Chapter 12. Exploring sub-register variation in Victorian newspapers
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Turo Hiltunen
Abstract
This chapter explores sub-register variation in newspaper writing in the 19th century using two corpora extracted from the British Library Newspapers database, the most comprehensive collection of national and regional newspapers from the Victorian period. As an ‘agile’ (Hundt & Mair 1999) register, newspaper writing is well suited for tracing language change and investigating the interrelationship between language and culture. Frequency analysis of select linguistic features identifies systematic patterns of variation, which can be linked to the communicative functions of sub-registers. The chapter also critically reflects on the value of the database for corpus-based register analysis, especially on how the findings and interpretations are contingent on what sampling criteria are used and how the notion of (sub-)register is operationalized.
Abstract
This chapter explores sub-register variation in newspaper writing in the 19th century using two corpora extracted from the British Library Newspapers database, the most comprehensive collection of national and regional newspapers from the Victorian period. As an ‘agile’ (Hundt & Mair 1999) register, newspaper writing is well suited for tracing language change and investigating the interrelationship between language and culture. Frequency analysis of select linguistic features identifies systematic patterns of variation, which can be linked to the communicative functions of sub-registers. The chapter also critically reflects on the value of the database for corpus-based register analysis, especially on how the findings and interpretations are contingent on what sampling criteria are used and how the notion of (sub-)register is operationalized.
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- Biographical notes ix
- Chapter 1. A corpus-based approach to register variation 1
- Chapter 2. Extending text-linguistic studies of register variation to a continuous situational space 19
- Chapter 3. How register-specific is probabilistic grammatical knowledge? 51
- Chapter 4. Theme as a proxy for register categorization 85
- Chapter 5. Between context and community 111
- Chapter 6. A register variation perspective on varieties of English 143
- Chapter 7. Register and modification in the noun phrase 179
- Chapter 8. A register approach toward pop lyrics in EFL education 209
- Chapter 9. On the importance of register in learner writing 235
- Chapter 10. Nominalizations in Early Modern English 259
- Chapter 11. Measuring informativity 291
- Chapter 12. Exploring sub-register variation in Victorian newspapers 313
- Index 339
Chapters in this book
- Prelim pages i
- Table of contents v
- Acknowledgements vii
- Biographical notes ix
- Chapter 1. A corpus-based approach to register variation 1
- Chapter 2. Extending text-linguistic studies of register variation to a continuous situational space 19
- Chapter 3. How register-specific is probabilistic grammatical knowledge? 51
- Chapter 4. Theme as a proxy for register categorization 85
- Chapter 5. Between context and community 111
- Chapter 6. A register variation perspective on varieties of English 143
- Chapter 7. Register and modification in the noun phrase 179
- Chapter 8. A register approach toward pop lyrics in EFL education 209
- Chapter 9. On the importance of register in learner writing 235
- Chapter 10. Nominalizations in Early Modern English 259
- Chapter 11. Measuring informativity 291
- Chapter 12. Exploring sub-register variation in Victorian newspapers 313
- Index 339
