Developing Grammars

This study deals with variation in grammar both from a theoretical and an empirical point of view. In Part I (Chaps. 1-4), an attempt is made to char- acterize this phenomenon within the broader context of what might be called the "e;fluctuating character of natu'ral language"e;, and to develop suitable and precise descriptive techniques that account for it. The method which is pro- posed here is called "e;variety grammar"e; - roughly speaking, this is a formal grammar with probabilistic weighting for an ordered set of varieties, such as dialects, sociolects, registers, or developmental stages. In Part II (Chaps. 5-8), this technique is applied to an important area of grammatical variation - to the process of second language acquisition in social context, based on a large investigation of the language behavior of foreign migrant workers acquiring German through everyday contacts. We have tried to characterize their "e;developing grammars"e; and to relate this complex developmental process to social and individual factors that determine it.