Codes

Sociolinguistics

Yesicha Ryona A1B011041

The difficulty of defining language, culture, sociolinguistics, dialect, creole, pidgin, now complicated by the word code. According to our literature, the term code is useful because it is

neutral.

High (H) and Low (L) varieties of a language are distinct, kept separate, and used in different situations. All children learn the L variety, but may not learn the H viariety.

Diglossia A diglossic situation exists in a society when it has two distinct codes which show clear functional separation; that is, one code is employed in one set of circumstances and the other in an entirely different set.

Diglossia
Ferguson (1959, p. 336) has dened diglossia as follows:

DIGLOSSIA is a relatively stable language situation in which, in addition to the primary dialects of the language (which may include a standard or regional standards), there is a very divergent, highly codied (often grammatically more complex) superposed variety, the vehicle of a large and respected body of written literature, either of an earlier period or in another speech community, which is learned largely by formal education and is used for most written and formal spoken purposes but is not used by any sector of the community for ordinary conversation.

Low variety Swiss German

En Schwyzer isch er zwaar nie woorde, weder en papiirige na ine im Hrz ine; und eebigs hd mer syner Spraach aagm2rkt, das er nd daa uufgwachsen ischt. Nd nu s Muul hd Usslnder verraate, au syni Mdteli. Er hd lieber mit syne ttsche Landslte weder mit de Yhimische vercheert, und ischt Mitgliid und Zaalmischter von irem Verin gsy.

High variety Standard German

Ein Schweizer ist er zwar nie geworden, weder auf dem Papier noch im Herzen; und man hat es seine Sprache angemerkt, dass er nicht dort aufgewachsen ist. Nicht nur die Sprache hat den Auslnder verraten, sondern auch seine Gewohnheiten. Er hat lieber mit seinen deutschen Landsleuten als mit den Einheimischen verkehrt, und ist Mitglied und Zahlmeister ihres Vereins gewesen.

English

He never actually became Swiss, neither on paper nor in his heart; and you could tell from his language that he had not grown up there. It was not only his language that showed that he was a foreigner his way of life showed it too. He preferred to associate with his German compatriots rather than with the natives, and was a member and the treasurer of their society.

Monolingualism
Monolingualism, that is, the ability to use only one language, is such a widely accepted norm in so many parts of the Western world that it is often assumed to be a world-wide phenomenon, to the extent that bilingual and multilingual individuals may appear to be unusual.

Indeed, we often have mixed feelings when we discover that someone we meet is uent in several languages: perhaps a mixture of admiration and envy but also, occasionally, a feeling of superiority in that many such people are not native to the culture in which we function. Such people are likely to be immigrants, visitors, or children of mixed marriages and in that respect marked in some way, and such marking is not always regarded favorably.

Bilingualism
Individual bilingualism two native languages in the mind

Fishman: a psycholinguistic phenomenon

Societal bilingualism A society in which two languages are used but where relatively few individuals are bilingual Fishman: a sociolinguistic phenomenon Stable bilingualism
persistent bilingualism in a society over several generations Language evolution: Language shift Diglossia

BENEFITS OF BILINGUALISM
(California Department of Education, Language Policy and Leadership Office)

Enhanced academic and linguistic competence in two languages Development of skills in collaboration & cooperation Appreciation of other cultures and languages Cognitive advantages Increased job opportunities

Expanded travel experiences

Lower high school drop out rates Higher interest in attending colleges and universities

Multilingualism
Multilinguals develop competence in each of the codes to the extent that they need it and for the contexts in which each of the languages is used. Context determines language choice. In a society in which more than one language (or variety) is used you must nd out who uses what, when, and for what purpose if you are to be socially competent. Your language choices are part of the social identity you claim for yourself.

Multilingualism
Multilingualism is a norm in this community. It results from the pattern of marriage and the living arrangements consequent to marriage. Communities are multilingual and no effort is made to suppress the variety of languages that are spoken. It is actually seen as a source of strength, for it enables the speakers of the various linguistic communities to maintain contact with one another and provides a source for suitable marriage partners for those who seek them.

Code Switching
There can also be a switch of codes within a simple utterance without any associated topic change. Pfaff (1979) provides the following examples of this kind of code-switching (sometimes called intra-sentential code-switching, or code-mixing) among SpanishEnglish bilinguals:

Code Switching
No van a bring it up in the meeting. They are not going to bring it up in the meeting. Todos los Mexicanos were riled up. All the Mexicans were riled up. Estaba training para pelear. He was training to ght. Some dudes, la onda is to ght y jambar. Some dudes, the in thing is to ght and steal.