First published in 1992, Janet Holmes' An Introduction to Sociolinguistics has established itself as the key introductory textbook in the field. It is divided into three sections. In the first, Janet Holmes shows how language is used in multilingual speech communities and explains the varying patterns of language use. She examines how and why languages change within society and highlights the factors that lead to the displacement of one language by another, and sometimes even the death of a language. The central section gives a comprehensive and well-illustrated exploration of social reasons for language change, exploring language change in monolingual communities and the features of a variety of dialects. She shows how and why differing social and racial groups develop and maintain speech variations. In the final section, Janet Holmes assesses how attitudes to language affect speech, and shows that linguistic responses depend upon a variety of contextual factors. Written in an accessible way, this essential introductory text is and illustrated throughout with numerous examples.

Table of Contents

Preface Author's Acknowledgements Publisher's Acknowledgements 1. What do sociolinguists study? Section A: Multilingual speech communities 2. Language choice in multilingual communities 3. Language maintenance and shift 4. Linguistic varieties and multilingual nations 5. National languages and language planning Section B: Language variation: focus on users 6. Regional and social dialects 7. Gender and age 8. Ethnicity and social networks 9. Language change Section C: Language variation: focus on uses 10. Style, context and register 11. Speech functions, politeness and cross-cultural communication 12. Gender, politeness and stereotypes 13. Language, cognition and culture 14. Analysing Discourse 15. Attitudes and applications 16. Conclusion References Appendix I: phonetic symbols Appendix II: preface to first edition Appendix III: preface to second edition Glossary Index

About the Author

Janet Holmes holds a personal Chair in Linguistics at Victoria University of Wellington, New Zealand, where she teaches a variety of sociolinguistics courses.

Prizes

A bestselling text, which explains the basic sociolinguistic concepts through a wide range of examples.