PhD student in Serbia on the hunt for local voices on language
A PHD researcher from the University of Belgrade is seeking local participants to help him with his doctoral research into Shetland English.
Stevica Maksimović’s studies explore the relationship between language, linguistic variation and local identity.
He said that one of the main aims is to investigate patterns of pronunciation among speakers from different Shetland communities and generations, while also considering speakers’ social and geographical backgrounds.
Maksimović will be visiting Shetland to carry out his fieldwork between 1 and 8 November 2026 and is hoping to recruit around 40 participants in total.
The five areas included in the study are Lerwick, Burra, Whalsay, North Yell and Unst.
He said he is planning a larger sample from Lerwick, with approximately six to eight participants from each of Burra, Whalsay, North Yell and Unst.
“An important part of the sampling design is also gender balance,” he said.
“For the overall sample of approximately 40 participants, I am aiming for a gender-balanced sample of 20 male and 20 female speakers.”
Maksimović is appealing for adult speakers aged 20 and over who are Shetlanders born and bred to take part.
He said they must be from, or have strong local roots in, one of the five communities included in the study.
“I am particularly interested in recruiting people from different generations and backgrounds, as having a broad range of speakers is important for the comparative aspect of the research,” he said.
“There is no fixed maximum period that a participant may have lived outside Shetland.
“Instead, participants will be asked about their residential history, including whether they have lived elsewhere, where they lived, at what stage of their lives and for approximately how long.”
Participation will involve an informal recorded interview, short text and word reading and a questionnaire.
“The audio recording is necessary because the research includes sociophonetic analysis of speech,” Maksimović said.
“Participation will, of course, be entirely voluntary, and participants will receive information about the study and research procedures before deciding whether they wish to take part.”
Maksimović said he will be travelling to the individual communities during his November visit and hopes to arrange interviews locally wherever possible.
Anyone interested in participating – or simply wishing to find out more about the research before deciding – is asked to contact Maksimović by email at stevicamaks@gmail.com or over WhatsApp through +381641963933.
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