“I’d say it’s a smart English accent”: A case study of language attitudes on Reddit

Publikation: Beitrag in Buch/Konferenzbericht/Sammelband/GutachtenBeitrag in Buch/Sammelband/GutachtenBeigetragenBegutachtung

Abstract

In this chapter, I explore the potential of the social media platform Reddit for World Englishes research with a case study of attitudes towards Englishes expressed by members of the subreddits r/indianews and r/IndiaSpeaks. The study employs qualitative and quantitative as well as corpus-based and corpus-driven methods to investigate how users on the two subreddits discuss Indian English and other varieties of English. The findings from emotion analysis, topic modelling, and adjective-noun bigram inspection reveal a complex picture, with some users expressing negative/overtly prescriptive attitudes towards English(es) while others’ attitudes are positive. This mixed picture has potential implications for how English in India may develop further in the future. Methodologically, the chapter illustrates that Reddit is a powerful yet complex resource for the study of World Englishes: while the platform provides access to relatively naturalistic written language and is a space of constant language contact, there are also methodological limitations and caveats when using Reddit data for World Englishes.

Details

OriginalspracheEnglisch
TitelEnglish Language Contacts and Change in the Digital Age
Redakteure/-innenHeli Paulasto, Lea Meriläinen, Samuli Kaislaniemi, Mikko Laitinen
ErscheinungsortLeiden
Herausgeber (Verlag)Brill, Leiden
Kapitel3
Seiten84-113
ISBN (elektronisch)978-90-04-75783-7
ISBN (Print)978-90-04-75732-5
PublikationsstatusVeröffentlicht - 2026
Peer-Review-StatusJa

Publikationsreihe

ReiheLanguage and Computers
Band87
ISSN0921-5034