230224 Sociophonetics of North America (S) (SoSe 2022)

Sociophonetics is a research field that combines approaches and methods from sociolinguistics and phonetics & phonology. Sociophonetic studies are, for example, interested in the influence of social factors like age, gender, or social class on the phonetics & phonology of speakers.
In this seminar, we will discuss a number of interesting investigations that can shed light on the relation between social factors and speech production and perception with a focus on the pronunciation of North American Englishes and/or speakers from North America. Students will get to know important terminology, theoretical concepts and methodologies for the investigation of linguistic variation that focuses on pronunciation. Also, students will have the opportunity to conduct their own phonetic analyses with phonetic software.

Requirements for participation, required level

Having completed the courses of the BM3 module (or another introduction to phonetics & phonology as well as sociolinguistics) is highly recommended!

Bibliography

e.g.

Labov, W., Ash, S. & Boberg, C. (2008). The Atlas of North American English. Phonetics, Phonology and Sound Change. Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter Mouton.
Lippi-Green, R. (2012). English with an Accent: Language, Ideology, and Discrimination in the United States. Second Edition. London: Routledge.
Schneider, E. (Ed.) (2008). Varieties of English Vol. 2: The Americas and the Caribbean. Berlin, Boston: De Gruyter Mouton.
Thomas, E. R. (2010). Sociophonetics: An Introduction. Basingstoke: Palgrave.