2. Dialects of english

2. Dialects of English

Profile: Commonwealth/regional dialects, creole, international English

State: American versus British English

• english is spoken in many parts of the World as a first or second language

• countries in which English is spoken as a first language are the U. S., Canada, the UK, New Zealend, Australia, The Republic of Ireland, South Africa, Malaysia, Singapore, Zimbabwe, Jamaica and some countries of Caribbean

• the British Empire is the main reason why English spread all around the World

• english is todays Linqua Franca – Linqua Franca means a dominant international language of bussines and diplomacy

• french was Liqua Franca in 18th century and Latin before in mediaval times

• United States helped the prominence of English language today

• bicause of so wide extension (rozšíření) all around the World, English have various dialects (localised vocabilary and not standrart grammar) and is spoken by various accents (pronunciation)

• perhaps the most important split is between American and British English

American Vs. Brtitish English

• american spelling have been changed to more phonetic, losing the French origin

• pronunciation

• diferrent word stress (diferent force and strenht when we are speaking – advertisement, jogurt)

• spelling – while the British spelling of words like COLOUR, FLAVOUR, RUMOUR, LABOUR ends with our, in American English these words end with or – COLOR, FLAVOR…

• British: theatre, centre, meter Vs. American: theater, center, meter

• British: organise, apologise Vs. American: organize, apologize

• different vowel sound – I can´t /kant VS. kent/, bar /bar Vs. ber/

• different vocabulary – British: elevator, pavement, rubbish, holiday Vs. American: lift, sidewalk, trash/ garbagge, vacation

• American English is frozen in time (e. g. fall instead of autumn)

• the first dictionary of English in America was written in 1806 by Noah Webster and since that time American English does not make any progress apart of words for technological inventions

• those are general differences but across the U. S. are many dialects spoken (Hispanic English, African American English)

British dialects

• nacionalism – population massively increase (place of new beginning)

• migration from Europe enterned a melting pot (mix of cultures which leads to new one, new language)

• people are moving to west because they want to have farms

• manifest destiny – it was widely held belief of United States in the 19th century that settlers were destined to expend across North America

• new expressions from Spanish (range, colt – male horse, lasso), from native American because of moving to West (cactus, buck, long time no see), from French (hotel)

• pidgen english – chinese word for trade, they were unable to learn english (so its mix of chinese, mandarian and maybe portugese)

• canadian accent – its just differet, it contains of elements both British and American english also there is influence of French this is a product of several waves of imigration and sattlement (modern canadian english has taken significant vocabulary and spelling from the shared political and social institutions of Comonewalth countries)

• jamaican patois – they don’t use BE (was, were will be), don’t use ME (i), they use expression instead of standard words (this seems fishy still), there is discusion if its dialect or language

• altough British isles is relatively small archipelago there are various dialects

• the most striking difference is seen in Scottish English for example “Loch” wich means lake and “ken” being used for word know

• accent of British – received pronunciation, Queen´s or BBC English is spoken across the country and probably the most easily rocognized internationally – middle and upper class

• estuary english its cockney and BBC can sound posh

• london multucultural english is BBC, cockney, Jamaican, Asian

• most people in Britain speak with regional accent or dialect

• in Liverpool is a very different accent (Liverpudlian accent) which was strongly influenced by Irish immigration

• Yorkshire has some striking grammar diferrences

• London itself has various accents, most famously Cockney which originated in working class slums in East London – is rhyming

• It´s influence is today far beyond its original area and many people subconsciously or consciously adopted Cockney

• these people are reffered as Mockney (imitation of cockney)

• due to multiculturalism many accents like Jamaican, Caribbean, Indian are spoken in London