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Part of
New Englishes, New Methods
Edited by Guyanne Wilson and Michael Westphal
[Varieties of English Around the World G68] 2023
► pp. 222–242

Understanding, collecting, and presenting data in New Englishes research

Insights from ethnographic fieldwork in an Old Order Mennonite community

| University of Freiburg

Against the background of my fieldwork in an isolated Old Order Mennonite community averse to secular norms and values, I suggest ethnographic fieldwork is key to understanding, collecting, and presenting New Englishes data. Before entering the field, researchers must begin to question principles that work in Western urban societies but may play out differently in lesser-studied communities. An understanding of the sociolinguistic realities in the community under investigation paves the way for the discovery of new social variables, access to speakers, and the accomplishment of meaningful research. I illustrate these benefits mainly in reference to the Labovian sociolinguistic interview. Finally, the paper argues that researchers need to ensure that their representation of the community is in line with the community’s interests.

Keywords: ethnographic fieldwork, the sociolinguistic interview, New Englishes communities, Pennsylvania German English, Pennsylvania German, Old Order Mennonites, language contact, data presentation, researcher positionality
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.New Englishes and the Old Order Mennonites
  • 3.Ethnographic research in New Englishes communities
  • 4.Understanding data: Ethnographic fieldwork
    • 4.1Sociolinguistic realities
    • 4.2Social variables
  • 5.Collecting data: The sociolinguistic interview
    • 5.1Logistical realities
    • 5.2The sociolinguistic interview
  • 6.Presenting data: Power dynamics
    • 6.1Researcher positionality
    • 6.2Representing the community and reporting back
  • 7.Conclusion
  • Acknowledgments
  • Notes
  • References
Published online: 14 April 2023
DOI logo
https://doi.org/10.1075/veaw.g68.11neu
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