How many distinct dialects are there in English language?

Scottish The Scottish accent as we know it now developed as late as the 1700s, but existed in different forms before that. It was heavily influenced by the Gaelic language, which was (and still sometimes is) spoken in certain areas of Scotland, as well as Norse languages from Viking invaders.

Why does English have a lot of dialects?

Dialects and accents developed historically when groups of language users lived in relative isolation, without regular contact with other people using the same language. This was more pronounced in the past due to the lack of fast transport and mass media.

Does English have formal and informal?

Most uses of English are neutral; that is, they are neither formal nor informal. Formal language and informal language are associated with particular choices of grammar and vocabulary. Contractions, relative clauses without a relative pronoun and ellipsis are more common in informal language.

What are the differences in the types of English?

British English and American English are the most widely used. American English is mainly spoken in the Americas and Canada (although writing in Canada also uses British English), whereas British English is spoken in the UK and other English-speaking countries. In Australia they speak Australian English.

What is the difference between dialect and standard English?

This also implies that, although all RP speakers speak Standard English, Standard English can be spoken with an accent. An accent of a speaker refers only to the pronunciation of utterances, whereas a dialect describes the lexical use, grammar and pronunciation.

What makes English different?

English is a non-tonal language. Thus it sounds very different from tone languages such Chinese or Vietnamese. In tone languages pitch is used to distinguish word meaning. So a word said with high pitch may have a different meaning than the same word said with a low pitch.

Do Americans have different dialects?

There are roughly 30 major dialects in America. On the East Coast, we have many very small regions, with slightly varying dialects in each one. Just like New England and the East Coast itself, it is more densely populated, with little pockets of immigrants from other countries.