"In a country obsessed with linguistic purity, it turns a stigma into a positive emblem, a form of covert prestige," Ms. Lefkowitz said.
The reason why only two linguistic varieties are found in the glyphic texts is probably that these served as prestige dialects throughout the Maya region; hieroglyphic texts would have been composed in the language of the elite.
"Substandard," the dictionary tells us, "indicates status conforming to a pattern of linguistic usage that exists throughout the American language community but differs in choice of word or form from that of the prestige group in that community".
Applications of linguistic anthropology seek remedies for language extinction and language-based discrimination, which are often driven by popular ideologies about the relative prestige and utility of different languages.
The social prestige attached to the speech of the richest, most powerful, and most highly educated members of a society transforms their language into a model for others; it also contributes to the elimination of deviating linguistic forms.
The prestige is gratifying.
"We actually shunned prestige".
