English In Australia Research Articles

Migration, new‐dialect formation and sociolinguistic refunctionalisation: reallocation as an outcome of dialect contact

When mutually intelligible, but distinct dialects of the same language come into contact, linguistic accommodation occurs. When this contact is long‐term, for example in post‐colonial settings, such as the English in Australia and New Zealand (Trudgill 1986; Trudgill et al forthcoming); or as a result of, say, New Town development (Omdal 1977; Kerswill and Williams 1992, forthcoming; Britain and Simpson forthcoming); indentured labour schemes (Barz and Siegel 1988; Siegel 1997); or land reclamation (Britain 1991; Scholtmeijer 1992), the accommodation can become routinised and permanent through the process of koineisation, and a new dialect can emerge. These new dialects are characteristically less ‘complex’ and contain fewer marked or minority linguistic features than the dialects which came together in the original mix. In this paper we wish to highlight another possible outcome of koineisation, namely reallocation. Reallocation occurs where two or more variants in the dialect mix survive the levelling process but are refunctionalised, evolving new social or linguistic functions in the new dialect. We provide a range of examples of social and linguistic reallocation, from a number of speech communities around the world, the dialects of which have developed from long‐term contact and linguistic accommodation.

Shooting Baywatch

Shooting Baywatch

The Treatment of Register Variation in Court Interpreting

In the adversarial legal system, the speech behaviour of witnesses can determine the outcome of the case. Studies on the language of testimony have shown that linguistic features such as pronunciation, choice of vocabulary and grammar all contribute to forming an impression of the witness or defendant on the basis of his or her perceived level of education and social class. This paper presents the findings of a study based on analyzing eleven hours of interpreted testimony from four Local Court cases involving Spanish and English in Australia. The evidence suggests that interpreters tend to raise the level of formality when interpreting into English and lower it when interpreting into Spanish. Some suggestions are made concerning the possible motivations and implications of such practice.

Perceived ethnolinguistic vitality of Vietnamese and English in Australia: A confirmatory factor analysis

Abstract Confirmatory factor analyses were conducted to examine the goodness of fit between theoretical models proposed by ethnolinguistic vitality theory and data derived from a study of the perceived ethnolinguistic vitality of. Anglo‐Australian and Vietnamese‐Australian ethnic groups in Brisbane, Australia. This study aimed to test the viability of vitality as a uni‐dimensional construct, as well as to test the viability of the three proposed underlying factors of status, demographics and institutional support, as measured by the Subjective Vitality Questionnaire (SVQ). Results of the confirmatory factor analyses provided support for the applicability of the SVQ to both high and low vitality groups. The suitability of confirmatory factor analysis as a useful statistical method in vitality research is discussed, and the need for careful consideration in the selection of variables included in such analyses is emphasised.

Gaijin revisited

In response to reading Peter Duppenthaler's interesting article Gaijin (ET Jul 89), in which he explored the word gaijin and some of the meanings it has for Japanese, I conducted in Japanese a survey among 34 Japanese students studying English in Australia at Sydney English Language Centre.

National Policy on Languages: A Community Language Perspective

A brief historical review of language policies in Australia up to the publication of the Senate Standing Committee's Report on a National Language Policy in 1984 is given. The recommendations of the Report are discussed in the light of the ethno-cultural or core value significance that community languages have for many minority ethnic groups in Australia. Recent research findings on such languages are presented and their implications for a national language policy considered. It is postulated that the linguistic pluralism generated by the presence of community languages needs to be viewed in the context of a framework of values that includes English as the shared language for all Australians. From this perspective, it is argued that the stress that the Senate Committee Report places upon the centrality of English in Australia should be balanced by greater recognition of the linguistic rights of minorities and their implications for bilingual education. It is pointed out that both these aspects of language policy have been given prominence in recent statements and guidelines released by the Ministers of Education in Victoria and South Australia. The paper concludes by pointing to the growing interest in the teaching of languages other than English to all children in Australian schools.

Australian English or English in Australia — Linguistic Identity or Dependence in Broadcast Language

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Review article

The poem and the professing of English in Australia: the La Trobe Debate and Australian poems in perspective 1 P.K. Elkin, ed., Australian Poems in Perspective (St. Lucia: University of Queensland Press, 1978).

International Perspective: The Teaching of English in Australia

International Perspective: The Teaching of English in Australia

International Perspective: The Teaching of English in Australia

International Perspective: The Teaching of English in Australia

The Pronunciation of English in Australia

The Pronunciation of English in Australia