Sociolinguistic variation in southern French schwa

Abstract

This article examines the differing degrees to which young male and female speakers are apparently participating in a process of linguistic change currently taking place in southern French. Previous research suggests that younger females in southern France are adopting the treatment of schwa characteristic of the northern standard variety; but no study of linguistic change in southern French has yet been carried out through a direct, variationist comparison of young male and female speakers. We analyze here the linguistic contexts in which schwa is most susceptible to penetration by the northern French norm. Much research on the differential treatment by male and female speakers of variable linguistic forms has shown that young males tend to resist the introduction of supraregional linguistic forms, while females adopt them. As well as discussing new evidence on a Frenchspecific research issue, we also examine the crosslinguistic significance of the French findings. Further, we attempt to shed new light on the behavior of male and female speakers in relation to national and regional linguistic forms, and to reconsider some issues associated with the definition of standard languages.