ABSTRACT
This article addresses the issue of the linguistic and social correlates of sound diffusion with reference to the variables (q), (θ), (Ð) and (ʤ) in the speech of Jordanian women within the framework of the quantitative variationist approach. It begins with a review of the historical events which have determined the demographic and sociopolitical constitution of Jordan. The linguistic data indicate that the interdental variables exhibit the largest amount of variation, probably symptomatic of change in the direction of the stop variants. The linguistic properties of the sounds involved and local identity are principal considerations in the interpretation of the variables’ behaviour. If the variation attested manifests itself in actual linguistic changes, the emerging mix represents features of a ‘new dialect’ which is emerging as a result of contact between indigenous Jordanian varieties and urban Palestinian varieties; the new combination of features is not present in any of the dialects in the original mix, nor is it attested in any other existing variety in the region.
