Variation in Language: Code Switching in Czech as a Challenge for Sociolinguistics

Salzmann, Zdeněk; Sgall, Petr; Stich, Alexandr; Horecký, Jan; Hronek, Jiří; Horecky, Jan

doi:10.2307/416933

Cited by 2 publications

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“…The spontaneous pole is associated with online production under time constraints, as reflected in the presence of contact expressions, fillers, non-dropped pronouns, and Common Czech (cf. Sgall et al 1992) forms. The text category most strongly represented at this pole is spoken interaction, followed by private correspondence and web forums.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Register in Czech: Designing an MDA-based experimental study

Marklová,

Buchmüller,

Demian

et al. 2023

LingBaW

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There are no conventionalized ways to investigate the results of multidimensional analysis (MDA) from the perceptual perspective in an experimental setting. An MDA of the Czech corpus Koditex by Cvrček et al. (2020) established eight dimensions of variation based on 122 linguistic features. The first two dimensions, which explain the largest proportion of shared variance, are labeled as 1. dynamic (+)/static (-) and 2. spontaneous (+)/prepared (-). In our study, we investigated if some situational contexts of language use evoke stronger associations with the poles of the two dimensions than others. Furthermore, we aimed to explore the impact of the mode of language use and the properties of the interlocutor on the ratings. Czech native speakers (n=107) rated various situational contexts on 7-point Likert-like scales representing the MDA-based dimensions. The items were balanced in the formality of the interlocutor’s name (Mr. or Mrs. in connection to surname/first name), the interlocutor´s gender, and the mode of language use (spoken/written). The statistical analysis uncovered a significant effect of the formality of the interlocutor's name and the mode of language use on the ratings. Using first names and spoken mode resulted in ratings closer to the positive poles of the dimensions. The comparison of individual items showed that some situations, mainly those representing the negative poles of the dimensions, are rated more consistently than others. The results of our study offer insight into how native speakers evaluate situations of language use on the scales of preparedness, subjectivity, and interactivity.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Register in Czech: Designing an MDA-based experimental study

Marklová,

Buchmüller,

Demian

et al. 2023

LingBaW

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“…The concept of diglossia is defined as the coexistence of two varieties of the same language, usually occurring when a literary or prestige language variety differs substantially from the variety spoken by everyday language users. Modern Czech linguists continue to debate whether or not Czech should be considered diglossal, semi-diglossal or something else entirely (Sgall et al, 1992;Sgall & Hronek, 2014;Bermel, 2014;Čermáková et al, 2017;Nekula & Šichová, 2017), however the general consensus in the field is that written and spoken Czech differ substantially, regardless of which label it receives. Sgall and Hronek (2014) used the diglossia debate itself as evidence of the existence of diglossia:…”

Section: Czech Diglossiamentioning

confidence: 99%

“…After establishing through data piloting that wordlists of length 10k were better able to differentiate between written and spoken Czech, further data piloting was necessary to determine the extent to which corpora of written and spoken Czech differ from one another. Although linguists disagree whether or not Czech constitutes a truly diglossal paradigm, there is strong theoretical evidence derived from native speaker intuition that written Czech is different from spoken Czech (Sgall & Hronek, 1992;Bermel, 2010Bermel, , 2014Čermáková et al, 2017;Nekula & Šichová, 2017).…”

Section: Pairwise Comparison Of Wordlistsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Is there a core general vocabulary for Czech? Introducing the Czech General Service List

Challis

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The current study presents the Czech General Service List (CGSL), which was designed to capture the core vocabulary of written and spoken Czech which is useful to Czech as a second language learners (CSLLs). The CGSL is a result of robust comparison of five Czech language corpora (SYN2020, csTenTen17, Koditex, ORALv1, and ORTOFONv2) containing over 12 billion running words. These five corpora represent a variety of corpus sizes, designs, and text types of both written and spoken Czech. This study investigates the overlap between the top 10,000 words in these corpora based on their normalized average reduced frequency (ARFn), which is a measure that takes into consideration both frequency and dispersion. This study also investigates the overlap and rank correlation between words from the written and spoken corpora, respectively. Significant differences were found between words used in written and spoken Czech, so the CGSL was built to contain three types of words: 1) core words of Czech, 2) core words of written Czech, and 3) core words of spoken Czech. Finally, this study compared the words on the CGSL to words on pedagogical wordlists from Czech textbooks designed for L1 English speaking CSLLs and found there to be significant differences between the two. This suggests that future CSL materials informed by the CGSL might have a different effect on Czech learning than the currently existing CSL materials. CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTIONCzech is an important world language which presents unique challenges for learners who speak English as a first language (L1), including the acquisition of new vocabulary. This study opens a scholarly discussion about how corpus-based methods and data can help Czech as a second language learners (CSLLs) to prioritize core vocabulary items from written and spoken Czech. The theories, questions, and methodologies used in this study are also applicable to other less-commonly taught languages which currently lack corpus-based pedagogical materials and approaches to learning.According to Nation, a leading scholar on second language (L2) vocabulary research and a major contributor to the literature on this topic (Coxhead, 2010), the first goal of L2 vocabulary learning should be to know which vocabulary is useful for learners (Nation, 2013). Recent pedagogically motivated vocabulary research connects usefulness for learners with frequency information as opposed to native speaker intuition (Alderson, 2007;Gardner & Davies, 2014;Garnier & Schmitt, 2015;Lei & Liu, 2016). Receptive and productive knowledge of L2 words correlate with word frequency, and frequent words are encountered and used more often by learners (Ellis, 2014;Garnier & Schmitt, 2015).Brezina and Gablasova (2015) agree that while "word frequency alone is not a reliable measure for selecting words important for learners" (p. 3), it is possible to quantify a word's importance for learners by measuring its frequency, dispersion within a corpus, and dispersion across multiple large language corpora representing a variety of situational ...

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Variation in Language: Code Switching in Czech as a Challenge for Sociolinguistics

Cited by 2 publications

References 0 publications

Register in Czech: Designing an MDA-based experimental study

Register in Czech: Designing an MDA-based experimental study

Is there a core general vocabulary for Czech? Introducing the Czech General Service List

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