A cognitive approach to quantitative sociolinguistic
variation: evidence from th-fronting in Central
Scotland^1
Lynn Clark and Graeme Trousdale
Abstract
Language in use is central to both sociolinguistics and Cognitive Linguistics (CL).
But despite the claim that CL is a usage-based model of language structure, at-
tempts have only recently been made to synthesise aspects of CL and sociolinguis-
tics (see, for example, the collection of papers in Kristiansen and Dirven 2008),
and generally the treatment of this synthesis has been weak on empirical detail.
Using techniques typical of modern (variationist) sociolinguistic data collection
and analysis, we examine a phonological change in progress (TH-Fronting) in
East-Central Scotland. We incorporate both ‘social’ and ‘cognitive’ factors in our
analysis of this phonological change and suggest that such a unified approach not
only provides a more parsimonious theory of language, but also enables us to ac-
count more comprehensively for the variability associated with this sound change.
The outcome of such a synthesis is therefore beneficial to researchers in both so-
ciolinguistics and Cognitive Linguistics.
Keywords: phonological change, th-fronting, usage, frequency, social, entrench-
ment, identity
- Introduction
This chapter is concerned with the direct application of some key concepts
in Cognitive Linguistics (cf. Langacker 1987, 1991; Taylor 2002; Croft and
Cruse 2004) to patterns of variation in a community of speakers in central
Scotland. Our main aim is to show how, by synthesising sociolinguistic
methods of data collection and analysis with cognitive linguistic methods
of interpretation, we can reach a deeper understanding of linguistic varia-
tion and change in a particular community. The chapter falls into three
main parts.