Sociolinguistic Study of Variations in American English

This Sociolinguistic Study of Variations in American English is an interpretation of the particular linguistic features of American English in the light of its co-existence with other co-territorial variations of English. It is far removed from the notion that variations of American English can be seen as a system in itself, analyzed without reference to other dialects, which has been repeated theme of research in this area from the very beginnings to the present day. Although it must be admitted that this monolithic approach has often produced descriptions that are far removed from linguistic and social reality, it has also been a continued source of insights, bringing to our attention striking differences between American English and British English that would otherwise have been overlooked. This analysis we are presenting here is heavily indebted to American linguists who have attempted to extract an invariant core that is unique to American English, the earliest and the most recent contribution to the study of this language. The main source is the work of William Labov, who brought to American English the insights from his description of speech of New York City, drawn from his