Introducing Sociolinguistics

A general lack of knowledge about the social and cultural aspects surrounding the English language still prevents many learners from reaching high levels of proficiency. In reflecting people’s ways of thinking and acting, the English language cannot and should not be studied removed from the social and cultural connotations that it holds in the minds of its speakers. It is to such meanings that this book will draw attention. By examining and exemplifying the five major pillars of sociolinguistic study – language change, language variation, boundary markers, multilingualism, and relativism – with data collected from the English-speaking world, this book will provide the sociolinguistic support necessary for learners of English.