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Definition:
Regional, social, or contextual differences in the ways that a particular language is used. Also called linguistic variability.
Since the rise of sociolinguistics in the 1960s, interest in linguistic variation has developed rapidly. "[W]e now realize that variation, far from being peripheral and inconsequential, is a vital part of ordinary linguistic behaviour" (Language and Linguistics: Key Concepts, 2007).
All aspects of language (including phonemes, morphemes, syntactic structures, and meanings) are subject to variation.
See also:
- Language Variety
- Lect
- Accent
- Dialect
- Dialectology
- Diglossia
- Discourse Domain
- Idiolect
- Legal English
- Regionalism
- Register
- Social Dialect
- Vernacular
Examples and Observations:
- "Linguistic variation is central to the study of language use. In fact it is impossible to study the language forms used in natural texts without being confronted with the issue of linguistic variability. Variability is inherent in human language: a single speaker will use different linguistic forms on different occasions, and different speakers of a language will express the same meanings using different forms. Most of this variation is highly systematic: speakers of a language make choices in pronunciation, morphology, word choice, and grammar depending on a number of non-linguistic factors. These factors include the speaker's purpose in communication, the relationship between speaker and hearer, the production circumstances, and various demographic affiliations that a speaker can have."
(Randi Reppen et al., Using Corpora to Explore Linguistic Variation. John Benjamins, 2002)
- Dialectal Variation
"A dialect is variation in grammar and vocabulary in addition to sound variations. For example, if one person utters the sentence 'John is a farmer' and another says the same thing except pronounces the word farmer as 'fahmuh,' then the difference is one of accent. But if one person says something like 'You should not do that' and another says 'Ya hadn't oughta do that,' then this is a dialect difference because the variation is greater. The extent of dialect differences is a continuum. Some dialects are extremely different and others less so."
(Donald G. Ellis, From Language to Communication. Routledge, 1999) - Types of Variation
"[R]egional variation is only one of many possible types of differences among speakers of the same language. For example, there are occupational dialects (the word bugs means something quite different to a computer programmer and an exterminator), sexual dialects (women are far more likely than men to call a new house adorable), and educational dialects (the more education people have, the less likely they are to use double negatives). There are dialects of age (teenagers have their own slang, and even the phonology of older speakers is likely to differ from that of young speakers in the same geographical region) and dialects of social context (we do not talk the same way to our intimate friends as we do to new acquaintances, to the paperboy, or to our employer). . . . [R]egional dialects are only one of many types of linguistic variation."
(C. M. Millward and Mary Hayes, A Biography of the English Language, 3rd ed. Wadsworth, 2012)
Also Known As: variation
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