Diversity within English

        In order to understand how language variation descriptors are used, we first must understand what language variation is. We can say that the U.S. is linguistically diverse because of the multitude of languages spoken here, but we can also find diversity within these languages. All languages have both dialectical variations and registral variations. These variations, or dialects, can differ in lexicon, phonology, and/or syntax from the Standard Language that we often think of …

…or norm for measuring variations. Implicational relationships provide a way of measuring relative distance between the different variations and also serve as a means to predict changes in individual dialects (Ferguson 66). Works Consulted Ferguson, Charles A., and Shirley Brice Heath, eds. Language in the USA. Cambridge:                  Cambridge UP, 1981. Piatt, Bill. Only English? Law and Language Policy in the United States. Albuquerque:         U of New Mexico P, 1990. Yule, George. The Study of Language. Cambridge: Cambridge UP, 1985.