Ah, Those -ah words in English!

Ah, Those -ah words in English! Ah, Those -ah words in English! Ah, Those -ah words in English! By Maeve Maddox AJ Tapper wrote: Ive seen on a couple different books and websites two different spellings of the word, savannah. Is it savanna or savannah? The OED gives savannah as the only spelling. Merriam-Webster gives savanna as the first spelling and savannah as a variant. This question about savannah caused me to wonder about other -ah words in English. Here are the results of my inquiry. The OED prefers veranda to verandah. H. W. Fowler curtly concurs: OED gives the -da form first, there is no reason for the -h; In my opinion verandah looks more exotic than veranda. If I were writing a novel set in India or even England of a hundred years ago, I think Id go for the h. The OED and Merriam-Webster agree on the -ah ending for: mitzvah wallah howdah hallelujah menorah messiah selah torah chutzpah pariah ayatollah shah loofah Although Im pretty sure Ive seen the spelling hosannah, both the OED and Merriam-Webster give only hosanna. Depending upon which dictionary you prefer, the following words may be spelled either way: yeshivah/yeshiva megillah/megilla mezuzah/mezuza cheetah/cheeta hookah/hooka maharajah/maharaja pujah/puja rajah/raja mullah/mulla casbah/kasbah kabbalah/cabala/cabbala halvah/halva huzzah/huzza moolah/moola I havent taken the time to define all these words. If you dont already know what they mean, youre not likely to need to know how to spell them. Want to improve your English in five minutes a day? Get a subscription and start receiving our writing tips and exercises daily! Keep learning! Browse the Spelling category, check our popular posts, or choose a related post below:Direct and Indirect Objects50 Idioms About Meat and Dairy Productsâ€Å"Least,† â€Å"Less,† â€Å"More,† and â€Å"Most†

How Sociologists Define Social Control

How Sociologists Define Social Control Social control, within sociology, refers to the many ways in which our behavior, thoughts, and appearance are regulated by the norms, rules, laws, and social structures of society. Social control is a necessary component of social order, for society could not exist without it. Overview of the Concept Social control is achieved through a variety of means, including through social norms, rules, laws, and social, economic, and institutional structures. In fact, there would be no  society without social control, because society cannot function without an agreed upon and enforced social order that makes daily life and a complex division of labor possible. Without it, chaos and confusion would reign. The primary way through which social order is produced is through the ongoing, lifelong process of socialization that each person experiences. Through this process, we are taught from birth the norms, rules, and behavioral and interactional expectations that are common to our family, peer groups, community, and greater society. Socialization teaches us how to think and behave in accepted ways, and in doing so, effectively controls us our participation in society. The physical organization of society is also a part of social control. For example, paved streets and traffic signals control, at least in theory, the behavior of people when they drive vehicles. Sidewalks and crosswalks control foot traffic, for the most part, and aisles in grocery stores control how we move through the space. When we fail to conform to norms, rules, and social expectations, we suffer sanctions that remind us of their social importance, and that serve to control our behavior. These sanctions take many forms, from confused and disapproving looks to conversations with family, peers, and authority figures, to social ostracization, among others. The Two Types of Social Control Social control tends to take one of two different forms: informal or formal. Informal social control refers to our  conformity to the norms and values of the society, and adoption of a particular belief system, which we learn through the process of socialization. This form of social control is enforced by family, primary caregivers, peers, other authority figures like coaches and teachers, and by colleagues. EyesWideOpen/Getty Images Informal social control is enforced by rewards and sanctions. Reward often takes the form of praise or compliments, but also takes other common forms, like high marks on school work, promotions at work, and social popularity. Sanctions used to enforce informal social control, like those discussed above, tend to be social in form and consist mainly in communication or lack thereof, but can also take the form of the ending of a relationship, teasing or ridicule, poor marks in school, or being fired from work, among others. Formal social control is that which is produced and enforced by the state (government) and representatives of the state that enforce its laws like police, military, and other city, state, and federal agencies. In many cases, a simple police presence is enough to create formal social control. In others, police might intervene in a situation that involves unlawful or dangerous behavior in order to stop itto arrest literally means to stopin order to ensure that social control is maintained.   Alex Livesey/Getty Images Other government agencies enforce formal social control as well, like those that regulate which substances or foods can be legally sold, and those that enforce building codes, among others. It is up to formal bodies like the judiciary and the penal system to dole out sanctions when someone fails to comply with the laws that define formal social control. Updated  by Nicki Lisa Cole, Ph.D.