ABSTRACT
In Carton's model, quality and quantity of markers increase in linear fashion as one descends the hierarchy. A number of incremental pieces of evidence thus suggest that RF and Dialect variables need not co-vary, and that a two-dimensional model. On this alternative model, Regional and Dialectal French vary in twodimensional space rather than along a single hierarchy. The Avion evidence thus far suggests that RF is best viewed as an emergent koiné that varies independently of local substrate dialects, rather than simply their linguistic residue. The general reluctance of commentators to analyse RF as a self-contained system in the manner of, say, East Anglian English, almost certainly stems from the lack of a clear dividing line between Regional and Dialectal French, and the consequent indeterminacy of a number of items. In Avion as in Tyneside, younger speakers have adopted new features by accommodating to other people who are perceived to be ‘modern’ or socially attractive for other reasons.
