Accessibility statement

LLS Colloquium: Multicultural Toronto English: variation, change and ideologies

Wednesday 9 November 2022, 3.00PM

Speaker(s): Derek Denis (University of Toronto)

On Wednesday 9th November 2022, Derek Denis (University of Toronto) will be presenting on "variation, change and ideologies in multicultural Toronto English".

 

Talk: Multicultural Toronto English: variation, change and ideologies

In 1988, Kotsinas spoke of the “great migration” to Sweden that resulted in one tenth of children in Swedish schools being born outside the country. Linguists have documented that this great migration has resulted in the development of a multiethnolect: a variety of a language spoken (typically) by immigrant adolescents who themselves are native speakers of a diversity of languages. Features of these multiethnolects can be traced to the multilingual context of their emergence. Such multiethnolects have been documented in major European metropolises: Stockholm, Berlin, Oslo, London, Paris, and Amsterdam.

While at the time a 10% immigrant rate may have seemed like a great deal, today every other resident of Toronto, Canada was born outside of the county and/or speaks a language other than English.  In one of the most multicultural cities in the world, we can ask: is there a Toronto multiethnolect?  

In this talk, I describe what I call Multicultural Toronto English (MTE), which I understand to be an emergent multiethnolect. I focus on the enregisterment and diffusion of features of MTE, paying particular attention to their sources. The largest influences are Jamaican Patwa and Somali and the use of features borrowed from these languages has diffused beyond speakers of those languages. I explore this diffusion and the roots of the place-based enregisterment of these features through variationist analysis. I also consider the diversity of attitudes about the use of MTE, especially by Torontonians not of Afro-Caribbean descent. On the one hand, there are strong reservations about the appropriation (and in some cases derision) of borrowings from Black communities. On the other hand, some express pride in the transcultural nature of the English spoken by young people. I grapple with this tension and the prevalent racial and linguistic ideologies that underlie it.

The talk will take place at 3pm on Zoom, and there will be an opportunity to ask questions at the end. Please sign up to receive a zoom invite at this link.

Event poster: LLS Colloquium: Multicultural Toronto English: variation, change and ideologies 

Location: Online event, on Zoom