 Linguistics is the scientific study of language. It involves
analyzing language form, language meaning, and language
in context.
 Linguistics is the study of language - how it is put together
and how it functions. Various building blocks of different types
and sizes are combined to make up a language.

 difference in size, degree, circumstances, etc.; lack of
equality.
 Inequality is concerned with disparities in the distribution of a
certain metric, which can be income, health or any other
material or non-material asset.

 Refers to the inability to manipulate a particular variety of
a language within a particular context, either through lack of
exposure or through some form of disadvantage

 Use of different linguist items by a speaker for communicating
the same message within different social situation gave birth
to the idea of linguistics inequalities
 People with different social and cultural background show the
levels of inequality as well as different social status.
 There are differences between the grammars of two people ,
there is no way of knowing which has higher prestige in
society simply by studying the grammars.

 Subjective Inequality
 Strictly linguistic Inequality
 Communicative Inequality

 It concerns what people think about other’s speech
 It is very common notion that people think according to the
way they speak
 Speaker is much valuable

 It relates to linguistic item
 Vocabulary is the field where experience can be most obvious
 In different social situation people perform differently

 It is concerned with knowledge
 It refers to the kind of knowledge or skill
 It include inequalities
 Children acquire attitude about knowledge

 Language based prejudice
 Social stereotype
 Prejudice
 Evaluation of language

Types of linguistics prejudice

Cognitive Uncertainty
The first kind of inequality involves prejudices about particular way of
speaking. One person can draw conclusion about another person’s
character and abilities simply on bases of how that person speaks,
regardless of the content of what they say. We need information about
another person’s personality because it affects our own behaviour.
Note:It is socially problematic because the conclusion drown may be
wrong, and may either underestimate or overestimate the extent to which
the speaker has various social desirable qualities

Linguistic Insecurity
 Some groups of people in Britain and Untied States do not believe that they
speak better than others but on the contrary think that they speak badly. This
phenomenon is known as Linguistic Insecurity Schools and the media can be
channels for creating such kind of linguistic prejudices

Prestige:
 Prestige describes the level of respect accorded to a language or dialect
as compared to that of other languages or dialects in a speech community.
The concept of prestige in sociolinguistics is closely related to that of
prestige or class within a society. Generally, there is positive prestige
associated with the language or dialect of the upper classes, and negative
prestige with the language or dialect of the lower classes. The concept of
prestige is also closely tied to the idea of the standard language, in that
the most prestigious dialect is likely to be considered the standard
language.

Overt Vs. Covert Prestige
 Overt prestige is acquired by those speakers who have command of a
standard dialect (or dialects) that is socially defined as that spoken to gain
social status within the wider community; often that of the elite
 Covert prestige, is acquired by those speakers desiring to belong; to be
considered a member of a certain community
 Example :A child who adopts the language of the upper class may lose the
respect and affection of his friend’s respect and even that of his family. So
he cannot give up all the forms of his local group. He will use a mixture of
both the forms of language. He will select positive images of both the
classes. But he gives preferences to upper-class (it is known as overt
prestige). and the use of selected local forms (covert prestige)