New book: Slavic linguistics

[LINCOM EUROPA]

----------------------------Original message----------------------------
REGISTER VARIATION AND LANGUAGE STANDARDS IN CZECH
NEIL BERMEL, Sheffield University

This 35-45,000-word monograph, accessible to both Slavists and general
linguists, addresses "larger questions" raised by Czech register/code
variation in a cross-linguistic perspective.
        Czech can be described as a quasi-diglossic language situation, with a
standard language that has no native speakers, and an interdialect that
has no currency as a communicative standard.  The author reviews
research surrounding the "standard Czech - common Czech" divide, as well
as current work on language varieties, and concludes that both schools
promote descriptions favoring separate codes that interact in defined
manners.
The study makes use of an original 30,000-word coded corpus to examine a
problematic area along the varietal faultline -- dialogue in
belletristic texts -- and suggests that, contrary to received wisdom,
the strict lines drawn between Czech's "standard" and "common" varieties
are no longer as relevant as they were.  Data from contemporary Czech
testifies instead to the gradual crumbling of diglossia and the
development of these two varieties into a single code with graduated
features showing formality and informality and having some discourse
functions.  The received view of Czech -- and of language varieties
overall -- is shown in this instance to hinder our understanding, rather
than facilitating it.
This research supports other recent reevaluations of the received view
in language contact and bilingualism studies, and shows how they can be
applied to quasi-diglossic situations like the Czech one.

ISBN 3 89586 612 1.
LINCOM Studies in Slavic Linguistics 13.
Ca. 200pp. EUR 55.22 / USD 68 / DM 108 / #40.

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/ expiry date. Prices in this information include shipment worldwide by
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discounts offered to individual subscribers.

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Dorothy Disterheft schrieb:
>
> Dear Dr. Lueders,
> HISTLING has about 520 subscribers. And please do send us annoucements
> on any topic (conferences, workshops, jobs, etc.) as long as they have
> some connection (even slight) to historical linguistics.
>
> Best,
>
> Dorothy