This article defines the linguistic situation in Puerto Rico and explains why the term "bilingualism" cannot be used to accurately describe the linguistic reality there. (Text is in Spanish.) (CLK)

Language is not fixed and uniform, but occurs in many variants, social, occupational, etc. These correspond to various roles in society. The learner must be prepared to assume such roles, and must try to achieve practical mastery of the corresponding language variant. (Text is in German.) (IFS/WGA)

Concludes that the German used in the east Belgium newspaper differs fr om standard High German. Proceeds to list these differences in the areas of lexicology, semantics and stylistics, morphology and syntax, orthography e tc. (Text is in German.) (DS)

The typical pattern of Chinese word formation is to have native material adapt to changed circumstances. The Chinese language neither borrows nor lends words, but it does occasionally borrow concepts. The larger cultural pattern in which this occurs is that the Chinese culture borrows, if necessary, but ensures that the act of borrowing does not…

A study of the nature and function of British Sign Language (BSL) as used in the British deaf community is described. The study examined two hypotheses: (1) that the notion of diglossia applies to the British deaf signing community, and (2) that the low variety of BSL will exploit the visual medium in its grammar to a greater extent than the high…

Many people want a dictionary to give them information about acceptable and unacceptable word usage. The designations "correct" and "incorrect" are not adequate guides, for two reasons: what is acceptable usage does not remain the same from one generation to the next, and some uses that are not appropriate in formal English are appropriate in…

Discusses abbreviations in contemporary French words from a sociolinguistic point of view, taking into account the morphological and syntactical consequences. (AM)

This bibliography on cross-cultural, Spanish/English linguistic borrowing consists of 185 items, virtually all of which are annotated. The bibliography is preceded by a discussion of the linguistic communities and the classification of borrowings. (KM)

A corpus of Black English (BEV) data is re-examined with exclusive attention to the "is" form of the copula. This analysis differs from previous examinations in that more constraints have been introduced, and the Cedergren/Sankoff computer program for multivariant analysis has been employed. The analytic techniques that are used allow for a finer…

A study is reported which investigated the social consequences that follow when a speaker accommodates or fails to accommodate his speech style with reference to his interlocutor. (Author/RM)

Challenges the notion that a lexical code or argot necessarily defines the parameters of a sub-cultural group, and illustrates the challenge with a discussion of language particular to the homosexual community. (CLK)

Examines various approaches to textual description, and argues that the Prague model provides the most adequate criteria for describing communicative dynamism in, for example, narrative, descriptive, or discussion style. (AM)

Discusses theories and findings concerning the status of the present perfect in American Spanish. In Spain, the present perfect is preferred to the preterite whereas the simple preterite is more frequently used in South America. The lessened usage of the past perfect parallels the narrower usage of the present perfect in Latin America. (Author/LMO)

Presents personal opinions of high school teachers that reflect the linguistic diversity, literary treasures, and regional uniqueness of North America. (NH)

This paper explores how one facet of the process by which ideology about linguistic variation originates and circulates. It analyzes an archive consisting of newspaper articles from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, about Pittsburgh speech, the earliest of which is from 1910. The articles began appearing regularly during the 1950s-60s. First, the paper…