In the world of language study, it may be hard to tell what sets languages and dialects apart. I tend to think of a dialect as a regional variety of a language, distinguished mostly by the pronunciation. And perhaps some of the vocabulary. But is that how a professional linguist would define the difference between a language and a dialect?
Officially, languages and dialects are codes. Linguists tend to define a language as the standardized code used in spoken and written form. Dialects are spoken vernacular codes without a standardized written system.
The field of linguistics has technical definitions for these terms. When the general population starts using them as a part of the popular lingo, the meanings can get somewhat confusing. Why does it matter? Maybe you’re interested in linguistics as a whole, or you’re learning a foreign language. This is something that can help you categorize what you’re learning. That way all the new information you’re taking in will be less confusing and easier to remember later on.
The difference between a language and a dialect
If it were up to linguistics experts, the distinction between a language and a dialect would probably be much clearer than it actually is. The general impression is that dialects are subsets or variations within a language. In reality it’s a bit more complicated than that. The truth is, country borders and politics also play a role in the definitions. Language can be a huge unifying influence on a population of people. It definitely helps to strengthen the national spirit if you can lay claim to your own language, rather than sharing a language with a neighboring country.
A classic example of this would be the three Scandinavian kingdoms of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. Here, the people in one country can understand the people in the other two countries without the need for translation. However all three are languages. If these three “languages” were spoken in different parts of the same country, they would probably be mere dialects.
Language Needs a Country To Back it Up
In other words, a language only gets the status of a language if it has a country to back it up. Spanish, for instance, is the primary language in Spain, Mexico, and many countries in South America. All of these countries have versions of Spanish with their own loan-words, slang, and sayings. But they’re all recognized as belonging to a single language. Versions of Spanish are also the primary language in many parts of the southern United States. Again, these are dialects rather than languages. Because these dialects developed outside of a Spanish-speaking country, they don’t get formally recognized as languages. On the opposite side of the spectrum, you can find “dialects” in China that have very little in common with each other. These could really be considered separate languages if they weren’t all from the same country.
It’s generally accepted that there’s one standard version of a language, and all the dialects are deviations from the “textbook version”. Some people look down on anyone who speaks certain dialects if they’re considered to be lower-class or somehow sub-par. Honestly, this is just an excuse people use to think well of themselves at someone else’s expense. Who’s to say which dialect is better than another? Dialects are simply variations of a parent language – there’s no “best way” to speak when it comes to everyday usage.
The difference between a dialect and an accent
Fortunately for us, there’s a lot less confusion about what makes an accent different from a dialect. The academic definition generally matches the common usage, in that “accent” describes the pronunciation of words. This sets it apart from “dialect”, which is about which words you use, not the way you say them. Remember, dialects are basically languages, minus the official recognition of a country. It has all the aspects of a language, including unique vocabulary and distinct grammar rules. It also has its own idioms and contractions. Accents, on the other hand, are just an aspect of dialects.
Some people say that an accent only describes how people talk when speaking a foreign language. That seems like a stretch though. People aren’t going to start referring to “the Boston dialect”. Maybe a case could be made that it’s a dialect, but it makes a lot more sense to call it “the Boston accent”. You might also find some non-academic sources that use “dialect” and “accent” interchangeably, but don’t get confused. They probably either don’t understand what they’re talking about, or they don’t care that much.
Varieties of Language
Linguists have come up with a simpler way to classify languages, identifying “varieties” by common-sense differences in the way a language is spoken. You can find geographical varieties (Portuguese from Portugal, Brazilian Portuguese), social varieties (middle-class French, upper-class Japanese), and so on. They also say that each person has their own variety, referred to as an “idiolect”. This describes the way someone speaks that’s unique to them.
It’s ironic that linguists, of all people, aren’t always able to agree on the definitions of words that describe the very thing they’re studying. It can still be fun to learn about the different opinions. Whatever your reason for learning about languages, there’s no question that it’s well worth the effort. If you have some thoughts to share on the differences between dialects and languages, why not leave a comment below?
