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Mapping Perceptions of Language Variation in Wisconsin
- Source :
- American Speech. 95:82-102
- Publication Year :
- 2020
- Publisher :
- Duke University Press, 2020.
-
Abstract
- This article investigates whether residents of central Wisconsin perceive language variation within their state and, if they do, what it looks like according to them. To achieve these aims, this study examines the perspectives of one central Wisconsin community regarding internal language differentiation within the state. It follows the perceptual dialectology paradigm, based on work by Dennis Preston, in that it studies how nonlinguists view language variation within Wisconsin. Respondents completed Preston’s draw-a-map task, which additionally asked them to label each indicated area. The drawn boundaries were digitalized using ArcGIS to create composite maps to allow for systematic comparison. The labels provided by the respondents were analyzed to see how this group of Wisconsin residents views the speech of each identified region and thus to see whether there are distinctly enregistered dialects within Wisconsin for these respondents. Findings show three distinctly perceived areas within the state: the Milwaukee area, the north of the state, and the participants’ own area, central Wisconsin. The analysis of the labels indicates that an urban-rural divide is at play for perception of the first two mentioned areas, whereas perceptioin of the latter identified area reflects the belief in a regionally located standard variety.
- Subjects :
- 050101 languages & linguistics
Linguistics and Language
History
Communication
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05 social sciences
Language and Linguistics
030507 speech-language pathology & audiology
03 medical and health sciences
Variation (linguistics)
Perception
0501 psychology and cognitive sciences
0305 other medical science
Social psychology
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Subjects
Details
- ISSN :
- 15272133 and 00031283
- Volume :
- 95
- Database :
- OpenAIRE
- Journal :
- American Speech
- Accession number :
- edsair.doi...........ea2095d9f48c3197b4e6a6800da7d36d