Wallon: Sociolinguistic Ideological Analysis

INTRODUCTION

Far from being original occurrences, individual linguistic attitudes are the direct result of the socio-cultural determinism produced by a given society, therefore, a speaker’s set of representations typically mirrors the larger system of norms of his or her collectivity of reference. This thesis endeavors to identify, describe, and explain how speakers articulate their linguistic attitudes on Walloon, and their implications from a perspective of language maintenance and revitalization. Within the framework of the linguistic imaginary model, we examine the meta-discourse of social network users expressing themselves in the numerical agora.

The primary focus of the thesis is to uncover the linguistic ideology embedded in the

Therefore, this chapter briefly introduces Wallonia before zooming in on the relevant sociolinguistic features of Walloon. In the frame of this thesis, the first step was to select a denomination for Walloon as a code. Afterward, it was necessary to provide a summary of the linguistic variations of Walloon and to describe the attempts at standardization, which both play an important role in the construction of norms. Moreover, in line with the analysis of crucial elements to comprehend the roots of the social network users’ attitudes, a significant portion of the chapter discusses the diglossic relationship of Walloon and French and its consequences. Finally, the last point portrays the situation of the Walloon-speaking community in terms of history, characteristics, and

These norms display a disparate ensemble of representations where negative and positive associations intertwine in a complex web of glotto-stereotypes. First, Walloon becomes the crystallization of the opposition between the pastoral countryside and the decadent city, or, alternatively, between the underdeveloped periphery versus the sophisticated center. Besides, frequent association with farmers, users often mobilize the figure of the baraki to describe Walloon speakers, thereby creating a potent association of Walloon with lower classes. Moreover, an obvious insecurity arises in the discourse of speakers when it comes to Walloon’s legitimacy as a medium of culture and as a language for a formal register, along with a multitude of demeaning terms putting into question the Walloon speakers’ intelligence. Nevertheless, the affective dimension of Walloon offers a vigorous counterweight to the aforementioned negative set of