Unn Royneland
Biographic Data
| ID | 755175 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Unn Royneland |
| GIVEN NAMES | Unn |
| FAMILY NAME | Royneland |
| SIGNATURE | ROYNELAND U |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Oslo |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-0042-7015 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 13 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 12 |
| WORKS AS AUTHOR | 13 |
| WORKS AS EDITOR | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2000 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
Spotting the lect
This study investigates how Norwegian adolescents with different literacy profiles perceive and distinguish standard and dialectal varieties of written Norwegian. Using a variety classification task, we analyzed response accuracy and reaction times (RTs) among 398 lower secondary school pupils across three regions: Eastern Norway (primarily Bokmål-literate), Northern Norway (exposed to Bokmål and dialect writing), and Western Norway (familiar wit…
Introduction
Norms at play
This article focuses on the complex nature of the creative freedom often displayed in acts of digital social writing. Drawing on theoretical contributions from philosophy of language and psychology, the authors argue that even in communication where prescriptive norms are deliberately challenged, creative ways of multilectal and multilingual writing are still shaped by norms and normativity. Mutually recognized norms are part of the common ground…
Dialect acquisition and migration in Norway – questions of authenticity, belonging and legitimacy
Norway is known for its dialect diversity and also for the fact that dialects, on the whole, are cherished and used within all social domains and by people in all social strata. Previous studies indicate that also immigrants to Norway tend to acquire and use local speech, and that this generally is positively perceived. However, language alone may not always be enough to be accepted as someone who belongs and claims of local identity may be rejec…
Modelling acquisition and use of dialectal, standard and multiethnolectal features in migratory contexts across Europe
Large scale in-migration waves of people speaking a diversity of languages into those parts of Europe which used to be called ‘western Europe’ before 1989 have fundamentally changed the linguistic landscapes of these countries. These social and demographical transformations represent a considerable challenge for linguistics, and in many parts of Europe, linguists have accepted this challenge. However, the question of how this new linguistic heter…
Elizabeth Lanza, Mari C. R. Otnes & Unn Røyneland

Joina du kino imårgå? Ungdommars dialektskriving på sosiale medium
This study investigates the use of written dialect among adolescents from four different locations in Norway, each representing one of the main dialect areas of the country (north, central, west, and east). The data are drawn from the larger study Multilectal Practices in Social Media where a total of 1532 students from 42 different upper secondary schools in all regions of Norway have completed an online questionnaire about their language compet…
Revision of the Nynorsk standard
In this paper I will discuss the most recent developments in Norwegian language policy and planning by considering the language reforms that took place, and were then implemented, just after the turn of the century (2005 and 2012). I will give particular focus to the revision of the Nynorsk standard as this process raised pertinent questions regarding top-down versus bottom-up approaches to language standardisation. An initially proposed revision…
MultiLing. Center for Multilingualism in Society across the Lifespan
The world is connecting in many complex ways, driven by the globally integrated nature of technological innovation and human mobility across continents. Never before have so many different speakers and languages existed side by side in the OECD countries as they do today. This reality has placed multilingualism in the spotlight. Increased migration and transcultural flows across borders in Europe have highlighted the urgency for research on multi…
Introduction
First of all we want to thank the general editors of the Nordic Journal of Linguistics for this opportunity to present to the readers of one of the most important linguistics journals in Northern Europe some specimens of sociolinguistic research. When we were approached by the general editors, we wholeheartedly agreed that this would be a good idea, although – or rather, precisely for this reason – sociolinguists in general have not been keen on …
Dialects in Norway
Norway has sometimes been described as a sociolinguistic paradise with its abundant linguistic heterogeneity — both written and spoken. Dialect diversity has been and is still considerable and dialects are used in practically all social domains. However, dialects in Norway are changing. In this article I will discuss the historical background for the linguistic situation in Norway, and I will take a closer look at present-day developments and dis…
Multiethnolectal facts and functions in Oslo, Norway
Over the last 20 years, linguists have documented the emergence of multiethnolectal speech among adolescents in linguistically and culturally diverse areas in Western Europe. The main approach to multiethnolects has been structural or dialectological, describing the varieties' linguistic traits. Another important approach has been sociopragmatic or functional, examining how multiethnolects are used in discourse. In this article, we have applied b…
Language Contact and Language Conflict
Dialects in Norway
Norway has sometimes been described as a sociolinguistic paradise with its abundant linguistic heterogeneity — both written and spoken. Dialect diversity has been and is still considerable and dialects are used in practically all social domains. However, dialects in Norway are changing. In this article I will discuss the historical background for the linguistic situation in Norway, and I will take a closer look at present-day developments and dis…
Dialect acquisition and migration in Norway – questions of authenticity, belonging and legitimacy
Norway is known for its dialect diversity and also for the fact that dialects, on the whole, are cherished and used within all social domains and by people in all social strata. Previous studies indicate that also immigrants to Norway tend to acquire and use local speech, and that this generally is positively perceived. However, language alone may not always be enough to be accepted as someone who belongs and claims of local identity may be rejec…
Language Contact and Language Conflict
Multiethnolectal facts and functions in Oslo, Norway
Over the last 20 years, linguists have documented the emergence of multiethnolectal speech among adolescents in linguistically and culturally diverse areas in Western Europe. The main approach to multiethnolects has been structural or dialectological, describing the varieties' linguistic traits. Another important approach has been sociopragmatic or functional, examining how multiethnolects are used in discourse. In this article, we have applied b…
Introduction
First of all we want to thank the general editors of the Nordic Journal of Linguistics for this opportunity to present to the readers of one of the most important linguistics journals in Northern Europe some specimens of sociolinguistic research. When we were approached by the general editors, we wholeheartedly agreed that this would be a good idea, although – or rather, precisely for this reason – sociolinguists in general have not been keen on …
Dialects in Norway
Norway has sometimes been described as a sociolinguistic paradise with its abundant linguistic heterogeneity — both written and spoken. Dialect diversity has been and is still considerable and dialects are used in practically all social domains. However, dialects in Norway are changing. In this article I will discuss the historical background for the linguistic situation in Norway, and I will take a closer look at present-day developments and dis…
Revision of the Nynorsk standard
In this paper I will discuss the most recent developments in Norwegian language policy and planning by considering the language reforms that took place, and were then implemented, just after the turn of the century (2005 and 2012). I will give particular focus to the revision of the Nynorsk standard as this process raised pertinent questions regarding top-down versus bottom-up approaches to language standardisation. An initially proposed revision…
MultiLing. Center for Multilingualism in Society across the Lifespan
The world is connecting in many complex ways, driven by the globally integrated nature of technological innovation and human mobility across continents. Never before have so many different speakers and languages existed side by side in the OECD countries as they do today. This reality has placed multilingualism in the spotlight. Increased migration and transcultural flows across borders in Europe have highlighted the urgency for research on multi…
Elizabeth Lanza, Mari C. R. Otnes & Unn Røyneland

Joina du kino imårgå? Ungdommars dialektskriving på sosiale medium
This study investigates the use of written dialect among adolescents from four different locations in Norway, each representing one of the main dialect areas of the country (north, central, west, and east). The data are drawn from the larger study Multilectal Practices in Social Media where a total of 1532 students from 42 different upper secondary schools in all regions of Norway have completed an online questionnaire about their language compet…
Introduction
Norms at play
This article focuses on the complex nature of the creative freedom often displayed in acts of digital social writing. Drawing on theoretical contributions from philosophy of language and psychology, the authors argue that even in communication where prescriptive norms are deliberately challenged, creative ways of multilectal and multilingual writing are still shaped by norms and normativity. Mutually recognized norms are part of the common ground…
Dialect acquisition and migration in Norway – questions of authenticity, belonging and legitimacy
Norway is known for its dialect diversity and also for the fact that dialects, on the whole, are cherished and used within all social domains and by people in all social strata. Previous studies indicate that also immigrants to Norway tend to acquire and use local speech, and that this generally is positively perceived. However, language alone may not always be enough to be accepted as someone who belongs and claims of local identity may be rejec…
Modelling acquisition and use of dialectal, standard and multiethnolectal features in migratory contexts across Europe
Large scale in-migration waves of people speaking a diversity of languages into those parts of Europe which used to be called ‘western Europe’ before 1989 have fundamentally changed the linguistic landscapes of these countries. These social and demographical transformations represent a considerable challenge for linguistics, and in many parts of Europe, linguists have accepted this challenge. However, the question of how this new linguistic heter…
Spotting the lect
This study investigates how Norwegian adolescents with different literacy profiles perceive and distinguish standard and dialectal varieties of written Norwegian. Using a variety classification task, we analyzed response accuracy and reaction times (RTs) among 398 lower secondary school pupils across three regions: Eastern Norway (primarily Bokmål-literate), Northern Norway (exposed to Bokmål and dialect writing), and Western Norway (familiar wit…
Linguistic Variation and Morphology (7 works) · Linguistics (7 works) · Sociology (7 works) · Multilingual Education and Policy (6 works) · Linguistics, Language Diversity, and Identity (4 works) · Norwegian (4 works) · Philosophy (4 works) · Political science (4 works) · Psychology (4 works) · Geography (3 works)