Is Religion a Social Factor in the Variation of (ðˤ)? The Case of Khirbit Al-Wahadneh, Jordan

Abstract

This is a sociolinguistic study investigating the variation of the phonological variable (ðˤ) in Al-Wahadneh town in Jordan where Christians and Muslims live together peacefully and harmoniously. The phonological variable (ðˤ) has two variants: a traditional [ðˤ] and an innovative [dˤ]. The main objective of this study is to examine if religion is a statistically significant social factor in relation to the variable in question. The data is elicited from recorded sociolinguistic interviews and analysed via Rbrul. The results show that religion has no statistically significant influence on the pronunciation of the linguistic variable under investigation. The pattern of linguistic change with regard to (ðˤ) seems to be a typical change in progress away from the traditional variant [ðˤ] in favour of the innovative variant [dˤ]. This change is clearly led by the young female generation. The findings regarding the nonsignificant role of religion on variant choice in Al-Wahadneh can be interpreted in relation to how Christians and Muslims live in the town and how they both view themselves as Jordanian Arabs regardless of their religious affiliation. Keywords: Religion, Variationist Sociolinguistics, Age, Gender.