Newfoundland and Labrador English

Sandra Clarke author

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Edinburgh University Press

Published:16th Feb '10

Should be back in stock very soon

Newfoundland and Labrador English cover

This book is the first full-length volume to offer a comprehensive introduction to the English spoken in Britain's oldest overseas colony, and, since 1949, Canada's youngest province. Within North America, Newfoundland and Labrador English is a highly distinctive speech variety. It is known for its generally conservative nature, having retained close ties with its primary linguistic roots, the traditional speech of southwestern England and southern Ireland. It is also characterised by a high degree of regional and social variation. Over the past half century, the region has experienced substantial social, economic and cultural change. This is reflected linguistically, as younger generations of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians increasingly align themselves with 'mainland' North American norms. The volume includes: *An accessible description of the phonological, grammatical, lexical and discourse features of this variety *Treatment of regional speech variation within the province, and its historical sources *Discussion of the social underpinnings of ongoing language change *Language samples from both traditional and contemporary speakers *A survey of published work on Newfoundland and Labrador English from earlier centuries to the present day.

In summary, this book is a paramount example of its genre. Above all, it is testimony to Clarke's trademark attention to detail. In this volume she has carefully weighed a tremendous amount of material and has presented it with clarity and concision. Clarke is the expert on the sociolinguistics of English in Newfoundland and Labrador; this fact resonates on every page of the volume. -- Alexandra D'Arcy, University of Victoria English Worldwide In summary, this book is a paramount example of its genre. Above all, it is testimony to Clarke's trademark attention to detail. In this volume she has carefully weighed a tremendous amount of material and has presented it with clarity and concision. Clarke is the expert on the sociolinguistics of English in Newfoundland and Labrador; this fact resonates on every page of the volume.

ISBN: 9780748626175

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: 280g

224 pages