Hypercorrection as a Symptom of Language Change: Majorcan Catalan Standard Pronunciation

Abstract

[eng] The mutual influence between dialects and standard language in terms of upward or downward convergence, the creation of a diaglossic repertoire, and a typology of relations dialects/standard is of utmost importance for the analysis of language evolution. Majorcan Catalan is an eastern Catalan dialect, traditionally considered as archaic. Data from television programs show a tendency to adapt pronunciation to a standard mainly based on central Catalan dialects, even disregarding concessions granted by the prescriptive grammar. This article is focused on the causes of this centripetal movement and on the function either accelerating or decelerating of (para)prescriptive works in the process. Data from an annotated oral corpus (Corpus Oral de la Llengua Catalana) are used. The results are consistent with a centripetal movement in the construction of the standard Catalan as used in formal registers in the Balearic Islands. A proposal is made for the interpretation of the relevant data as evidence of an evolution from a gliding access to standard to a shifting access. Keywords: standard language; dialects; pronunciation; oral corpus; language prescription