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Chapter 6: Standard British English

  • Pam Peters
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Volume 5 Varieties of English
This chapter is in the book Volume 5 Varieties of English

Abstract

This chapter examines the notion of “standard British English” from several perspectives. It discusses the emergence of British English as a national standard through canonical stages, like those postulated by Haugen ([1966] 1972), and by Schneider (2007) for the evolution of postcolonial Englishes. Its status as an international standard, achieved through colonial expansion, is set in counterpoint to the rise of American English in the 19th and 20th centuries. The status of “British English” as a regional standard is then discussed with reference to recent models of “world English”, and contrasted with perceptions of it within Great Britain, in the tug-of-war between local identity and the ideology of the standard (Milroy 2000). Its multiple roles help to make British English linguistically more pluralistic than American English in the 21st century. How this will affect the place of British English in any putative “world standard English” remains to be seen.

Abstract

This chapter examines the notion of “standard British English” from several perspectives. It discusses the emergence of British English as a national standard through canonical stages, like those postulated by Haugen ([1966] 1972), and by Schneider (2007) for the evolution of postcolonial Englishes. Its status as an international standard, achieved through colonial expansion, is set in counterpoint to the rise of American English in the 19th and 20th centuries. The status of “British English” as a regional standard is then discussed with reference to recent models of “world English”, and contrasted with perceptions of it within Great Britain, in the tug-of-war between local identity and the ideology of the standard (Milroy 2000). Its multiple roles help to make British English linguistically more pluralistic than American English in the 21st century. How this will affect the place of British English in any putative “world standard English” remains to be seen.

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Table of Contents V
  3. Abbreviations VII
  4. Chapter 1: Introduction 1
  5. Chapter 2: Standard American English 9
  6. Chapter 3: Regional varieties of American English 31
  7. Chapter 4: Canadian English in real-time perspective 53
  8. Chapter 5: Re-viewing the origins and history of African American Language 80
  9. Chapter 6: Standard British English 96
  10. Chapter 7: Regional varieties of British English 121
  11. Chapter 8: Received Pronunciation 151
  12. Chapter 9: Estuary English 169
  13. Chapter 10: Cockney 187
  14. Chapter 11: Celtic and Celtic Englishes 210
  15. Chapter 12: Scots 231
  16. Chapter 13: English in Ireland 244
  17. Chapter 14: English in Wales 265
  18. Chapter 15: Australian/New Zealand English 289
  19. Chapter 16: English in India 311
  20. Chapter 17: English in Africa – a diachronic typology 330
  21. Chapter 18: Diffusion 349
  22. Chapter 19: Supraregionalization 365
  23. Chapter 20: Pidgins and creoles 385
  24. Index 403
https://doi.org/10.1515/9783110525045-006

Chapters in this book

  1. Frontmatter I
  2. Table of Contents V
  3. Abbreviations VII
  4. Chapter 1: Introduction 1
  5. Chapter 2: Standard American English 9
  6. Chapter 3: Regional varieties of American English 31
  7. Chapter 4: Canadian English in real-time perspective 53
  8. Chapter 5: Re-viewing the origins and history of African American Language 80
  9. Chapter 6: Standard British English 96
  10. Chapter 7: Regional varieties of British English 121
  11. Chapter 8: Received Pronunciation 151
  12. Chapter 9: Estuary English 169
  13. Chapter 10: Cockney 187
  14. Chapter 11: Celtic and Celtic Englishes 210
  15. Chapter 12: Scots 231
  16. Chapter 13: English in Ireland 244
  17. Chapter 14: English in Wales 265
  18. Chapter 15: Australian/New Zealand English 289
  19. Chapter 16: English in India 311
  20. Chapter 17: English in Africa – a diachronic typology 330
  21. Chapter 18: Diffusion 349
  22. Chapter 19: Supraregionalization 365
  23. Chapter 20: Pidgins and creoles 385
  24. Index 403
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