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Language Variation and Contact-Induced Change: Spanish across space and time
Edited by Jeremy King and Sandro Sessarego
[Current Issues in Linguistic Theory 340] 2018
► pp. 223–245

Chapter 10
Stable variation or change in progress? A sociolinguistic analysis of pa(ra) in the Spanish of Venezuela

Sociolinguistic analyses of pa(ra) “for” have found that both linguistic and social factors play a significant role in speaker use of the reduced (pa’) and full (para) forms (e.g., Bentivoglio et al. 2005). However, no study to date has analyzed the extent to which production of these forms is most indicative of stable variation or a change in progress. The current study investigates 160 interviews conducted with speakers from Caracas, Venezuela and offers a comprehensive analysis of the variables of socioeconomic class, age, gender, and style in order to determine whether pa(ra) is best considered a stable variable or a change in progress in this speech community. Results indicate that the reduction of para lacks the hallmarks typical of linguistic change in progress.

Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Background literature
    • 2.1Determining patterns of stable variation vs. language change
    • 2.2Background on pa ~ para
    • 2.3Questions of the current investigation
  • 3.Methodology
  • 4.Results
  • 5.Discussion
  • 6.Conclusions
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 13 March 2018
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/cilt.340.11faf
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