The revised edition of Sociolinguistic Theory presents a critical synthesis of sociolinguistics, centering on the study of language variation and change.
A revised introduction to sociolinguistic theory by one of the top scholars in the field
Provides a critical synthesis of sociolinguistics that centres on the study of language variation and change, now incorporating the latest developments in the field
Shows how empirical explorations have made sociolinguistics the most stimulating field in the
contemporary study of language
Discusses the linguistic variable and its significance, crucial social variables such as social stratification, sex,
and age, and the cultural significance of linguistic variation
List of Figures. List of Tables.
Series Editor's Preface.
Preface to the First Edition.
Preface to the Second Edition.
Preface to the Revised Edition.
Acknowledgments.
1. Correlations.
1.1 The Domain of Sociolinguistics.
1.2 The Variable as a Structural Unit.
1.3 Variation and the Tradition of Categoricity.
2. Class, Network, and Mobility.
2.1 Social Class and Sociolinguistic Sampling.
2.2 Indexing Social Class.
2.3 Class Markers.
2.4 The Effects of Mobility.
2.5 Homogenization.
2.6 Networks.
2.7 Linguistic Correlates of Network Integration.
2.8 Interaction of Network and Other Independent Variables.
2.9 Oddballs and Insiders.
3. Expressing Sex and Gender.
3.1 The Interplay of Biology and Sociology.
3.2 Sex Patterns with Stable Variables.
3.3 Language, Gender, and Mobility in Two Communities.
3.4 Sex and Gender Differences in Language.
3.5 Male and Female Speech Patterns in Other Societies.
3.6 Linguistic Evidence for Sex and Gender Differences.
4. Accents in Time.
4.1 Aging.
4.2 The Acquisition of Sociolects.
4.3 Family and Friends.
4.4 Declarations of Adolescence.
4.5 Young Adults in the Talk Market.
4.6 Changes in Progress.
5. Adaptive Significance of Language Variation.
5.1 The Babelian Hypothesis.
5.2 Global Counteradaptivity and Local Adaptivity.
5.3 Dialects in Lower Animals.
5.4 The Persistence of the Non-standard.
5.5 Traditional Theories of the Sources of Diversity.
5.6 A Sociolinguistic Theory of the Sources of Diversity.
5.7 Vernacular Roots.
5.8 Linguistic Variation and Social Identity.
Notes.
References.
Index
