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In:Stability and Divergence in Language Contact: Factors and Mechanisms
Edited by Kurt Braunmüller, Steffen Höder and Karoline Kühl
[Studies in Language Variation 16] 2014
► pp. 13–38

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Linguistic stability and divergence

An extended perspective on language contact

Published online: 26 November 2014
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https://doi.org/10.1075/silv.16.02kuh
In contrast to the amount of research that has been performed on linguistic convergence in language contact, this paper focuses on the possibility of linguistic systems remaining stable, or even diverging, in language contact settings. It carves out multiple relevant mechanisms and factors that influence linguistic stability and divergence (e.g. degree and type of multilingual competence, sociolinguistic, socio-economic and socio-political factors, cognitive mechanisms, etc.) and gives an account of contact situations where structural divergence and stability can be observed. Based on these examples, we suggest a classification of divergence and stability that builds on the assumption that these developments may take place either due to, or despite, language contact.
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