Language in Society: An Introduction to SociolinguisticsWhy have 1500 separate languages developed in the Pacific islands of Melanesia? Why do Danes understand Norwegian better than Norwegians understand Danish? Why is a Cornish accent rated higher than Cockney speech but lower than Oxford English? Are British and American English different languages? Linguistics tends to ignore the relationship between languages and the societies in which they are spoken, while sociology generally overlooks the role of language in the constitution of society. Suzanne Romaine provides a clear, lively, and accessible introduction to the field of sociolinguistics, emphasizing the constant interaction between society and language. |
Contents
Language in SocietySociety in Language | 1 |
Language Choice | 33 |
Sociolinguistic Patterns | 67 |
Copyright | |
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acceptable American areas asked become bilingual Black boys Britain called Cambridge cent Chapter child choice claim competence concerned context countries cultural dialect discussed distinctions English European example existence fact female formal forms French functions gender German girls given grammar groups H H H important indicate instance kind language linguistic male marked means middle minority mother mother tongue names norms Norwegian notion occur origin Papua New Guinea particular patterns person pidgins and creoles political Press problems questions reasons referred reflect relationship seen share shift shows similar social society sociolinguistic speak speakers speech spoken standard status structure style switching Table taken talk teacher tests Tok Pisin United University urban variables variation varieties woman women