English is the leading language of international discourse, mainstream media and is spoken in. It is the official language of 67 countries total, the most known ones being the US, the United Kingdom, Australia and of course Canada.
This term paper will discuss the English spoken in Canada, elucidate its role in the country and inform about the sociolinguistic situation. It will also pay attention to some of the other languages that have been and are currently spoken in Canada, with the main in this focus being on French. Since this term paper does not pursue an actual research question, it will summarize the most important historical events and (socio-)linguistic facts and features.
The purpose is to give a general overview over the English spoken in Canada and to create a better understanding of Canadians mentality, the relationships between the different provinces and the linguistic differences it has to its neighbor – the US.
To do so, this term paper is apportioned into three major points – the origin and history of English in Canada, the most prominent linguistic features as well as the sociolinguistic situation. The first chapter will provide a general overview over the (re-)discovery of Canada by the French and British, illustrate the historical chronology as well as explain why certain provinces have certain official languages.
In the second chapter, this term paper takes a look at the most distinctive linguistic features. What are the similarities to American or British English, what distinguishes US-American and British English from Canadian English and what is exclusive to the English spoken in Canada?
The third and final chapter is less theoretical. It will tell the reader more about the life in Canada. It designates the languages that have been and are currently spoken in the country and offers some insight into the Educational System as well as the land of media in Canada.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. The European Rediscovery of Canada
2.1 Origin of English in Canada
2.2. History of English in Canada
3. Linguistic Features
3.1 Grammar and Spelling
3.2 Vocabulary and Canadianisms
3.3 Pronunciation
4. Sociolinguistics
4.1 Indigenous Languages
4.2 French in Canada
4.2 School
4.3 Media
5. Conclusion
6. Bibliography
1. Introduction
English is the leading language of international discourse, mainstream media and is the official language of 67 countries total, the most known ones being the US, the United Kingdom, Australia and Canada.
This term paper will discuss the English spoken in Canada, elucidate its Role in the country and inform about the sociolinguistic situation. It will also pay attention to some of the other languages that have been and are currently spoken in Canada.
Since this term paper does not pursue an actual Research Question, it will summarize the most important historical events and (socio-)linguistic facts and features. The purpose is to give a general overview of the English spoken in Canada and to create a better understanding of Canadians mentality, the relationships between the different provinces and the linguistic differences it has to its neighbor - the US.
To do so, this term paper is apportioned into three major points - the Origin and History of English in Canada, the most prominent Linguistic Features as well as the Sociolinguistic Situation.
The first chapter will provide a general overview over the (Re-)Discovery of Canada by the French and British, illustrate the historical chronology as well as explain why certain provinces have certain official languages. It is split into the subchapters “Origin of English in Canada”, which will inform more about the beginnings of the European occupation of the land today known as Canada, and “History of English in Canada”, which describes the evolution the language underwent.
In the second chapter, this paper takes a look at the most distinctive Linguistic Features. What are the similarities to American or British English, was distinguishes US-American and British English from Canadian English and what is exclusive to the English spoken in Canada?
The third and final chapter is less theoretical. It will tell the reader more about the life in Canada. It designates the languages that have been and are currently spoken in the country and offers some insight into the Canadian Educational System as well as the Land of Media.
2. The European Rediscovery of Canada
Hundreds of years ago, the land of Canada was inhabited by indigenous people who spent most of their time trading fur or hunting whales, living in harmony with nature. To feed themselves, they would hunt for deer, seals, moose, or walrus (Riendenau 2007: 9). It is believed that the first natives migrated from Siberia to Alaska via land bridge more than 10,000 years ago, namely towards the end of the ice age. Roger E. Riendenau explains that around 1800 “Almost half of the Native Population of Canada lived in modern-day British Columbia on the eve of European contact” (Riendenau 2007: 12).
There is not much known and captured about the original European (re-)discovery of Canada. Several (more critical) sources use the term Rediscovery because, of course, Canada has already been discovered at that time - by the indigenous people. It is believed that the European Rediscovery has happened as early as 986. Events start to be more well documented with the settlements and occupations in the seventeenth hundred.
2.1 Origin of English in Canada
In 1535, French explorer Jacques Cartier discovered the St. Lawrence River not far from what is now known as Montreal. He then claimed the region for France. In the early seventeenth century, the permanent French settlement of the region began (Boberg 2010: 57). Those modern agricultural settlements expanded further and further up to Québec. We now know this colony as The New France.
In 1670, British colonizers started trading fur themselves with the Aboriginal people around the Hudson Bay Area. In the early eighteenth century, those British traders expanded their business inland and they looked for more land to occupy and more resources to use for their affairs (Boberg 2010: 57). The British Colonizers became the superior force in Canada and naturally brought their language along with them.
2.2. History of English in Canada
After the Proclamation of Independence in 1763, the British influence was enforced to the area today known as Canada. This included Québec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia as well as Hudson Bay and was called British North America. The British operated a policy of demarcation from the USA and on oppression of the French, which also included an aggressive immigration policy that forced approximately 40,000 Loyalists from the North and Middle East of America to immigrate (Rogers 2016). By its very nature, this immigration policy led to political tension. In an attempt to counteract, the Constitution Act was issued in 1791 which divided Canada into an English-speaking Province (Upper Canada) and a Frenchspeaking one (Lower Canada). Originally, Québec, whose official language is now French, was divided and belonged to both Upper and Lower Canada (Hall 2006).
In the early nineteenth century, the discontent between the Anglo-Canadians and the French-Canadians has not yet come to a halt and more protests sparked. As a consequence, the Union Act was issued in 1840 in which Upper and Lower Canada were united and became the Province of Canada. In the Province of Canada, English was declared as the official language. Québec already mainly consisted of French speakers.
Fast forward to the 1960s. In 1963 Canada went through a great crisis. After World War II, the number of immigrants increased and they would mainly settle in economically strong provinces, such as Ontario, Toronto or Québec. Due to ecological factors, those immigrants were more likely to intergrate into the Anglo-Canadian society which added new fuel for confrontations between the Anglo-Canadians and the French-Canadians.
In 1963, the Royal Commission on Bilinguialism and Biculture was introduced. In this act, Both languages were declared as equal on federal level, but also in education and in official institutions (Edwards 1998).
The Province of Qébec has not signed the constutution but instead signed the Charte de la langue francaise in 1977. Due to this, French is the only official language in Québec.
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