Chapter published in:
Late Modern English: Novel encounters
Edited by Merja Kytö and Erik Smitterberg
[Studies in Language Companion Series 214] 2020
► pp. 21–41

“A received pronunciation”

Eighteenth-century pronouncing dictionaries and the precursors of RP

| University of Sheffield
This chapter examines the codification of English pronunciation prior to the emergence and recognition of RP. I analyse early citations of “received pronunciation” and contrast these with later uses of “Received Pronunciation”. Drawing on Haugen (1966) and Milroy & Milroy (1999), I identify the processes of standardisation and distinguish standardisation from levelling before outlining the history of standardisation in English. I then discuss why the need for a standard pronunciation arose in the eighteenth century and the criteria used to select and codify pronunciations. I conclude that authors such as Walker and Sheridan did not succeed in implementing a standard pronunciation, but their attempts at codification laid the ground for the emergence of RP in the nineteenth century.
Article outline
  • 1.“Received pronunciation” or “a received pronunciation”?
  • 2.Standardisation: Theoretical issues
  • 3.Standardisation in the history of English: An overview
  • 4.Standardisation and the pronunciation of English
  • 5.Defining a standard pronunciation
  • 6.Codification in action: Choosing between variants
  • 7.Eighteenth-century codification: RP or not RP?
  • Acknowledgements
  • Notes
  • References
  • Electronic resources
Published online: 18 March 2020
https://doi.org/10.1075/slcs.214.01bea
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