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Diglossia and Literacy.

In a society where literacy is not universal, not all speakers control the use of the school-imparted H-variety. This does not mean that illiterates have the option of using the L variety in H-variety domains; rather, the expectation is that they will remain silent[*] rather than exhibit inappropriate linguistic norms. Their linguistic behavior is in fact restricted to the L domains, and use of H domains is de facto the monopoly of the educated few.



Harold Schiffman
1/25/1999