[Lingtyp] The purpose of convergence and divergence?

Thu Jun 29 19:00:57 UTC 2023

Dear Ian – There are apparently two separate forces at work here:

  *   Priming and statistical learning (which might be the same thing): any behavior, regardless of whether we produce it ourselves or observe it in others, increases the probability of us repeating the behavior in the near future (decaying over time) all else being equal. Social factors determine who we are more likely to talk to and priming/statistical learning ensures that our and their linguistic patterns propagate in the process including innovations. Cf. Pickering & Garrod (2004); Rosenbach & Jäger (2008); Kleinschmidt et al. (2018); inter alia.
  *   Social meaning and linguistic ideologies: Linguistic variables become indexically associated with particular social groups, speakers capitalize on these associations to express their allegiance/distance to those groups. E.g., Eckert (1988); Irvine & Gal (2000); Milroy (1980); Trudgill (1972).

Best – Juergen

Eckert, P. (1988). Adolescent social structure and the spread of linguistic change. Language in society 17: 183-207.

Irvine, J. & S. Gal. (2000). Language ideology and linguistic differentiation. In P. Kroskrity, ed., Regimes of Language: Ideologies, Polities, and Identities. Santa Fe: School of American Research Press. 35-84.

Jäger, G. & A. Rosenbach. (2008). Priming and unidirectional language change. Theoretical Linguistics 34: 85–113.

Kleinschmidt, D. F., K. Weatherholtz, & T. F. Jaeger. (2018). Sociolinguistic Perception as Inference Under Uncertainty. TopiCS 10(4): 818-834.

Milroy, L. (1980). Language and social networks. Oxford: Blackwell.

Pickering, M. J., & Garrod, S. (2004). Toward a mechanistic psychology of dialogue. Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 27(2), 169–190. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0140525X04000056

Trudgill, P. (1972). Sex, covert prestige and linguistic change in the urban British English or Norwich. Language in Society 1(2): 179-195.

Juergen Bohnemeyer (He/Him)
Professor, Department of Linguistics
University at Buffalo

Office: 642 Baldy Hall, UB North Campus
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Office hours Tu/Th 3:30-4:30pm in 642 Baldy or via Zoom (Meeting ID 585 520 2411; Passcode Hoorheh)

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From: Lingtyp <lingtyp-bounces at listserv.linguistlist.org> on behalf of Ian Joo <ian_joo at nucba.ac.jp>
Date: Thursday, June 29, 2023 at 2:33 PM
To: <lingtyp at listserv.linguistlist.org>
Subject: [Lingtyp] The purpose of convergence and divergence?
Dear Typologists,

I would appreciate it if you could point to me the literature discussing the purpose of linguistic convergence and divergence.
Do they happen simply because they happen - or do they serve any purpose? Do they bring any benefit?
For example if my lect changes based on to what my neighbors are speaking, it's an interesting phenomenon, but what good does it do? Does it make me more suitable as a neighbor? Does it make it more easier for me to learn their (dominant) lect? Does it facilitate code-switching?
Same about divergence - if a group that split away from a bigger group changes their lect in a divergent manner, then what benefit does it bring? Does it solidate their group identity? Does it help to identify an in-group member?
These questions have been stuck in my head for quite a long time now and I would be grateful if you could provide me previous insights on such questions.

>From the Netherlands,
Ian
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