terminology question

Jesse Sheidlower jester at PANIX.COM
Tue Nov 2 03:41:21 UTC 2004


On Mon, Nov 01, 2004 at 08:12:31PM -0600, Steve Hollis wrote:
> Greetings,
>
> I subscribed to this list in hopes of finding out some information.  I
> am having a little trouble in some research and I believe it is because
> I don't know the correct terminology.
>
> I am looking for the correct vocabulary to describe people changing
> dialects due to changing social groups.  For example, when I go to visit
> my parents in rural Alabama, my accent deepens and I speak with a more
> rural dialect.  Is a dialect shift what I am looking for?

If you're doing this deliberately, based on circumstances, the
usual term would be "code-switching".

Jesse Sheidlower



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