Newfoundland and Labrador English

Book excerpt: This book is the first full-length volume to offer acomprehensive introduction to the English spoken in Britain's oldestoverseas colony, and, since 1949, Canada's youngest province. Within NorthAmerica, Newfoundland and Labrador English is a highly distinctive speechvariety. It is known for its generally conservative nature, having retainedclose ties with its primary linguistic roots, the traditional speech ofsouthwestern England and southern Ireland. It is also characterised by ahigh degree of regional and social variation. Over the past half century,the region has experienced substantial social, economic and cultural change. This is reflected linguistically, as younger generations of Newfoundlandersand Labradorians increasingly align themselves with 'mainland' NorthAmerican norms. The volume includes:*An accessible description of thephonological, grammatical, lexical and discourse features of thisvariety*Treatment of regional speech variation within the province, and itshistorical sources*Discussion of the social underpinnings of ongoinglanguage change *Language samples from both traditional and contemporaryspeakers*A survey of published work on Newfoundland and Labrador Englishfrom earlier centuries to the present day.