strong> the diffusion <strong>of</strong><br />
change. <strong>The</strong> dialect <strong>in</strong> question, known locally as ‘the Doric’, is spoken (with<br />
slight variation) throughout the north-east <strong>of</strong> Scotland <strong>in</strong> Aberdeenshire, and<br />
here the town <strong>of</strong> Huntly has been the focus (see map below).<br />
<strong>The</strong> location may be regarded as a relic area for l<strong>in</strong>guistic purposes, as<br />
will become obvious from the data. Until recently, the speech <strong>of</strong> the area was<br />
rather conservative, and now that change is tak<strong>in</strong>g place rather rapidly, the<br />
community has been s<strong>in</strong>gled out for sociol<strong>in</strong>guistic study. Improved transport<br />
l<strong>in</strong>ks and <strong>in</strong>creased geographical mobility have also meant that local villagers<br />
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