area (n.)

A term used in DIALECTOLOGY for any geographical region isolated on the basis of its LINGUISTIC characteristics. The study of the linguistic properties of ‘areas’ – the analysis of the divergent FORMS they contain, and their historical antecedents – is known as areal linguistics. An areal classification would establish areal types (or groups), such as the Scandinavian languages, or the London-influenced dialects – cases where it is possible to show certain linguistic features in common as a result of the proximity of the SPEECH communities. Such a classification often cuts across that made on purely historical grounds. It is often possible to identify a focal area – the region from which these linguistic characteristics have spread to the area as a whole (as in the case of London) – and several other significant parts of an area have been terminologically distinguished, e.g. the transitional areas which occur between adjacent areas, the relic areas which preserve linguistic features of an earlier stage of development. Areal linguistics is contrasted with non-areal differences in language use, e.g. contrasts between male and female speech, and between some social VARIETIES. The German term Sprachbund (‘language league’) is also widely used in the sense of a ‘linguistic area’.