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Terminology question. For a few years now I’ve been writing about ‘Multicultural Urban British English’. In a recent chapter I dropped the ‘multicultural’, making it ‘Urban British English’. I’m aware of the problematic use of the word ‘urban’ in lots of contexts, but... 1/
... felt outside this debate because I was specifically talking about geographically ‘urban’ spaces. But maybe I’m not outside the debate, especially as young people outside geographically urban areas are using the language I’m describing. And there is an ethnicity element. 2/
I also think there may be a UK/US distinction with regard to the strength of the connotations of the word. Either way, it’s a good time to reflect on terminology. So what I’m looking to discuss is whether the label ‘Urban British English’ to describe a variety of language... 3/
... that has emerged through or alongside Multicultural London English in other areas of the UK (primarily, but not solely geographically urban) is problematic? Linguist/non-linguist opinions welcome. 4/4
