Notes that few phonemes exhibit greater variance in the membership of phonemes that make up an equivalency class than the phoneme represented by /r/. Points out that the relationship between the auditory features of the speech signal and phonetic classification provides insight into a language's encoding and decoding system. (23 references)…

"Javanais" refers to a French linguistic variation, often viewed as slang, in which a word's original form is masked through affixation or displacement of sounds and syllables. Its history and linguistic theory are reviewed. Three types of javanais (verlan, infixing javanais, largonji des louchebems) are compared, and implications for…

Discusses tensions resulting from dichotomies existing between "smaller" languages and those of wider communications. It is suggested that there are four recurring approaches for dealing with this tension: communicative language shift, defense of the more threatened variety, "localization" of the stronger language (for example,…

Offers evidence that contradicts the idea of a relatively homogeneous North American dialect area in which vowel systems remain fairly stable. The article examines back vowel fronting in Canadian English and its relationship to the shift affecting the front lax vowels, as well as to the general principles of vowel chain shifting. (29 references)…

Focuses on factors governing the choice of relative markers in restrictive relative clauses with relativized subjects from the 16th century to the present, using spoken and written data and including non-standard and regional varieties. The study addresses claims by Romaine (1982) that the "wh"-strategy has not affected spoken English,…

Examines variation in the quotative system of a group of 23 preadolescents. Explores how variation in reported speech is used particularly by female speakers in their creation of performed narratives, which communicate affective involvement with retold events, and simultaneously seek the engagement of addressees who are invited by way of…

Presents a study of mixed language use within the frame of interactional sociolinguistics by looking at how adolescents of Turkish background living in Germany have developed their own patterns of bilingualism. Analyzes transcripts of Turkish-German mixed speech and shows that the switching and mixing oscillates between local sequential functions…

Analyzes conversation 501 from the Koge (Denmark) project for the four adolescents speakers' use of five to six different language varieties. Code choice patterns are shown to function in a range of ways. Suggests the multifaceted behavior of the Turkish-Danish adolescents is languaging, which is in principle what other human beings do.…

This study presents evidence collected from basilectal texts that the natural semantic metalanguage (NSM) mental predicates "think, know, want, feel, say, see, hear" have clear lexical equivalents in Hawaii Creole English (HCE), and that these HCE predicates occur, with minor qualification, in the syntactic configurations predicted by…

A British study of the experiences of bilingual students and monolingual English speakers looked at issues related to awareness of language variation and language learning strategies. It was concluded that the National Curriculum has serious limitations regarding equal opportunities and quality of education for bilingual students. (SK)

Research on social markedness and second language pronunciation is reviewed, and some general conclusions are drawn. A number of issues arising from this research are identified and inherent difficulties in forming hypotheses, performing analyses, and interpreting data are discussed. (30 references) (Author/MSE)

Examines how the term "Middle Arabic" has been used insufficiently, inappropriately, and in inconsistent manners, and also defines Middle Arabic by historical period and linguistic level. An analysis is made of Middle Arabic's multiglossic complexity and the unique structure of Middle Arabic compared to Old and Modern Arabic. (23 references) (GLR)

An examination of native and non-native speakers'use of zero anaphora in English production found a similar general discourse function across the groups, although the English was frequently ungrammatical by prescriptive standards. There were important quantitative and structural differences between speaker groups in use of the device. (Author/CB)

Investigates the use of preposition and subject with the infinitive, a construction not usually mentioned in Spanish grammar books. This construction is as commonplace in some regions as it is unacceptable in others, a situation giving rise to controversy. Some linguists believe that this construction is more prevalent among less-educated people.…

Although Spanish mood has been taught through a framework of categorical rules, recently attempts have been made to clarify the exact nature of certain rules and to better understand the patterns of rule variability that exist outside the classroom. This article examines the intersection of mood with notions such as habituality, general truths,…