Being self-conscious about speaking or your accent isn’t only something that happens to new learners—you can have insecurities or anxiety around speaking your own language, too.
Have you ever been told that you said something wrong in the language you know best?
It happens all the time! Many English speakers say you should never end a sentence with a preposition (for example, Who are you talking to?). In French, it’s common to correct someone who says they’re going au coiffeur (to the hairdresser) instead of chez le coiffeur (to the hairdresser’s [house]). And the Spanish verb haber (meaning there is or there are) is often used in the subjunctive as haiga, even though many people say that the only correct subjunctive form is haya.
If you know a language other than English, French, or Spanish, you’ve probably heard similar attitudes about that language, too!
However, these “rules” are completely arbitrary! 🤯 In fact, some ways of speaking that are “wrong” in one language are the only way the grammar works in another. Take double negatives, for example: Kids who grow up speaking English are told that you should never say I didn’t do nothing and should always say I didn’t do anything instead—but in Spanish, the sentence doesn’t work without two negatives, so you’ll always hear No hice nada.
Not only that, but the most prestigious form in French is to use two negative words every time, as in Je n’ai rien fait. In French, using just one negative word, like J’ai rien fait, is extremely common, but limited to informal and/or spoken language—it would be surprising to read it in an academic paper or hear it in a political speech.
So, why do we praise some features and shame others? Let’s find out!
What is “good” or “right” when it comes to language?
Typically, the version of a language that is considered “correct” is the one used by people in power: this might mean white people, men, people in a higher social class, or some combination of factors like these. It’s not that the powerful people choose some especially logical, beautiful, or good way to talk, but rather their way of talking, whatever that might be, becomes the “standard.” Then, over time, that standard might remain in place for decades or centuries, even though the way people speak is always changing.
The language “rules” we hear about usually come from this prestigious standard. But there are actually two kinds of rules: Those that people use to tell others how to talk, and those that describe how a community uses a language.
The statements in bold (from earlier in this post) are examples of the “tell others” kind of rules. Let’s revisit them to see how breaking these “rules” isn’t actually a big deal, and is no less accurate, logical, or correct than following them:
- Never end a sentence with a preposition! This rule was actually coined by an English bishop who wanted to make English more like Latin, but—spoiler alert!—English isn’t a Romance language, and there’s no reason why ending a sentence with a preposition is worse than putting one elsewhere in the sentence. Plus, most sentences that end with a preposition, like What were you talking about?, sound far more natural to English speakers than the reformulated version (About what were you talking?), even if they know it’s supposed to be “correct.”
- Chez le coiffeur, chez le médecin, etc. Chez basically means “at [someone]’s house,” or “at their place,” and this rule purportedly comes from the old days where people used to live and work in the same place, so if you were going to see a hairdresser or a doctor, you likely were actually going to their house! This is probably not the case for most services you frequent nowadays, so it isn’t any better to say chez le médecin(to the doctor’s [place]) orau médecin(to the doctor)—both make sense!
- Haiga vs. haya: This is an example of an analogical change, meaning that speakers apply rules from other words to a similar word. Just like the irregular subjunctive forms traiga(fromtraer, to bring) andcaiga(fromcaer, to fall), the -aiga ending was added to haber. The use of haiga has been reported since at least the 17th century, and it used to be widely accepted!
Structured, systematic explanations, like the ones above, show how all language fits into a grammatical system, even if we think it breaks a rule. For example, in Spanish, the “standard” pronunciation is to say all the written “s” sounds, as in buenos días (“good morning”), which many dialects will pronounce with an “s” at the end of each word. But in other Spanish dialects, especially in the Caribbean, it’s common for speakers to not pronounce many written “s” sounds, depending on what comes before and after the “s.” (Listen to how Bad Bunny, who is from Puerto Rico, pronounces buenos días!) Not only is this a common type of sound change in languages around the world, but it already happened in French!
How do our language beliefs affect us?
Our language biases are rooted in politics, culture, and life experience, which combine to shape how we interact with people who use different dialects or languages. But not all biases are bad! For example, if you grow up hearing a variety of accents, it might be easier for you to understand accents that you’ve never heard.
However, language biases can also lead to linguistic discrimination, or unfair treatment towards people that use language differently. Sometimes, this gets disguised as humor or teasing, but stigmatized dialects have real consequences for the people who use them. Negative perceptions about how someone speaks can influence education policies, annual income, and even access to housing. And, because of unequal power structures, dialects used by communities of color and immigrants are more often labeled as “non-standard.” In turn, many of these stereotypes disproportionately affect communities of color and/or immigrants.
Language biases can lead to many different cycles of inequality—from lack of educational opportunities to unfair pay practices. This can be disheartening, since we know that at its best, language can (and should) inspire curiosity about a new community, and offer a new way to build empathy with family, peers, and neighbors.
Language is connected to identity and expression!
How we use language reflects who we are. The way someone speaks is connected to their identity, such as where they grew up and the culture they grew up in.
Whatever beliefs or biases someone attaches to a specific feature of language can be positive (e.g., “Oh! I wonder if they’re from the South, like me!”), negative (e.g., “Oh man, they used that word differently—can I trust that they know what they’re talking about?”), or neutral (e.g., “Oh, that’s not a word I hear much.” *shrug*).
In fact, someone can perceive the same feature as positive, negative, AND neutral depending on who is using that feature, due to their biases. Black content creators who use African American English have pointed out that they get less engagement (views, comments, likes, and shares), which can mean less income per post. However, white creators are able to use linguistic features appropriated from African American English to increase engagement. Because of language biases, the same linguistic features are viewed positively for some speakers and not others. And, once again, we see that the privilege to both set the standard for what’s correct and use any dialect you want is only reserved for people in power—in this case, white English speakers.
Being a speaker of a dialect that is perceived as non-standard is not always something that people can turn off—nor should they have to! Your language is an important part of what makes you, well, you, so having part of your identity stolen or stigmatized naturally feels insulting at best and degrading and dehumanizing at worst.
So, what can we do?
Now that you have been enlightened to the serious reality of linguistic biases and discrimination, you’re probably wondering “What can I do?”
- Build awareness. Building awareness around the inequality that exists in language is the first step! Increasing awareness can help reduce the negative perceptions surrounding non-standard dialects. These negative perceptions are built into our society, and most people don’t even realize it! So, share this post with friends and family, and take some time to reflect on biases you may have!
- Do some research. Is there a particular accent or dialect that you are connected to or interested in? Learning about the intricacies of different dialects can open your world up to understanding linguistic diversity! So, do your research on different dialects (through credible sources) to understand them better!
- Be curious. As a language learner, be mindful of linguistic variation even when studying your new language! You might encounter speakers from different countries or regions that speak your new language in a way that is different from how you are learning it. Instead of pointing out the differences as one of you being “right” or “wrong,” have a discussion about them! You both might be able to learn something new!
The truth is every single speaker has a different life experience that contributes to how they speak their language(s). Besides, nobody meets the “standard” at all times for all features, anyway. So, the next time you hear a different dialect or accent, instead of making assumptions about the speaker, marvel at the beauty that is linguistic variation!