"our speech"

[Björn Wiemer]

Dear ALT-community,
I would like to ask about s.th. what seems to be more unusual for a 
typologist to deal with, namely: about a certain kind of ethnolects. Are 
you familiar with languages / language varieties (on a dia- or sociolectal 
level) which are named /referred to by their speakers as something like 
"our speech / language"? And, if so, does this labelling of one's own 
variety (vernacular) correlate with some special sociolinguistic value? 
E.g., it may (and will probably) be so that such a variety has low prestige 
as a means of any superregional standard (koiné), but is held in some 
esteem by those who use it every day (and whose native tongue it may be 
considered) for the purpose of communication with people who are considered 
as belonging to one's own locally very restricted community.
         This question is directed especially to those who have experience 
in field-work. I would appreciate any comments and information on this 
topic, on the basis of either first-hand experience or hints as to where to 
look in the literature. I promise then to compose a digest of information 
obtained.

With best regards,
         Bjoern Wiemer.



PD Dr. Bjoern Wiemer
Universitaet Konstanz
FB Sprachwissenschaft / Slavistik
Postfach 55 60, D 179
D- 78457 Konstanz

tel.: ++49 / 7531 / 88 -2582
fax: ++49 / 7531 / 88 -4007
e-mail: Bjoern.Wiemer at uni-konstanz.de
http://www.uni-konstanz.de/FuF/Philo/Sprachwiss/slavistik/wiemer/index.htm