Folk perceptions and evaluations of L2-accented Icelandic with regard to pleasantness and correctness

Abstract Numbers of first-generation L2 speakers of Icelandic have risen substantially in the past three decades in Iceland, with L2 accents now being perceivable in all parts of society. This development sparks questions as to how those accents are perceived and evaluated by L1 speakers of Icelandic, particularly in the light of the role of the Icelandic language as a key element in the construction and maintenance of Icelandic national identity and Iceland’s ideology of linguistic purism, and the fact that there is little formal variation in Icelandic. Drawing on methods and concepts established by folk linguistics, this qualitative study involved five focus groups with thirty-two participants, employing a semi-structured interview guide. The L1-speaker participants were presented with six verbal guises: one L1 speaker and five L2 speakers of Icelandic. The participants elaborated on their perception of those guises according to the concepts of pleasantness and correctness. Several themes emerged as the data were analysed. Results indicate that evaluations of L2 accent are affected by perceptions of listener effort as to both pleasantness and correctness. Perceptions of familiarity with L2 accents emerged as a significant theme in terms of pleasantness, while the results suggest that the correctness concept might not apply to evaluations of L2 speech in the Icelandic context.