LL-L "Language varieties" 2002.04.04 (09) [E]

[Lowlands-L]

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 L O W L A N D S - L * 04.APR.2002 (09) * ISSN 189-5582 * LCSN 96-4226
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From: Edwin Alexander <edsells at cogeco.ca>
Subject: LL-L "Language varieties" (was "Grammar") 2002.04.04 (07) [E]

At 02:55 PM 04/04/02 -0800, Randy wrote:
>Yet, when I initially read the posting quoted below, "in hospital" sounded
>odd to my Canadian ears, and in any context
>I would likely say "in the hospital".  So it may be the case that in
>Canadian English both are grammatical.  What do other Canajuns think?

The proper Canadian expression follows the British, namely "in
hospital".  However, the American usage has been creeping in over the
years, and I think one is likely to hear it as much as the older usage.
It
used to be one of the first things Americans noticed about Canadian
speech,
the other two being "eh" (also heard in other Mid Atlantic dialects,
such
as New Jersey), and "schedule" pronounced the way they do in Britain,
and
not the American "skedjule".  However, nowadays most Canadians are
switching to the American pronunciation of this word, too.

Ed Alexander
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada

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From: R. F. Hahn <sassisch at yahoo.com>
Subject: Language varieties

Randy Elzinga wrote:

> One might also point out the spelling of words like "colour", "honour",
> etc. with their British spellings, which have "color" and "honor" in US
> English spellings.  In the Oxford dictionary of Canadian English, it
> says that both the US and British spellings are acceptable in Canadian
> English, ...

This seems to be informally the case in Australia also.  I don't know if
there is a formal policy, and if there is one it probably favors British
spelling.  However, you will find American (= US) spelling interspersed
here and there, and I know individual Australians who waver between the
two.  Most of the time, you will, for instance, find the spelling
<labour>, but an Australian political party spells its name "Labor
Party" without the "u" ...  I heard only one or two Australians moaning
about encroaching "American" spelling.  Most people didn't seem to care
very much.  I have a hunch it started shifting when in the early 1970s
(or was it already in the late 1960s?) the number of Australian
schoolteachers had dwindled to such a degree (due to having been
overworked and grossly underpaid, as there American colleagues still
are) that Australia not only had to give the remaining few a hefty pay
increase and better conditions but also had to bring into the country
large numbers of teachers from other English-speaking countries,
including many from the United States.  Apparently, in the beginning
some parents complained about impending Americanization of their
precious little ones, but soon everyone slipped back into their usual
"laid-backedness."  I guess people realized that American TV was a much
more formidable Americanizing influence than where their children's
"Yank" teachers.  Apparently they didn't even as much as try to stop the
airing of corrupting children's programs like "Sesame Street" (unlike
their British counterparts).  Well, "so kaputt un so kaputt," as my
mother liked to say when she was in a fatalist mood.  When I last
checked, Australians who grew up in that era were doing just fine and
didn't seem particularly challenged, orthographically, linguistically or
otherwise.

Regards,
Reinhard/Ron

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