A Multidimensional Study of Language Variation in Pre-Partition Legal Texts of Sindh in English
Abstract
This research endeavors to illuminate the linguistic intricacies within the realm of pre-partition (prior to 1947) Sindh legal English by employing Biber's multidimensional analysis model 1988. The corpus under investigation comprises legal English texts from the pre-partition era in Sindh. The primary objective is to scrutinize this corpus through the lens of Biber's five dimensions and gain insight into its inherent characteristics, aided by the application of a Multidimensional Analysis Tool modeled after Biber's 1988 framework. This study adopts a mixed-method approach, encompassing both quantitative and qualitative analyses. The findings of this research unveil several noteworthy observations. The pre-partition Sindh legal corpus is characterized by language use that is informative, non-narrative, context-independent, less overtly expressive, and notably abstract and technical in nature. This not only provides a valuable insight into the historical evolution of legal language but also underscore the significance of linguistic heritage in the legal discourse of the Sindh region. Furthermore, this study contributes to the broader understanding of legal English in a historical context and highlights the enduring influence of linguistic factors on legal communication.
References
Abdulaziz, M. (2017). A Multi-Dimensional Analysis of Pakistani Learner Writing (thesis).
Ahmad, S. (2015). Linguistic Variation Across Press Reportage in Pakistani Print media: A Multidimensional Analysis.
Ali, S. A. (2016). Multidimensional Analysis of Pakistani English Fiction. Ph.D. dissertation, Govt. College University Faisalabad.
Alvi, U. F., & Mahmood, M. A. (2016). A Multidimensional Analysis of Pakistani Press Editorials. The Dialogue, 11(284), 3270-284.
Asghar, S. A., Mahmood, M. A., & Asghar, Z. M. (2018). A Multidimensional Analysis of Pakistani Legal English (thesis).
Bhatia, V. K. (1987). Textual-Mapping in British Legislative Writing. World Englishes, 6, 1-10. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1467-971X.1987.tb00172.x
Bhatia, V. K. (1993). Analysing Genre: Language Use in Professional Settings (p. 5). London: Longman.
Biber, D. (1988). Variation Across Speech and Writing. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Danet, B. (1983). Studies in legal discourse (pp. 440-500). Special Edition of Text 4.
Danet, B. (1985). Legal Discourse. In T. A. Van Dijk (Ed.), Handbook of Discourse Analysis 1. London: Academic Press.
Gotti, M. (2008). Investigating specialized discourse. Peter Lang.
Jackson, B. S. (1995). Making Sense in Law. Deborah Charles Publications, Liverpool.
Khan, R. B., & Khan, S. Q. (2015). Stylistic study of legal language. International Journal of Engineering Research and General Science, 3(1).
Maley, Y. (1994). The language of the law. In J. Gibbons (Ed.), Language and the Law (pp. 11-50). New York: Longman.
Mattila, H. E. S. (2006). Comparative legal linguistics. Hampshire: Ashgate Publishing.
Mellinkoff, D. (2004). The language of the law. Wipf and Stock Publishers.
Nini, A. 2015. Multidimensional Analysis Tagger (Version 1.3.3). Available at:
http://sites.google.com/site/multidimensionaltagger
Shakir, A. (2013). Linguistic variation across print advertisements in Pakistani media: A multidimensional analysis.
Tiersma, P. (1999). Legal Language. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Trosborg, A. (1995). Interlanguage pragmatics: Requests, complaints, and apologies (Vol. 7). Walter de Gruyter.
Trosborg, A. (1997). Text typology and translation (Vol. 26). John Benjamins Publishing.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2023 Muhammad Waleed Butt, Rooh Ul Amin, Ghulam Ali
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
