Nilsson2022
| Nilsson2022 | |
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| BibType | INCOLLECTION |
| Key | Nilsson2022 |
| Author(s) | Jenny Nilsson, Jan Lindström, Love Bohman, Catrin Norrby, Klara Skogmyr Marian, Camilla Wide |
| Title | Pragmatic variation across geographical and social space |
| Editor(s) | Andreas H. Jucker, Heiko Hausendorf |
| Tag(s) | EMCA, space |
| Publisher | De Gruyter Mouton |
| Year | 2022 |
| Language | English |
| City | Berlin |
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| Pages | 611-636 |
| URL | Link |
| DOI | 10.1515/9783110693713-019 |
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| Howpublished | |
| Book title | Pragmatics of Space |
| Chapter | |
Abstract
This chapter examines how pragmatic variation interfaces with several dimensions of space, not only geographical space but also social space. We approach space from a variational pragmatics perspective and conceive it as a layered phenomenon with local, regional, and national levels that are intertwined with one another as well as with social dimensions of space. We present an empirical study of greeting behavior in Swedish service encounters to illustrate how these layers of space interact and are relevant for pragmatic variation. Qualitative observations of greeting sequences combined with statistical analyses of several co-variables are used to unravel connections between the choice of a greeting form and spatial and social factors. We show that the levels of nation and region (i. e., data from a certain country and town) can account for a certain degree of variation in the choice of greeting forms, but the local levels of space (i. e., interactions in specific venues) and social variables like the speaker’s age and gender also have an explanatory force. Spaces can also bear recognizable cultural meanings to the people who interact in them, triggering certain kinds of social behavior that is symbolically represented in language use.
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