ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses more detail at people's beliefs or ideologies about language. There are two competing models of what a language is, one of which could be referred to as the 'popular' model and the other as a more 'expert' model. The popular model differentiates between 'languages' and 'dialects', and postulates a hierarchical relation between them. Moreover, a 'language' tends to be automatically identified with the standard language, as described in grammars and dictionaries. According to this model, there is no purely linguistic difference between languages and dialects, and hence it would be preferable to refer to them all as linguistic 'resources' or 'varieties'. The chapter illustrates the expert model of language with reference to English. World Englishes are 'hybrid' varieties mixing English with local languages. The varieties with a high degree of hybridity are usually referred to as pidgins and creoles. The chapter also discusses some important consequences for language teaching and research of this alternative understanding of 'language'.
