Accent variation and change in England
England is known to have very many different accents which vary across reasonably small geographical spaces. Sociolinguistic work in England has shown that accents are 'levelling' - becoming more alike. However, in some areas there is evidence of divergence from regional norms.
In this project, the student would investigate accent levelling, diffusion and divergence. Using a corpus sociophonetic methodology, the student would investigate change over time in any variety of English spoken in England. Interest applicants are invited to discuss possible projects with the listed supervisor.
Supervisors
Supervisor: Kevin Watson
Key qualifications and skills
Masters qualification in Linguistics, with some experience of sociolinguistics
Does the project come with funding
No - student must be self-funded.
Final date for receiving applications
Ongoing
Keywords
linguistics; accents; sociolinguistics; sociophonetics