Ferguson introduced the english equivalent diglossia in 1959, using the word as the title of an article. Charles albert ferguson july 6, 1921 september 2, 1998 was an american linguist who taught at stanford university. According to ferguson 1959, arabic is a diglossic language where two varieties are used within the same speech community. The original description of diglossia according to ferguson 1959 is. Diglossia describes a society where two forms of the same language coexist, each one having different domains of use. Ferguson was also the leader of a team of linguists in ethiopia. Word 15, 325340 micklesen 1978 czech sociolinguistic problems. Various scholars have proposed terminologies for a taxonomy of diglossias. Pdf an article about fergusons nine criteria of diglossia based on his article 1959 in which he explained them thoroughly.
Ferguson s concept of diglossia is examined with a view to dedetermining its applicability to creole continua. The term is inseparably linked with charles ferguson and his article of 1959, in which diglossia was officially introduced into sociolinguistic literature. In order to demonstrate how and to what extent the phenomenon of diglossia in arabicspeaking countries contributes not only to illiteracy, but also to poor scholastic attainment of arab students, it is important to first explain what we mean by illiteracy and diglossia. The term diglossia was first introduced in english by charles a. His conceptualization of diglossia describes a society with more than one prevalent language or the high variety, which pertains to the language used in literature, newspapers, and other social institutions. The toefl test was created under his leadership at the center for applied linguistics in washington, dc. Diglossia language registers and types of diglossia. Diglossia is a relatively stable language situation in which, in addition to the primary linguistics. Word, an academic journal of linguistics issued four times a year, is the publication of the international linguistic association ila. Later on, joshua fishman gave a modification of fergusons 1959. But ferguson was not so much concerned with likening the linguistic situations in those 1 charles a. Modelled on the french diglossie, the original concept of diglossia goes back to charles ferguson 1959.
Diglossia is a relatively stable language situation in which, in addition to the primary dialects of the language which may include a standard or regional standards, there is a very divergent, highly codified often grammatically more complex superposed variety, the. The effect of diglossia on arabic language teaching and. Diction versus diglossia diglossia is more involved than just switching between levels of diction in the same language, such as going from slang or texting shortcuts to writing up a formal paper for a class or report for a business. Diglossia in arabic tv stations middlebury college.
Bilingualism and diglossia in spain multilingualism. In 1947, ferguson accepted a position at the newly. Post1959 research on diglossia has concentrated on a number of variables and important questions. As in haitian creole or swiss german, two or more varieties of sign language are used by the same speakers under different conditionsthese are here called high h. Arabic language teaching and learning in higher education situations in. In 1964, fishman had just completed his pioneering study of language loyalty.
Ferguson 1959, a coherent and generally accepted theory of diglossia remains to be formulated. Ferguson word, 1959 created english word diglossia from french diglossie no english word before this to separate diglossia from standard bilingualism fergusons characteristic features of diglossia function. Diglossia or triglossia in morocco reality and facts by ab. Literacy development in situations of diglossia and. The two approaches differ in that platt argues that in the case of. The concept of diglossia was developed by ferguson 1959. A discussion on diglossia in a sociolinguistics class slideshare uses cookies to improve functionality and performance, and to provide you with relevant advertising. Ferguson s concept of diglossia 1959, 1964 is used in analyzing sign language. In baghdad, the christian arabs speak a christian arabic dialect when talking among themselves. The creation of a typology of diglossia is not a simple task as it must be more than just a gathering of case studies of language in society, meaning a theory of language in society. Ferguson s contributions, however, go far beyond the ongo. Founded in 1943 as the linguistic circle of new york, the ila became one of the main sources of new ideas in american linguistics at that time. One variety is usually a nonstandard form, such as a dialect, which is grammatically simple and mainly used in informal domains such as at home, between family and friends.
At the 1962 lsa linguistic institute, ferguson taught a course with the simple title sociolinguistics and repeated it the following summer and in the 1965 academic year at georgetown university. A description of diglossia essay example graduateway. Ferguson in many speech communities two or more varieties of the same language are used by some speakers under different conditions. An american scientist called charles ferguson introduced this term into english in 1959. In his last major statement on the subject, ferguson himself was moved to comment on how research over the course of the preceding three decades had failed to adopt a. Church sermon, political speech, news broadcast low language l e. The middle way david deterding introduction the concept of diglossia was developed by ferguson 1959. The concept of diglossia in caribbean creole situations. Ferguson, who in his 1959 eponymouslytitled seminal article, diglossia, considered the characteristics of bidialectal as opposed to bilingual situations that.
Diglossia is more involved than just switching between levels of diction in the same language, such as going from slang or texting shortcuts to writing up a formal paper for a class or. In his last major statement on the subject, ferguson himself was moved to comment on how research over the course of the preceding three decades had failed to adopt a comparative or typological approach to the study of diglossia, having been pre. In applying the phonological analysis of diglossia to sign language. Ferguson 1959, a coherent and generally accepted theory of diglossia remains to be. Clearly, taking fergusons 1959 descriptions of haitian creole usage relative to french as the. If you continue browsing the site, you agree to the use of cookies on this website. Diglossia with and without bilingualism ferguson sdefinition 1959. Diglossia, as a consequence, describes a number of sociolinguistic situations, from stylistic differences within one language or the use of separate dialects ferguson s standardwithdialects distinction to the use of related or unrelated. Diglossia in the arab world scientific research publishing.
Term diglossia coined by charles ferguson in 1959 in the journal ppt presentation summary. Diglossia and other topics in new testament linguistics. Definition and examples of diglossia sociolinguistics. He was one of the founders of sociolinguistics and is best known for his work on diglossia.
In many speech communities two or more varieties of the same language2. It describes a situation where two languages or language varieties occur side by side in a community, and each has a clear range of functions. Perhaps the most familiar example is the standard language and regional dialect as used, say, in italian or persian, where many speakers speak their local dialect at home. According to ferguson 1959, diglossia is a different situation from one in which there are merely different dialects within a. Term diglossia coined by charles ferguson in 1959 in the journal word. Post 1959 research on diglossia has concentrated on a number of variables and important questions. Diglossia has been the subject of attention of many linguists and philologists dealing with arabic for many decades. The characteristics of classic instances of diglossia are subdivided into sociocultural and linguistic features, and these in turn are used as a basis for determining the extent to which different types of community might be fruitfully described as.
Ferguson diglossia 1 in many speech communities two or more varieties of the same language2 are used by some speakers under different conditions. The term diglossia from the greek for speaking two languages was first used in english by linguist charles ferguson in 1959. The classic paper on diglossia ferguson, 1959 appeared there. Perhaps the most familiar example is the standard language and regional dialect as used, say, in italian or persian, where many speakers speak their local dialect at home or.
Platts 1975 approach to sge variation is that of a continuum, reminiscent of postcreole ones found, for instance, in jamaica decamp 1971. According to ferguson 1959, the hvariety and the lvariety have to be two divergent forms of the same language which are above the level of a standardwithdialects distinction, but which stay below the level of two separate related or. Pdf on dec 29, 2018, sanjida abedin rafha and others published. Diglossia is a relatively stable language situation in which, in addition to the primary dialects of the language which may include a standard or regional standards, there is a very divergent, highly codified often grammatically more complex superposed variety, the vehicle of a large and respected body of written literature, either of an earlier period or in another speech community, which is learned largely by. Ferguson 1959 also defines diglossia as a relatively stable language situation in which, in addition to the primary dialects of the language which may include a standard or regional standards, there is a very divergent, highly codified often. Ahmed al fattah the effect of diglossia on arabic language. The main point of discussion is the validity of the defining cases of diglossia selected. He is credited to be the first linguist who used the specific term, diglossia in his article. Diglossia and other topics in new testament linguistics stanley e.
550 874 464 711 831 1015 835 149 215 925 134 229 964 229 377 469 383 567 638 948 1082 377 455 540 1237 144 361 1035 182 674 1363 754 714 76 152 1044 656 645 749 447 1471 400 267 430 357 1138 472