Avoidance speech

Avoiding language or mother tongue ( Engl avoidance speech / Mother- in-law Language) is a special linguistic registers of many Australian and also some Bantu and North American languages, only when communicating with certain relatives ( including in-law ), which the contact is sanctioned socially outside the linguistic dimension, is used. Avoiding languages ​​are used to communicate with relatives, if it is absolutely necessary.

Conceptual history

The term Mother- in-Law Language in 1972, marked by the Australian linguist Robert Malcolm Ward Dixon in the description of Dyirbal language that has such a register and published (see references ). Dixon has later distanced himself from the term because it too strong awareness of the importance of the mother in the foreground and the rules for use of the register are more complex and also may vary from one language community to language community. Dixon preferred today neutral term avoidance speech, with the names of mother language or Mother- in-law language but have naturalized and are used as before.

Structural properties

The grammar ( phonology, morphosyntax, syntax ) the avoidance language is largely the same as the normal language. The differences lie on the Lexemebene: Avoiding language has a much smaller base vocabulary as the normal language and is, therefore, essential non-specific. In the related to the Pama - Nyunga languages ​​Language Yir - Yoront for example, is to prevent language has only one lexeme larr = olhth, the ' lie ' the entire semantic range of ' sit ' ( in the normal language wun ) ( in normal language NHIN ), ' fall ' covers ( in the normal language tholhth ). Many expressions are also formed periphrastically. In addition, the avoidance of language usually on a very high proportion of borrowed lexemes. Reason for both is the creation of as much indirectness in communication.