Language development in extra-territorial languages : terms of address in Colombian Spanish

Abstract

This study investigates the use of terms of address in extra-territorial languages and determines how terms of address function in language to encode relationships. In addition, this study examines how the relationship between speaker and addressee influences choice of address forms in Colombian Spanish. Finally, the hypothesis put forward by this study proposes that the influence of the relationship between speaker and addressee supersedes the influence of personal characteristics of speaker and addressee, such as gender, age and social class. The study begins by outlining three predicted outcomes for extra-territorial languages: i) colonial lag; the retention of linguistic features by the extra-territorial varieties of language which have fallen out of use in the variety of language used in the metropolis, ii) dialect mixing due to contact with regional dialects and iii) language variation due contact with other languages in the new territory. In addition, this study discusses Mufwene’s (2001) Founder Principle and the influence of the Founder Population on the development of new varieties of language. Mufwene proposes that the first settlers in a new territory demonstrate the strongest influence on the new variety of language which emerges.