Overview

This groundbreaking collection explores the beliefs and approaches to the history of English that do not make it into standard textbooks. Orthodox histories have presented a tunnel version of the history of the English language which is sociologically inadequate. In this book a range of leading international scholars show how this focus on standard English dialect is to the detriment of those which are non-standard or from other areas of the world. Presents a fuller and richer picture of the complexity of the history of English, and explains why English is the diverse world language it is today.

Full Product Details

Author:   Peter Trudgill ,  Richard J. Watts
Publisher:   Taylor & Francis Ltd
Imprint:   Routledge
Dimensions:   Width: 15.60cm , Height: 1.90cm , Length: 23.40cm
Weight:   0.566kg
ISBN:  

9780415233569

ISBN 10:   0415233569
Pages:   294
Publication Date:   20 December 2001
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Professional and scholarly ,  Tertiary & Higher Education ,  Professional & Vocational
Format:   Hardback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   In Print  
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Table of Contents

Introduction: in the year 2525, Prologue 1 The legitimate language: giving a history to English PART I The history of non-standard varieties of English 2 The history of the lesser-known varieties of English 3 ‘North of Watford gap’: a cultural history of Northern English (from 1700) 4 The history of southern hemisphere Englishes 5 ‘Deformed in the dialects’: an alternative history of non-standard English 6 Building a new English dialect: South African Indian English and the history of Englishes 7 The story of good and bad English in the United States PART II The history of communicative and pragmatic aspects of English 8 From polite language to educated language: the re-emergence of an ideology 9 Eloquence and elegance: ideals of communicative competence in spoken English 10 Women’s writings as evidence for linguistic continuity and change in Early Modern English 11 Discourse markers in Early Modern English 12 Broadcasting the nonstandard message

Reviews

Not English, but Englishes...Not parts of speech, but strategies of discourse...The last decade introduced us to these alternative perspectives. This volume begins the task of historicising them. It is a pioneering and provocative collection. <br>-Sylvia Adamson, University of Manchester, UK <br>

'This book is quite innovative. It seeks to promulgate, and rightly so, the history of nonstandard varieties of English as contributing to our overall knowledge of the development of the language ... I can recommend this publication for those interested in English as well as Englishes.' - Alan S. Kaye, Multilingua 'This volume is an excellent introduction to the issues ... it is extremely commendable that all authors have worked very hard to make their contributions readable to an audience which inevitably has little prior knowledge of the area ...' - International Journal of Applied Linguistics 'This book is quite innovative. It seeks to promulgate, and rightly so, the history of nonstandard varieties of English as contributing to our overall knowledge of the development of the language ... I can recommend this publication for those interested in English as well as Englishes.' - Alan S. Kaye, Multilingua

'This book is quite innovative. It seeks to promulgate, and rightly so, the history of nonstandard varieties of English as contributing to our overall knowledge of the development of the language ... I can recommend this publication for those interested in English as well as Englishes.' - Alan S. Kaye, Multilingua

Author Information

Richard Watts is Professor of English Linguistics at the University of Berne, Switzerland. Peter Trudgill is Professor of English Linguistics at the University of Fribourg in Switzerland.

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