AICE

 

Register: which linguistic choice in which context? In our native language, we almost instinctively adapt our language to the demands of various situations, and by doing so, a speech community develops typical linguistic features, so-called registers, for recurring situational contexts. It is a core element of our research to examine which linguistic particularities can be found in a register, how registers differ from each other and how we can predict linguistic choices on the basis of these situational standards.

Due to its world-wide presence as a foreign, native and official language, English shows a very distinct vitality and is constantly forming new varieties in various contexts and cultural spheres. Based on the assumption that in for instance Tanzania, we are likely to find very different situational contexts than in Australia, we aim at analyzing aspects such as the conditions under which a register develops regionally specific characteristics, or rather follows the standard of British or American English.