American and British English: Divided by a Common Language? Paperback – Import, 28 September 2017
Paul Baker . Cambridge University Press . English
Is British English becoming more like American English? If so, why, and in what ways? This book compares examples of American and British language data from the 1930s, 1960s, 1990s and 2000s, to track the most important ways that both varieties are changing over time, and compares the extent to which they are following similar paths using a mixture of computer and human analysis. The analysis is carried out across several levels, including spelling differences (such as colour vs color), vocabulary (truck vs lorry), and a range of morphological, grammatical, semantic and pragmatic features. Baker explores the changing aspects of American and British society which help to explain the findings.
Categories: Action & Adventure
About the Author
I'm a northerner, originally from Peterlee in County Durham. I work as a Professor of English Language at Lancaster University and divide my time between Lancaster and London. I'm interested in social history and did a PhD looking at a secret form of language called Polari used by gay men, and made popular in the 1960s radio comedy show Round the Horne. I've also written books on gay men who worked in the merchant navy, the history of camp and the story of Section 28. My academic work usually involves corpus linguistics, a way of using computers to help make sense of trends and patterns in large collections of texts. I've used this approach to analyse a diverse range of texts including newspaper articles, patient feedback, tv sitcom scripts, political debates, personal adverts. I've also used the approach to look at how language is changing over time and how British English compares to American English. When I'm not working, I like going to the BFI to watch old movies, playing the piano and walking around London and other cities.
