Development of AAE: Introduction

Divergence Hypothesis – What is it?

Hypothesis that AAVE may be becoming more distinct from other vernacular varieties of English. Why is there controversy?

Divergence Hypothesis – What is it? Hypothesis that AAVE may be becoming more distinct from other vernacular varieties of English. Why is there controversy? –Despite quantity of publication on AAVE, there are persistent problems with the reliability of sources and analysis, and previous publications have not been able to establish direction of change

What is Linguistic Reconstruction?

The postulation of a version of a language that existed before any reliable records were made to document its features. –Two methods: Internal Reconstruction and Comparative Method What issues are important in reconstructing AAVE?

What is Linguistic Reconstruction? The postulation of a version of a language that existed before any reliable records were made to document its features. –Two methods: Internal Reconstruction and Comparative Method What issues are important in reconstructing AAVE? –Effect of regional dialects –Role of substratal influence from earlier language contact situations –Nature of intracommunity variation in earlier AAVE –Trajectory of change

What data do we have on earlier AAVE?

Newly found audio recordings and written documentation of earlier AAVE indicate that AAVE was not as distinct from Eur-Am English as previously thought –BUT these materials are sparse, of poor quality, and sometimes questionable authorship Af-Am emigres to Dominican Republic and Nova Scotia live in isolated enclaves and their speech is very similar to earlier Eur-Am English –BUT these emigres were not representative

What will this book contribute to this discussion?

Detailed analysis of a biracial enclave linguistic community in a remote location – Hyde County, North Carolina

What are advantages of Hyde Co?

Age and continuity Isolation Biracial demographics

What are advantages of Hyde Co? Age and continuity –Almost 300 yr-old community, among oldest biracial communities in NC. –Europeans arrived around 1700, Africans in early 1700s. –Many current residents are descendants of original settlers.

What are advantages of Hyde Co? Isolation –Remote location –85% marshland, previously navigable only by boat –Limited in-migration into Hyde Co

What are advantages of Hyde Co? Biracial demographics –Continuously biracial with stable percentages of Eur-Am & Af-Am –Neither race heavily predominates –Participants from a range of age groups represent persons born before WWII and attended segregated schools, as well as persons born later who attended integrated schools

What is a corpus? A body of linguistic data that was spontaneously produced by native speakers for purposes of communication, which has been gathered and made available for linguistic analysis –Does not elicit specific linguistic features –May be written or spoken Example: British National Corpus

What is the Hyde Co corpus?

Since lifetime residents (92 Af- Ams & 52 Eur-Ams) with birthdates ranging from 1890s to 1990s were interviewed 60-90mins each, mostly in 3- way conversations Interviewees selected according to social networks & family trees Contents of interviews are casual conversations and genealogical inquiries

What types of linguistic features were analyzed?

Morphosyntax – What’s this? Vowels Consonants Intonation (Prosody)

What types of linguistic features were analyzed? Morphosyntax – forms of words and how they are combined –Was/weren’t leveling –Copula is/are absence –Third person –s marking Vowels Consonants Intonation (Prosody)

Is AAVE diverging from Eur-Am vernaculars?

YES & NO – recent studies have suggested that AAVE distinctiveness is a 20 th century phenomenon, but Wolfram & Thomas find these claims exaggerated. More significant: There is the development of a supraregional AAVE norm that entails the abandonment of or resistance to regional norms.