Variation Theory: a View from Creole Continua
Variation Theory: a View from Creole Continua DONALD WINFORD Department of Linguistics The Ohio State Uiiiversity 1712 Neil Avenue. Colunibus OH 432 10. USA dwinford@ling.ohio-state.edu ABSTRACT P~.ac.tictioner.s of tlie CI~~LI(?f 1ingui.stic ini.e,stieation ~.<ferredto as 'quantirarii~e' 01. 'in~.iarionist'sociolinguisric~.~ gener~lll? sec. tlleir objrctii,e ea heing to rrncoivr mid rrt.c.owit.fii/. tlze q3.srrriiatici~~cndet.l?ing \m-iation in speecll bellaiior. To rlzis end. rliq 1ioi.e emply,ed ci i,rlrieg c?frriotlioclsas it'e11 c1.s ancrlytic 17zodel.v aitried at incorporating i~erricrhiliginto 1ingui.rtic descriprion. Among rlze approaches o/-e Lahoi,'s 'vririahle rule' ~nodel.and Bickerton S 'inll>lic.ariond'~~ioclel. Tlie ]>re.senrpclper e~xarninesthe rrlei~arrc~c!f rllese rriode1.s of ibclrirltiotl ro Crlrihhccnl E~rglislzcreole conrinicci clnd roncludes rlzur neirlin. i.r itlrll suited to proiiding a ~clrisjkrro~]~accounr ?fthe sociolingui.sric hererogeneih. clinrcicreri.stic of s~rcllsirlrariori.~. Like orller ,s]>eec.licommunirie.~, C~irihhean ci-eole continua tncirijfest prlrrerns of sociul and .sgli.stic di'erentiation of linguistic clioices. But, urilike t\pical dialecr siruations, [he? disj~l~slzarp irltenial drfferences in linguistic repertoire.~cind relarionsliil>sivhicli e-onnor he .suh.sumed under a .single giuitimar. T~c,f¿iiluw of ~arirrrionisrrheot?. ro adequorel~.~lescrihe ílze order-1). hetrrogeiieir\. of such continuo 110s to (lo jifi,.sr, irlith the crrchitecture qTrlze proposed models, cnid .sec,orld. ivith its tendenr? fo ft-eclt .sociolinguistic plienor7lenri (1,s rliougll tlle!, c,ould hr tmlslared directly into gra/n/nri,ir.
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