Language Contact
Definition
Language contact is the term used to describe the interaction between two or more languages and the resulting changes in both. It occurs most frequently when speakers of different languages come into contact with one another, and is often associated with the spread of language among different groups.
History
The study of language contact has a long history, with scholars such as Ferdinand de Saussure and Otto Jespersen making significant contributions to its development. In the early twentieth century, the concept was used to explain the formation of pidgins and creoles, as well as the influence of language on culture. As linguistics has become more interdisciplinary, the concept of language contact has been extended to include analysis of the effects of contact between different language varieties.
Characteristics
Language contact can result in a variety of changes to the languages in contact, including lexical and syntactic borrowing, the emergence of new dialects, and the development of pidgins and creoles. It can also lead to the emergence of new languages, such as pidgins and creoles, which are formed when two languages interact and a new language is created from elements of both. Language contact can also result in language loss, as speakers of one language abandon their language in favor of the other.
References
Bickerton, D. (1981). Roots of Language. Ann Arbor: Karoma.
Mufwene, S.S. (2001). The Ecology of Language Evolution. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Myers-Scotton, C. (2006). Contact Linguistics: Bilingual Encounters and Grammatical Outcomes. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Thomason, S.G., & Kaufman, T. (Eds.). (1988). Language Contact, Creolization, and Genetic Linguistics. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Weinreich, U. (1953). Languages in Contact. The Hague: Mouton.