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In:Modeling World Englishes: Assessing the interplay of emancipation and globalization of ESL varieties
Edited by Sandra C. Deshors
[Varieties of English Around the World G61] 2018
► pp. 109–132

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Placing ELF among the varieties of English

Observations from typological profiling

 | University of Eastern Finland
Published online: 13 September 2018
DOI logo with link
https://doi.org/10.1075/veaw.g61.05lai
Abstract
This study investigates how (dis)similar ELF is structurally from the core native varieties of English, indigenized L2 varieties, and learner English. ELF is understood as second language use of English in settings where the interactants do not necessarily share a first language. The empirical part makes use of the method of typological profiling based on aggregate structural features. This method measures three indices (i.e. grammaticity, analyticity, and syntheticity), and it has been used previously to analyze a range of variety types but has not been applied to the assessment of ELF. The results provide quantitative evidence that places ELF on the map and shows that, on purely structural grounds, ELF is a distinct variety type among English varieties. Moreover, the observations show that ELF is structurally different from second language acquisition, and there is a quantitative basis for drawing a distinction between ELF and traditional learner data.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.The method of typological profiling and ELF
  • 3.First- and second generation ELF corpora as material
  • 4.Results
    • 4.1Grammaticity
    • 4.2ELF on a two-dimensional plane
    • 4.3Genre differences in ELF
  • 5.Discussion and implications
  • Acknowledgement
  • Note
  • References
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This list is based on CrossRef data as of 22 november 2025. Please note that it may not be complete. Sources presented here have been supplied by the respective publishers. Any errors therein should be reported to them.

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