This paper has two aims. One aim is to consider non-structural (language attitude
and use) variables as valid in the field of dialect and linguistic geography in an
inner Himalayan valley of Nepal, where four languages have traditionally coexisted
asymmetrically and which demonstrate different degrees of vitality vs.
endangerment. The other aim is an application of modified spatiality as it aligns
with speaker attitudes and practices amidst recent and ongoing socio-economic and
population changes. We demonstrate that variation in self-reported attitudes and
practices across languages in this region can be explained as much with adjusted
spatial factors (labeled ‘social space’) as with traditional social factors (e.g. gender,
age, formal education, occupation, etc.). As such, our study contributes to a discourse
on the role and potential of spatiality in sociolinguistic analyses of smaller
language communities.