Language and Ethnicity
Language and Ethnicity
Who’s Ethnic?
• Would you call yourself ethnic? Why? Or why not? • What are the characteristics that go to make up an ethnic identity? • How does a group’s ethnicity relate to group’ the language they speak?
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Who’s Ethnic?
1. Origins that precede or are external to the state 2. Group membership that is involuntary 3. Ancestral tradition rooted in a shared sense of peoplehood 4. Distinctive value orientations and behavior patterns 5. Influence of the group on the lives of its members 6. Group membership defined by how members define themselves and how they are defined by others
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Language and Ethnicity
What is ethnicity?
• Ethnicity is a social construction that indicates identification with a particular group which is often descended from common ancestors. Members of the group share common cultural traits (such as language, religion, and dress) and are an identifiable minority within the larger nation-state. nation4
Languages in the United States
• The MLA Language Map
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Ethnic Varieties of English
• • • • • Italian English Jewish English Irish English German English Puerto Rican English • Chicano English • American Indian English • Vietnamese English • African American English
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Language and Ethnicity
Ethnic Varieties of English
• Pennsylvania Dutch – The so-called Pennsylvania Dutch have nothing to sodo with Holland, the Netherlands, or the Dutch language. They originally came from GermanGermanspeaking areas of Europe and speak (or used to speak) a dialect of German they refer to as Deitsch. Few people speak Deitsch today, but the Deitsch. language has had an influence on the variety of English spoken by Amish, Mennonites, and other groups in Pennsylvania, Ohio, and elsewhere.
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Ethnic Varieties of English
• African American English
– AAE originated in the speech of African slaves brought to New World. Also known as African American Vernacular English (AAVE), Black English, and Ebonics....