Covert Prestige and Dialect Change in Glasgow

Abstract

This research considers different contributory factors for dialect change, i.e. mobility and dialect contact, class, broadcast media, local identity, and language ideology, and how these factors apply to dialect change in Glasgow. The focus lies on the working-class in Glasgow, where a covert prestige enforces the way most linguistic changes take place in this city. By reviewing literature on the discussion regarding dialect change and Glaswegian, this research will discuss how different contributory factors influence dialect change generally, and how this relates to Glasgow specifically. On the basis of three small case studies, several apparent linguistic changes will be analysed, and how these are motivated by different contributory factors. It appears that a sense of covert prestige, resulting from Glasgow's stigmatized, working-class image, can account for many surprising changes in the Glasgow dialect, which instead of showing more signs of being affected by the spread of southern English characteristics, is.