Scribd
Upload
4K views

Dialect and Its Types

A dialect is a variety of a language that has distinctive features of vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation that distinguish it from other varieties of the same language. Dialects are generally divided into two types: regional dialects and social dialects. Regional dialects develop as a result of geographical barriers that prevent communication between different regions, allowing changes to occur independently. Social dialects are differentiated based on social factors like class and education level. The study of dialects led to the creation of dialectology as a separate field focused on studying geographical distribution and differences between dialects.

Uploaded by

Al Haram
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
4K views

Dialect and Its Types

A dialect is a variety of a language that has distinctive features of vocabulary, grammar, and pronunciation that distinguish it from other varieties of the same language. Dialects are generally divided into two types: regional dialects and social dialects. Regional dialects develop as a result of geographical barriers that prevent communication between different regions, allowing changes to occur independently. Social dialects are differentiated based on social factors like class and education level. The study of dialects led to the creation of dialectology as a separate field focused on studying geographical distribution and differences between dialects.

Uploaded by

Al Haram
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 2

Dialect

A dialect is a variety of a spoken language having specific linguistic features of vocabulary,


grammar, and pronunciation that distinguish it from other varieties of the same language. The
word comes from the Ancient Greek dialektos “conversation, language, local speech,” which is
derived from dialegesthai “to converse, talk.” The term is applied most often to regional speech
patterns, but a dialect may also be defined by other factors, such as social class. Thus, from a
broader perspective, a dialect is a distinct form of a language that is characteristic of a particular
region or a particular social class or profession. From this point of view dialects are generally
divided into two types:

Regional dialects
The most extensive type of dialectal differentiation is geographic or regional. Geographically,
dialects are the result of settlement history. Such dialects develop primarily as a result of limited
communication between different parts of a community due to various geographical barriers,
such as mountain ranges and rivers. Under such circumstances, changes that take place in the
language of one part of the community do not spread elsewhere. Thus, in communities between
which communication is difficult, differences in dialect can develop. Such distinctive varieties are
usually called regional dialects of the language.
Linguists observed that language keeps on changing places to places. And at one moment such
situation occurs when people don’t find any similarity with the main language. This is
called dialect continuum.

The study of linguistic geography shows that the distribution of dialects is strongly associated
with the topography of the landscape. The study of regional dialect is a vast issue, as such
linguists found it largely difficult to study it only within sociolinguistics. They felt that a separate
field is needed. So they created a separate discipline named dialectology. They created a map
to show the geographical distribution of language varieties. They tried to show the difference
among dialects with a boundary. This boundary is known as isogloss.

Social dialects
Another important axis of differentiation is that of social strata. In many localities, dialectal
differences are connected with social classes, educational levels, or both. More highly educated
speakers and, often, those belonging to a higher social class tend to use more features
belonging to the standard language, whereas the original dialect of the region is better preserved
in the speech of the lower and less educated classes. In large urban centres, innovations
unknown in the former dialect of the region frequently develop. Thus, in cities the social
stratification of dialects is especially relevant and far-reaching, whereas in rural areas, with a
conservative way of life, the traditional geographic dialectal differentiation prevails. It should be
noted that social dialects are studied by the sociologists rather than the sociolinguists.

You might also like