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Language change theories - Coggle Diagram
Language change theories
Baileys wave model
Bailey suggests that the closer a speaker is to thge start of a change in language (geoigraphiclly/socially) the more likely it is that they take on that change and vice versa. eg social media phrases such as 'lock in'.
Chen's S curve model
Chen's s curve model proposes that any change starts in a small way, where there is still use of both old and new word forms, and over time the new form outgrows the old. After this point the change spreads rapidly, and then evens out and slows
Aitchinson - overlapping change features. Aithchinson suggests that large scale changes can be smaller inter related changes. this also shows how old and new forms co exist until old forms are eventually lost. eg shakespearian 'thinkst thou' and 'dost thou think'.
Aitchinson's PIDC model
Potential - A need for a new word/language feature
Implementation - A new word or feature is first used
Diffusion - The change spreads throughout the population
Codification - The change is officially accepted
Eg. 'to text' potential - mobile phones, implementation - grammatical shift from text (noun) to text (verb), diffusion - mobile phones become more common, codification - widely accepted and added to dictionaries
This theory presents change as a natural structured process
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Aitchinson's metaphors
Damp spoon syndrome - Suggests that language change is caused by sloppiness or laziness, the kind of laziness like leaving a damp spoon in a sugar bowl.
Criticism - It is hard to find evidence for this view eg the glottal stop at the end of words such as 'street' is often seen as lazy, however it has rules - it is impossible to have a glottal stop at the start of a word.
Crumbling castle objection - Views English language as a beautiful old building which needs to be preserved.
Criticism - There is no indication of when the golden age of language was reached. this view also proposes a rigid system is better than a flexible one, but a flexible system is needed to cope with changing social circumstances.
Infectious disease objection - This view suggests that we 'catch' change like a disease from those around us.
Criticism - Social contact is a driving force for language change, but people pick up chase because they want to (eg. identity, group belonging), so it shouldn't be seen as a force we are powerless to resist.
Aitchinson's metaphors reflect the anxieties certain people have about language change, which link to the idea of linguistic gatekeeping which is the idea that language should be controlled and only certain changes should be allowed in.
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