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Scotch Literature Festival 2005  >  Prof. Kate Burridge

Prof. Kate Burridge Prof. Kate Burridge
Jonathan Harley image Prof. Kate Burridge
Prof. Kate Burridge completed her undergraduate training in Linguistics and German at the University of Western Australia. This was followed by three years postgraduate study at the University of London. In February 2003 she took up the Chair in Linguistics at Monash University. Her main areas of research are grammatical change in Germanic languages and the structure and history of English. She is also a regular presenter of language segments on ABC Radio.
So is this like where English is heading? (Yr 12 masterclass )
The clues to how our language is developing are all around us in the infinite variation that is part of everyday speech - the "slipshod" pronunciations, mistakes in grammar, coinages, new-fangled meanings and so on. These are the basis for real change. The majority of them will drop by the wayside, but some will catch on, be used more and more and will eventually form part of the repertoire of Standard English. New forms on the increase are more prevalent in younger speakers, whereas forms on the way out are more apparent in older speakers. So where is our language heading now - what clues do today's voices from the classroom provide?

Session Times: Year 12

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