Framework for the documentation and description of the language situation of non-dominating varieties of pluricentric languages

Proposed by Rudolf Muhr with contributions from Leo Kretzenbacher.

General Features

1. Name of the language the documented variety belongs to
2. Other varieties and location(s) of the same language
3. The name(s) of the variety: Official / Other name(s)
4. Country of origin of the variety
5. Number of speakers of the variety (estimated or official)
6. Use of the variety: written and spoken or only spoken
7. Writing system/alphabet of the variety: Specific or shared with other varieties?
8. Which type of alphabet is used (Latin/Arabic/Cyrillic etc.)?
9. Is the variety intelligible with other varieties of the same language?
10. Linguistic fragmentation: Is there a second level of pluricentricity within the nd-variety, eg. pan-regional varieties forming larger areas within the country?

Standardisation / Codification

1. Corpora: Are there electronic text corpora of the ndv-variety?
2. The linguistic/pragmatic features of the variety are well studied / little studied / not studied
3. Pronunciation: Are there scientific studies / pronunciation dictionary(ies) about the specific phonetic / phonological features of the nd-variety
4. Lexicon: Are there scientific studies / dictionary(ies) of the nd-variety? (Spelling-dictionaries, learners dictionaries., universal dictionaries., thesaurus, etc.)
5. Grammar: Are there scientific studies on morphology and syntax of the nd-variety? / Are there complete grammars of the nd-variety?
6. Pragmatics: Are there scientific studies on the pragmatics of the nd-variety?
7. Awareness: Is there linguistic awareness in the speaker-community of the features of the nd-variety?
8. Linguistic Identity: Are the linguistic features part of the individual, social and national identity?
9. Language loyalty: Are speakers of the nd-variety loyal to their variety by avoiding the features of the dominating variety(ies)? Are the elites of the community loyal to the variety or showing a tendency to prefer the features of the dominating variety(ies)?
10. Language development / shift: How strong is the linguistic contact between the non-dominating and dominating variety? Is there a shift towards the dominating variety or away from it?

Language Policy

1. Is there an explicit/implicit language policy concerning the codification, status- and corpus-planning of the nd-variety?
2. Are there specific measures and institutions for the codification of the nd-variety?
3. Is there a co-operation between the norm-setting (codifying) institutions of the d-variety(ies) and the nd-variety?
4. Does the nd-variety have any impact on the norm(s) of the pluricentric language?
5. How is the variety dealt with in education? Is there an emphasis on the linguistic features of the nd-variety in primary and secondary education?
6. How are publishing houses dealing with the linguistic features of the nd-variety in literary works? Are they corrected?