Online-Gemeinschaften und Sprachvariation. Soziolinguistische Perspektiven auf Sprache im Internet [Online communities and language variation. Sociolinguistic perspectives on language in the internet]

This paper presents a sociolinguistic perspective on language in the Internet. Most linguistic research on computer mediated communication has focused on media or genre related language variation, establishing language styles as typical for e.g. chat or newsgroups. A critical discussion of this research suggests that more attention should be paid to user related language variation. The concept of ‚online community‘ is proposed as a suitable starting point for the study of language variation on the Internet, and sociological and linguistic criteria for the definition and description of online communities are discussed. The second part of the paper presents a classification of sociolinguistically relevant variation patterns. Finally, evidence for the effect of various social factors on language use in the Internet is reviewed.

[1]  Helen E. Karn,et al.  Mock Ebonics: Linguistic racism in parodies of Ebonics on the Internet , 2002 .

[2]  B. Smit.  Chemie in cyberspace , 1999 .

[3]  Angelika Storrer,et al.  Schriftverkehr auf der Datenautobahn: Besonderheiten der schriftlichen Kommunikation im Internet , 2000 .

[4]  C. Thimm.  Soziales im Netz , 1999 .

[5]  John C. Paolillo.  Language variation on Internet Relay Chat: A social network approach , 2001 .

[6]  Jannis Androutsopoulos.  Non‐standard spellings in media texts: The case of German fanzines , 2000 .

[7]  Georg Rehm,et al.  Internetkommunikation und Sprachwandel , 1997 .

[8]  Diane F. Witmer,et al.  On-Line Smiles: Does Gender Make a Difference in the Use of Graphic Accents? , 2006, J. Comput. Mediat. Commun..

[9]  Angelika Storrer.  Getippte Gespräche oder dialogische Texte? Zur kommunikationstheoretischen Einordnung der Chat-Kommunikation , 2001 .

[10]  M. Castells.  The rise of the network society , 1996 .

[11]  Peter Schlobinski,et al.  Sprache und Kommunikation im Internet : Überblick und Analysen , 1998 .

[12]  C. Thimm,et al.  Soziale Beziehungen und innerbetriebliche Kommunikation: Formen und Funktionen elektronischer Schriftlichkeit in Unternehmen , 2000 .

[13]  Mark Sebba.  Will the real impersonator please stand up? Language and identity in the Ali G websites. , 2003 .

[14]  David Crystal,et al.  Language and the Internet , 2001 .

[15]  Michelle Rodino,et al.  Breaking out of Binaries: Reconceptualizing Gender and its Relationship to Languagein Computer-Mediated Communication , 2006, J. Comput. Mediat. Commun..

[16]  Peter Koch,et al.  Sprache der Nähe — Sprache der Distanz. Mündlichkeit und Schriftlichkeit im Spannungsfeld von Sprachtheorie und Sprachgeschichte , 1985, Romanistisches Jahrbuch.

[17]  J. Walther.  Computer-Mediated Communication , 1996 .

[18]  S. Herring.  Computer-mediated communication : linguistic, social and cross-cultural perspectives , 1996 .

[19]  C. Thimm,et al.  „Wie im richtigen Leben...“: Soziale Identität und sprachliche Kommunikation in einer Newsgroup , 2000 .

[20]  Brigitte Aschwanden.  Wär wot chätä?' Zum Sprachverhalten deutschschweizerischer Chatter , 2001 .

[21]  Susan C. Herring,et al.  Gender and Democracy in Computer-Mediated Communication , 1995, Computerization and Controversy, 2nd Ed..

[22]  N. Baym.  Tune In, Log On: Soaps, Fandom, and Online Community , 1999 .

[23]  C. Stegbauer.  Grenzen virtueller Gemeinschaft , 2001 .

[24]  N. Baym.  The emergence of on-line community , 1998 .

[25]  Elke Hentschel.  Communication on IRC , 1998 .

[26]  Alexandra Georgakopoulou,et al.  Self‐presentation and interactional alliances in e‐mail discourse: the style‐ and code‐switches of Greek messages , 1997 .

[27]  Marc A. Smith.  Invisible Crowds in Cyberspace: Mapping the Social Structure of the Usenet , 1999 .