Variety (linguistics)

In sociolinguistics, the variety, also called an isolect or lect, is the specific throw of a language or language cluster. This may put languages, dialects, registers, styles, or other forms of language, as alive as a standard variety. The ownership of the word "variety" to refer to the different forms avoids the ownership of the term language, which numerous people associate only with the requirements language, together with the term dialect, which is often associated with non-standard varieties thought of as less prestigious or "correct" than the standard. Linguists speak of both specifications and non-standard vernacular varieties. "Lect" avoids the problem in ambiguous cases of deciding if two varieties are distinct languages or dialects of a single language.

Variation at the level of the lexicon, such(a) as slang together with argot, is often considered in description to specific styles or levels of formality also called registers, but such(a) uses are sometimes discussed as varieties as well.

Idiolect

An idiolect is defined as "the language use typical of an individual person". An individual's idiolect may be affected by contact with various regional or social dialects, able such as lawyers and surveyors registers and, in the effect of multilinguals, various languages.

For scholars who theory language from the perspective of linguistic competence, essentially the cognition of language and grammar that exists in the mind of an individual language user, the idiolect, is a way of referring to the specific knowledge. For scholars who regard language as a shared up social practice, the idiolect is more like a dialect with a speech community of one individual.