Utah English

By David Ellingson Eddington

Is English in Utah truly unique? If so, what makes it different? Which stereotypes about how Utahns speak are completely off base and which are accurate? To answer these questions, linguist David Eddington surveyed more than 1,700 Utahns in an effort to better understand and systematize the peculiarities of English spoken in the Beehive State. This resulting book is a sophisticated data analysis that presents results in an accessible and often humorous fashion.
 
Utah is linguistically interesting for a variety of reasons. The massive numbers of immigrants who flocked there in the first years of European settlement, its relative isolation until completion of the transcontinental railroad, and its large Latter-day Saint population signaled greater linguistic commonality than is often the case in other western states. The book argues that religious affiliation, or lack thereof, might particularly play a role in the features that make up Utah English.
 
An accessible study of dialect in Utah, this book explores how social and geographic factors influence the pronunciations and regional expressions that characterize Utah English. Reflecting years of dealing with misconceptions about dialect both in and out of the classroom, Eddington covers vocabulary, individual words, syntax, vowels, and consonants, blending a serious and sometimes humorous approach to his research.

• Language: English
• Publisher: University of Utah Press
• Release date: Aug 31, 2023
• ISBN: 9781647691127

David Ellingson Eddington

David Ellingson Eddington is a native Utahn. He was born in Murray, raised in Holladay and presently resides with the love of his life in Woodland Hills in a log home at six thousand feet where they are often visited by their fourteen grandchildren. He is a professor of linguistics at Brigham Young University, where, in addition to Utah dialect, he specializes in the Spanish language.

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