Linguistic Correlates Of The Transition To Literacy In Somali: Language Adaptation In Six Press Registers

• Main Authors: Biber, Douglas, Hared, Mohamed
• Format: Book Part
• Language: unknown
• Published: Oxford University PressNew York, NY 1994
• Subjects: inuktitut
• Online Access: http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/oso/9780195083644.003.0009; https://academic.oup.com/book/chapter-pdf/52431711/isbn-9780195083644-book-part-9.pdf

Abstract Stemming from a thought-provoking essay written by Goody and Watt (1963), many studies over the last three decades have investigated the social and intellectual consequences resulting from the introduction of literacy in a society (e.g., Goody 1977, Ong 1982, Scribner and Cole 1981). Few studies, though, have actually investigated the linguistic consequences of literacy-that is, the linguistic changes that result from the introduction of written registers in a language. One such study is Reder’s (1981) analysis of spoken and written Vai (carried out as part of Scribner and Cole’s study). Since Vai has an indigeneous literacy that is transmitted apart from formal schooling, Reder could address the question of whether writing itself has any effect on the speech of literate adults. He found that there are systematic differences between speech and writing in Vai (e.g., certain medial consonants are deleted more frequently in speech, and indefinite noun phrases occur more frequently in writing), and that in their speech, literate adults use the forms associated with writing more frequently than nonliterate adults. A second study that directly addresses linguistic consequences of literacy is Kalmar’s (1985) description of Inuktitut (in Canada). He found evidence there that new linguistic forms are developing under the influence of written language; in particular, true subordinate forms (complement clauses and relative clauses) seem to be developing in the written language at present.