American Dialect Society
Organization logo | |
| Abbreviation | ADS |
|---|---|
| Formation | March 13, 1889 |
| Type | Nonprofit |
| Purpose | "Encourage the study of any aspect of all languages and dialects used or found in North America (including associated islands) and in the Caribbean Basin, and the languages that influence them." |
| Location | |
Region served | North America |
| Membership | 253 |
Official language | English |
President | Joseph Salmons |
Vice President for Communications and Technology | Grant Barrett |
Executive Director | Betsy E. Evans |
| Affiliations | American Council of Learned Societies (admitted 1962) |
| Website | https://americandialect.org/ |
The American Dialect Society (ADS), founded in 1889, is a learned society "dedicated to the study of the English language in North America, and of other languages, or dialects of other languages, influencing it or influenced by it." The Society publishes the academic journal American Speech.
Since its foundation, dialectologists in English-speaking North America have affiliated themselves with the American Dialect Society, an association which in its first constitution defined its objective as "the investigation of the spoken English of the United States and Canada". Over the years, its objective has remained essentially the same, only expanded to encompass "the English language in North America, together with other languages or dialects of other languages influencing it or influenced by it".
The Society is perhaps best known publicly for its annual Word of the Year vote, which has been held since 1991 and is the oldest English-language word-of-the-year selection not tied to commercial interests. The vote takes place each January at the Society's annual meeting, which is held in conjunction with the Linguistic Society of America.