I’ve had a few blog comments lately addressing how English is used or taught differently, and thought it would be a useful exercise to produce an article covering how we discuss varieties of a language. Some of the most active articles I have are ones where people offer different opinions on certain rules, inevitable as English has spread to so many different areas, so it’s definitely an area of interest.
I hope to look into specific different types of English in more detail eventually, but there are some great resources introducing language variations online already, so for now I’ve prepared a list of terms and examples with some links to where you can learn more.
Defining Language Variations
There are a handful of ways linguists categorise varieties of language; some definitions refer to word usage and rules, or merely to vocabulary, while others refer to the way language adapts culturally, in broader strokes. All of these terms, however, can cover variations in grammar, vocabulary and pronunciation. Below we’ll look at the following variety terms:
- Standard / Polite / Formal
- Colloquial / Informal
- Regional Dialect
- Social Dialect
- Lingua Franca
- Pidgin
- Creole
- Vernacular
- Patois
- Lingo
- Jargon
- Slang
Standard / Polite / Formal
We use the terms standard, polite and formal to refer to language that sticks to the rules and is essentially presented as the ‘proper’ form of English. In practice, this is not necessarily practical English, but rather the sort of English we’d expect to see in formal writing or polite situations. Standard English is what is generally taught where possible, but alternative forms may be taught in communities with developed variations.
Colloquial / Informal
Colloquial language is effectively anything that is not formal, often described as ‘spoken’ language. It is informal as the aim is to communicate rather than stick rigidly to rules, so it is where we see contractions and idiomatic language being used. There are countless varieties of this, and it is a blanket term that really covers all of the other terms below.
Regional Dialect
Regional dialects are varieties of language that emerge based on regionally specific use. There are many examples within the UK alone, from the broad differences between the English spoken in the North and South to the more specific, localised dialects, such as those spoken in certain cities, some of which have their own names (with Scouse from Liverpool, Geordie in Newcastle and Brummie in Birmingham to name just a few).
Social Dialect
Social dialects emerge like dialects, but within a specific class or culture, instead of a region (though they can be further developed to fit certain regions). This may also be referred to as a minority dialect, highlighting the variation is not the predominant use. A major example of this is African American Vernacular English.
Lingua Franca
A lingua franca is a common language used between people who speak different languages. As the full purpose is bridging gaps in communication, this can be very adaptable and therefore will not necessarily stick to traditional language rules. English is used as a lingua franca all over the world, more commonly in fact than it is used by native speakers, and in some cases may even be taught in a specific form to fit these needs, rather than as standard English. You can read more about this on Wikipedia here.
Pidgin
A pidgin is a simplified version of a lingua franca, where people trying to communicate across different languages develop their own form of communication. Though this technically makes it a lingua franca, it often some from merging two or more languages together rather than as something true to one common language. Pidgins can therefore develop their own vocabulary and rules that can be very independent of the original source languages.
Creole
A creole is an established form of pidgin, where a language developed from communicating over two or more languages is taken up by a culture as a native language. Aspects that make a creole different to pidgin or dialects is that it has it will have unique rules with a full range of functions, and may be taught as a mother tongue. Examples of English-developed creoles include Gullah in South Carolina and Georgia and Nigerian Creole. Another interesting example is Louisiana Creole, which derives from French but is used by Americans so may be interspersed with English.
Vernacular
Vernacular is the term used to describe language as it is used naturally by a specific people. What it describes can therefore vary depending on what we wish to specify: we could speak about the vernacular of a country or a smaller community within a city, or of a certain time and place (for example, we have a modern vernacular which would include vocabulary that would not be part of the vernacular of, for example, fifty years ago).
Patois
Patois is a term used to refer to minority, non-standard use of a language, so this could cover all dialects, creoles and pidgins, but this carries somewhat negative connotations as it implies an inferiority.
Lingo
Lingo is a term used to refer to any wording or phrasing that is specific to a certain group, including jargon or slang (see below). Lingo is roughly synonymous with argot and cant, both also referring to the language of specific groups.
Jargon
Jargon is the words and phrases that emerge to cover ideas with in a specific community, often when specialist terminology is required (for example technical terms in a profession or sport). In some cases this is necessary, where specialist activities require new terminology, but jargon can also be seen as negative, where it is used to separate others from a conversation or to create a superior appearance (as is commonly associated with business jargon).
Slang
Similar to jargon, slang is the language that emerges within a subgroup to describe new ideas, or to assign new words to existing ideas to develop a sense of identity. As with jargon, this can be exclusionary, though while jargon typically refers to specialisms, slang is more typically associated with social groups, for example the language of a younger generation. Extreme forms of slang may be used specifically to disguise conversation, such as rhyming slang.
I hope you’ve found this useful; varieties in language are fascinating areas. If you are interested in the development of language, and how it is used differently by different people, I strongly recommend looking into different vernaculars and creoles to see how other people speak. It can help to give you a stronger understanding of the rules of standard language when you see how it works when other people bend them!
Hi Phil,
Great article!
Firstly, I’ve got a question about “Standard / Polite / Formal” English. I’ve heard the term “Queen’s English” thrown about often to mean Formal/Polite English – any validity in this?
Secondly, I’ve got a thing about..well..the word “thing”. For standard UK/US English, the Oxford Lexico Dictionary defines “thing” as “An action, activity, event, thought, or utterance”. My classmate then said that because that’s the definition of the word “thing”, “thing” can’t refer to anything else besides “action, activity, event, thought, or utterance”. My point however, is that “thing” is a word we often to use to refer in an approximate (or lazy) way to an idea, subject, event, action, etc. In other words, my point is that “thing” can refer to just about anything in general, and not just limited to oxford’s definition of “An action, activity, event, thought, or utterance”. Am I correct? Thanks!
Regards,
Shizuka
Hi Shizuka,
Thank you. Yes, the Queen’s English is used to refer to polite language; it’s often a bit tongue-in-cheek, which is to say we’d use the phrase a little jokingly, to highlight especially formal language. It rather creates an image of an old schoolmaster insisting on speaking properly, where speaking ‘properly’ is not necessarily a reflection of speaking naturally!
On “thing”, that’s a very curious point – I, and I think most English speakers, would not have given it enough thought to separate “thing” from any meaning other than to refer to “something”, meaning, as you say, anything. I wonder if it wouldn’t fit naturally into everything we might define – I’d be interested to hear any examples of what it might *not* refer to – but certainly those five categories don’t cover it because “thing” could also be used to refer to any kind of physical object, perhaps one of its more common uses.
Best,
Phil
Truly remarkable article. Thank you.
Hi here !
Would you mind answering this question please ?
Is the” accent” not a variety of language ? If yes try and produce an article about it.
Regards !
Hi Antonio, no problem, I am happy to answer. It’s a good question and perhaps a difference that is worthy of a post, yes – but essentially, no accent isn’t so much a language variety as a variety in how we pronounce words. It comes down to the difference between dialect and accent – dialect leads to regional differences in the way language is used, but accent is more limited to describing regional differences in the sounds of words. So it doesn’t really speak to different language use. But yes, I’ll look at doing something more detailed to explore that!
Hi
Could you please share what is variation in language …is it differ from variety?
Hi Sam,
Variety and variation are very similar, and which you use might depend on context. Now you mention it, I do appear to have used them somewhat interchangeably myself in this article. Essentially, a “variation” is where we see a difference from the norm, whereas a “variety” tends to refer to a selection of different things. With reference to language, what we’re discussing is where language is adapted to form variations, so for example formal, informal or colloquial variations could all stem from one main language (e.g. formal English, colloquial English). This in turn creates a variety of types of language, even if they share similar qualities.
Phil
Hi there
I would like to know is code switching related to varieties?
Hi Aloui,
Good question – code-switching would certainly be related to varieties, as it would require that the speakers know more than one variety of language to switch between them. There are various ways it might appear; code-switching could be a case of bilingual speakers slipping between two languages understood by both parties, or they could be switching between certain dialects or slangs. The point would be that it’s a case where the speakers have more than one way to be understood, and are able to jump between them.
Patois, creole and pidgin languages would all comprise code-switching at some point, and even when they become established languages of their own might sound like people switching between other varieties.
Phil
Hi there!
I would you like to know where is the book or journal that discusses your formal and colloquial language varieties? thank you
Hi Hafiza,
That’s a good question that I’m afraid I don’t have a good answer for right now; I’m not familiar with a specific book myself, though tables often appear in more general grammar or language guides (for example I have some lists comparing formal and informal language in my own Advanced Writing Skills book, and there are comparisons in the likes of Murphy’s grammar books or Swan’s Practical English Usage, but these are not comprehensive). I’ll have to have a look and see if I can find something on this, but I’d appreciate if any other readers can recommend one!
Phil
Hi i wold you like to known what is the different between English language and pidgin language
Hi,
English overall is standardised, and though it might have some variations regionally you’d expect it to mostly be used the same way. With pidgin English variations it will vary massively depending on who is using it – a pidgin language would take elements of English and mix them with elements of at least one other language, so it may have grammar or vocabulary completely unrelated to English, alongside more standard English words and structures. Pidgin is something that evolves very naturally and often out of necessity, so there could be all sorts of differences.
Phil
hey
is diglossia related to language varieties ?
Hi Nabila,
Yes, that would fit into the field of language varieties, referring to two versions of a language existing alongside each other (within the same community). It would cover certain of these varieties, even, if you ever have a situation where two of the forms listed above are in use in the same area (which is often the case with vernacular and creole varieties existing alongside a more official language.
Phil
Hi
Pls Phil distinguish between spoken and written varieties of language
Hi Sophia,
Sorry for the slow reply on this; in general most of these fall into spoken language varieties, whereas written language typically uses the most formal/common forms of English, though of course this depends a lot on context.
Phil
hi.
what is socially and situational variety of language?
i need references to this work please
This was mostly written from my own knowledge and checked against various sources so I’m afraid I don’t have a specific reference list I could share.