English in North America began with the (re-)discovery of Newfoundland in 1497 and got underway on a large-scale in the late 16th and early 17th century in the eastern coast of the present-day United States. Since then the language there has been affected by the English spoken by Africans brought via the Caribbean and by many recent immigrant groups such as the Hispanics in the south-west of the United States. English in Canada has been shaped by the various groups of settlers and the presence of French within the country´s borders. Furthermore, American English has at the present a very considerable influence on languages throughout the world, especially in vocabulary. The aim of the present course will be to examine these different facets of English in North America. Literature Algeo, John 2006. British or American English? A Handbook of Word and Grammar Patterns. Cambridge: University Press. Amber, Julie S. and Deborah J. Vause 2009. American English. History, Structure and Usage. Cambridge: University Press. Chambers, Jack 2003. Sociolinguistic theory. Linguistic variation and its social significance. 2nd edition. Oxford: Blackwell. Clarke, Sandra (ed.) 1993. Focus on Canada. Varieties of English around the World, General Series, Vol.11 (Amsterdam: John Benjamins). Schneider, Edgar W. (ed.) 1996. Focus on the USA. Varieties of English Around the World, General Series, Vol. 16 (Amsterdam: John Benjamins). Wolfram, Walt and Natalie Schilling-Estes 1998. American English. Dialects and variation. Oxford: Blackwell. Website to be consulted by students: Studying Varieties of English |
