Keywords

AAL heterogeneity in sound change, inclusive sociophonetic generational analysis, Georgia AAL generational patterns, regional variation in AAL vowel systems, Baby Boomer–Gen X transition in AAL

Abstract

The theme of this volume is generational trends in language change, with an emphasis on the Baby Boomer to Gen X transition as an important period of time. Many studies have found sharp changes in vowel systems in communities after the Baby Boomer Generation on the East Coast (Thiel and Dinkin 2020) and in the Midwest (Nesbitt 2021). Though we know a great deal about the geographic consistency of the Baby Boomer to Gen X transition, in all of these cases, the focus has been on White speakers and regional varieties. Besides the general importance of including a breadth of social backgrounds in theorizing, drawing solely from White regional varieties particularly causes problems when extending generational trends to varieties of African American Language (AAL). For some time, AAL was thought by linguists to be relatively uniform across regions (Wolfram 2007; King 2020), due to the finding of a relatively consistent set of features. Challenges to the idea of homogeneity in vowel systems arose in the early twenty-first century, culminating in a series of studies looking at regional differences between Black and White speakers’ vowel systems (Yaeger-Dror and Thomas 2010). Findings showed that varieties of AAL differed across regions in terms of adoption of novel sound changes, and further work has found there is a great deal of heterogeneity in the adoption of regional sound changes within communities as well (King 2018). This level of variability makes it especially important to include varieties of AAL in the theorization of generational shift across the United States. To help remedy this issue, we use data from Georgia AAL to look for any generational trends that may appear and to compare them with patterns found elsewhere.

Original Publication Citation

Jon Forrest, Margaret E. L. Renwick, Joseph A. Stanley, & Lelia Glass. “Demographic Change, Migration, and the African American Vowel System in Georgia.” In Joseph A. Stanley, Margaret E. L. Renwick, & Monica Nesbitt (eds). Movement, Economy, Orientation: 20th Century Shifts in North American Language (Publications of the American Dialect Society 109), 112–134. Durham, NC: Duke University Press. DOI:10.1215/00031283-11587907.

Document Type

Book Chapter

Publication Date

2024

Publisher

American Dialect Society

Language

English

College

Humanities

Department

Linguistics

University Standing at Time of Publication

Assistant Professor

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