A Typology of Canadianisms

Summary

How to Use DCHP-3A Typology of CanadianismsEntry StructureFrequency ChartsOther ChartsList of LabelsCopyright NoteThe basic principles of entry structure remain the same as in DCHP-2 (see here), though the appearance is quite different.A Typology of CanadianismsWhile this dictionary lists entries (headwords, lexemes), meanings are its smallest unit. Each meaning is assigned to one of six Types of Canadianism or is marked as “Non-Canadian”. The label “Non-Canadian” is used for meanings that were previously classified as Canadian or that were suspected to be Canadian but turned out to be none of our six types. The six types of Canadianisms are:Type 1 – Origin: a form and its meaning were created in what is now CanadaType 2 – Preservation: a form or meaning that was once widespread in many Englishes, but is now preserved in Canadian English in the North American context or beyond; sometimes called “retention”Type 3 – Semantic Change: forms that have undergone semantic change in Canadian EnglishType 4 – Culturally Significant: forms or meanings that have been enshrined in the Canadian psyche and are widely seen as part of Canadian identityType 5 – Frequency: forms or meanings that are Canadian by virtue of frequencyType 6 – Memorial: forms or meanings now widely considered to be pejorativeNon-Canadian: forms or meanings once thought to be Canadian for which evidence is lacking(Dollinger 2019: 122-23)Type 1 is a Canadianism by virtue of originating—entering the English language—in what is now Canada. A classic example is garburator; newer examples from this edition are hang a larry, hang a roger, levidrome, renovict and quinzhee. Type 2 is a preservation in Canadian English from another variety of English, often from the UK but also from the US. The standard example is pencil crayon, once used in the US and now exclusively Canadian. Newer examples are joe job, the newly reclassified parkade and peace bond.Type 3 is assigned when semantic change has been witnessed of an o...