[ExI] Genes and the Great Vowel Shift

[PJ Manney]

On Sun, Feb 24, 2008 at 10:23 AM, Damien Broderick <thespike at satx.rr.com> wrote:
> This "gene theory" of utterance is all the most incredible
> codswallop. Haven't you guys ever spoken to an Asian-ancestry human
> raised in California or Sydney, or a Pakistani from Leeds, or a kid
> from an impoverished background who's been sent to a classy school?
> Genes, schmemes. (Pun intended.)

Hey, that was my point, but I thought that I'd at least throw the gene
thing in to see if it flew.  My inclination says no, or not that much.
 It's where you're raised and the influences you have, which shift
culturally over time.  My point was that cultural influences are more
malleable and international than people think.

Look at my kids.  Started as North Island Kiwis (G'day, Mate!), ended
up as Southern Californians, Spanglish and all (Hey Mom, Cómo estás?
I got mucho homework.).  In fact, Spanglish is a perfect example of
languages' cultural shifts in California over 500 years.  From
AmerIndian to Spanish to English to... Spanglish.

PJ