Article published in:
Language Variation - European Perspectives V: Selected papers from the Seventh International Conference on Language Variation in Europe (ICLaVE 7), Trondheim, June 2013
Edited by Eivind Torgersen, Stian Hårstad, Brit Mæhlum and Unn Røyneland
[Studies in Language Variation 17] 2015
► pp. 211–224

Pro-dialect practices and linguistic commodification in rural Valdres, Norway

This chapter critically examines contemporary meanings and uses of dialect in local economic and cultural development projects in rural Valdres, Norway. A variety of pro-dialect practices offer overt support for local linguistic and cultural revitalization and have contributed to the revalorization of Valdresmål. Attesting to its popularity and sociocultural value, the local dialect is increasingly featured in public marketing campaigns and other advertising contexts, which use and circulate a relatively small number of dialect forms. As the dialect becomes increasingly commodified, new definitions and forms of Valdresmål appear to be emerging that are distinct from, and may ultimately threaten, the “traditional” Valdres dialect.
Keywords: commodification, dialect, enregisterment, Norwegian
Published online: 09 April 2015
https://doi.org/10.1075/silv.17.16str
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Strand, Thea R.
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