Language versus dialect

A lot of people use the words "language" and "dialect" interchangeably. Dialect carries the connotation of being less legitimate, respectable and correct than a language. In reality, there are linguistic definitions for these terms.

Two languages are considered "dialects" of the same language if they are mutually intelligible -- meaning that if you speak one dialect and I speak the other, we can still understand each other. Dialects are no less complex, grammatically correct or legitimate than the "standards" of a language. The standard is only the standard because it is the language of power in a given society. The way that educated white people speak American English is the standard (erroneously considered "correct") because it is the language of power. Ebonics is not the standard so it's considered a dialect at best and a grammatically incorrect way of speaking at worst.

Considering the linguistic definition of dialects and languages, we can learn a lot about our world by looking at the social definitions of dialects and languages. For example, Swedish and Norwegian are mutually intelligible languages -- well, linguistically, dialects of the same language. A person who speaks Swedish can understand a person who speaks Norwegian and vice versa; they may not be able to speak the other's language, but they can understand it when they hear it.

Conversely, the regional differences in the language Arabic make it so that not everyone who speaks "Arabic" can understand everyone else who speaks "Arabic." The same thing is found with Mandarin. There are so many speakers and "dialects" that they should actually be considered different languages.

It's definitely Western-centric to consider Swedish and Norweigan different languages and to see the much greater differences in Arabic and Mandarin as merely dialects.

Dialects should not be confused with accents. Accents only differ phonetically and phonologically: this means, they only differ in how sounds are physically constructed in the mouth and paired with other sounds. Dialects differ in these ways, and also semantically, morphologically, syntactically... What is usually thought of as "grammar."

My linguistics class last semester was fantastic and I learned a lot that continues to be useful in understanding the world -- and makes great dinner party conversation and blog post fodder.