regional dialects
Area-specific language variations
Regional dialects are varieties of a language spoken in particular geographic areas, distinguished by pronunciation, vocabulary, and grammar.
Southern American English, Cockney, and Scots are regional dialects.
The differences may be subtle—a few vowel sounds and local words—or substantial enough to challenge mutual understanding.
Her regional dialect marked her as a Midwesterner.
- syntaxRules for arranging words
- phonologyScience of language sounds
- pidginImprovised contact language
- morphologyStudy of structural forms
- vernacularEveryday regional speech
shibboleths · folk sayings · lexicon · speech patterns · creole · identity · substratum · folklore · local color · dialectology · locality · sociolect · heritage · drawl · code switching · native speaker · lilt · tradition
- cultural heritagefolklore, traditions, customs, folk music revival, museum collections
- vocabularyword, words, new words, term, terms
- language learningvocabulary lists, lessons, acquisition, basic vocabulary, grammar books
- German traditionsOktoberfest, lederhosen, dirndl, dirndls, beer gardens
- local cultureaccent, local cuisine, folklore, traditions, local music
- New EnglandMaine, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut
regional dialectsstandard language
Codified, official linguistic form
Standard English · BBC English · official language · Queen's English · High German
regional dialectslingua franca
Shared tongue between peoples
universal language · world language · global English · trade language · Esperanto