The aim of this book is to investigate and attain new insights on how and to what extent the wider sociolinguistic context of language use and contact impinges on formal grammatical structures. The papers contained in the book approach this important problem from various points of view by focusing on language evolution and change, on multilingualism, language mixing and dialect variation, on spoken language, and on creole languages. Given the theoretical perspectives, methodological focus, and analyses, the book will be of interest to theoretical linguists as well as sociolinguists, from undergraduate students to researchers.

A companion to the author's Sociolinguistics of Society, this textbook, examines the influence of social interaction in language use and discusses a variety of facts about language from the commonplace to the exotic.

Eleven papers concentrate on lesser-researched forms of communication--ideophones, dialects, and sign language. They also explore the relationship between language and society in a broad framework in order to emphasize not only the validity but the centrality of language variety and variation. Taken together, the essays argue for moving away from the classic, narrow view to a more informed and intelligent one of what language means for individuals and groups. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR

This series provides introductions to the main areas of English Language study. Volumes cover aspects of the history and structure of the language such as: syntax, phonology, morphology, regional and social variation, Old English, Middle English, Early Modern English and international Englishes. --

This groundbreaking collection showcases Jenny Cheshire’s influential work in bringing greater attention to quantitative analysis of socio-grammatical variation and builds upon her contributions with new lines of inquiry pushing sociolinguistic research forward. Featuring contributions from leading experts in the field, the volume is structured in six parts with a particular focus on syntactic, morpho-syntactic, and discourse-pragmatic variation and change, each section turning a lens on a different aspect of socio-grammatical variation. The first sections of the volume focus on the role of structure, its relevance for sociolinguistic production and perception and the impact of social structure on formal structure. Two sections look at the interface of variationist research with other aspects of linguistic research, including generative syntax and discourse-pragmatic features. The final sections consider the importance of integrating broader external factors in socio-grammatical variation, exploring the impact of interactional pressures in the sociolinguistic environment and the role of multi-ethnic contact varieties. Taken together, this volume demonstrates the critical role of socio-grammatical variation in our understanding of language change as a holistic process.

Twenty-four linguists analyze natural and social differences in language form, use, and attitudes.

This volume explores how the patterning of surface variation can shed light on the grammatical representation of variable phenomena. The authors explore variation in several domains, addressing intra- and inter-dialectal patterns, using diverse sources of data including corpora of naturally-occurring speech and judgment studies, and drawing on lesser-studied varieties of familiar languages, such as Northwest British Englishes and varieties of Canadian French. Ultimately, the contributions serve to expand our understanding of the nature of the mental representations and abstract processes required to support variation in language. Originally published as special issue of Linguistic Variation 16:2 (2016)