English Explanatory Dictionary

diglossia

English dictionary entry

Meanings

noun
  1. The coexistence in a given population of two closely related native languages or dialects, one of which is regarded as more prestigious than the other; the similar coexistence of two unrelated languages.
  2. The presence of a cleft or doubled tongue.

Pronunciation

dī'glŏʹsē.ə LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-diglossia.wav /ˌdaɪˈɡlɒsi.ə/ /ˌdaɪˈɡlɑsi.ə/

Word forms

diglossia diglossy

Etymology

From Latin diglōssia. In linguistics introduced 1959 by Charles A. Ferguson, based on French diglossie, from Ancient Greek δίγλωσσος (díglōssos, “bilingual”) + -ία (-ía). Equivalent to di- + -glossia.

Synonyms

bifid tongue cleft tongue

Related words

diglossic polyglossia
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