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ERIC Number: EJ1177014
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2018
Pages: 21
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-0965-8416
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Irish Travellers' Views on Cant: What Folk Criteria of Languageness Tell Us about the Community
Language Awareness, v27 n1-2 p40-60 2018
This article argues that Irish Travellers' ideologies of languageness and their definition of Cant are closely linked to their perceptions of social reality. Cant is a communicative code which Travellers use beside English in Traveller-specific situations. Based on the analysis of focus groups, I take a folk-linguistic and anthropological approach and examine instances of metacommunication in which languageness and the status of Cant are negotiated among speakers, and explore what they suggest about the community and the local social setting. The analysis uncovers the criteria of 'ownership', 'activity', 'understanding' and 'privacy' as essential in the participants' definitions of languageness. I argue that these criteria are strongly linked to the community's understanding of themselves and relationships with Irish society. Further, I analyse speakers of different age groups' evaluations of Cant according to the above criteria, and show how what is considered as 'authentic' Cant is linked to life trajectories and perceptions of linguistic and social reality.
Routledge. Available from: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. 530 Walnut Street Suite 850, Philadelphia, PA 19106. Tel: 800-354-1420; Tel: 215-625-8900; Fax: 215-207-0050; Web site: http://www.tandf.co.uk/journals
Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Evaluative
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Identifiers - Location: Ireland
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A