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Sociology of Language

The Sociology of language is the study of language’s effect on society. It is closely related to the field of sociolinguistics. Of course, the

. The term Sociology of Language first came about the summer of . The and their uses. In Fishman’s book, Advances in the Sociology of Language, he compares and contrasts the meanings of these two terms:

Sociolinguistics Sociolinguists are known for pinpointing the act of speech down to the very event and circumstance it takes place. This technique is more in tune with the work of linguists in general. Leading to some sociolinguists to admit that their work was really linguistic work but adding the use and meaning of societal units and constructs.

Sociology of Language This term, in summary, is viewed with “language varieties as targets, obstacles, and facilitators, and with the users and uses of language varieties as aspects of more encompassing social patterns or processes”(Fishman, p.9). This is a term used in order to study the role of language in society.

Sociolinguistics and Sociology of Language There is a fine line of differences between these two terms and as seen above, the differences are small, but vital aspects to each field. Each field is concerned with how language, its uses and users, are affected by society in a particular unit and pattern. Also, how the pattern of society affects its members language. The basic similarities between these two terms are its purposes to study language and society.

Subdivisions of Sociology of Language

There are two subdivisions of the sociology of language. These two divisions make this field a whole, which as Fishman puts it, “is greater than the mere sum of its parts.” The first division is descriptive sociology of language. This entails the answer to questions such as: “who speaks (or writes) what language (or what language variety) to whom and when and to what end?”(Fishman, 219). The purpose of descriptive sociology of language is to discover and recognize the norms of a society. The second division is named

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Concepts in Sociology of Language

Language-Dialect Variety Varieties in language are studied using the above subdivions of sociology of language. Varieties in language can be contributed to many different issues in a society or culture. For example, a person may speak a different variety of language based on their socioeconomic status, ethnicity, occupation, etc. Another type of variety in a language can deal with geographic location. This is referred to as a dialect. In order for a dialect to occur, it must be a part of a bigger language. A dialect cannot begin on its own. It is a subunit of a particular language. The interest that the sociology of language has over this is merely to know how societies form these dialects, why and who defines them. One thing to be known about varieties is their ever-changing status. A national language may become downgraded to an independent language. Or vice versa. Perhaps a rural community spreads its dialect across the land. Or perhaps they stop using their dialect and speak a more well known language used across their country.

Common Attitudes and Behaviors toward Language A major concept of

that supports it. Another common attitude and behavior toward language is a language’s autonomy. To be an autonomous language is considered a good sign. If a language has succeeded in becoming independent of other languages it would show it through dictionaries and grammar books. To achieve that is to be autonomous from other languages. The reason this is important to achieve is because without independence, a language might be seen as a dialect or perhaps just part of a bigger language. Each language seeks to be unique in its own way. The last common attitude or behavior toward language is the speech community. A speech community is simply, a group of members of a language. These communities can be large, encompassing countries, or small, encompassing only small clans.

See Also

1.Sociolinguistics

2.Socioeconomics

3.

4. Sociology

References

1. Joshua A. Fishman, Contributions to the Sociology of Language; Volume 1 Basic Concepts, Theories and Problems:Alternative Approaches 1971, Mouton-The Hague. Paris.

2. Peter Burke, Roy Porter, The Social History of Language 1987, Cambridge University Press.

3. Bernard Spolsky, Sociolinguistics 1998, Oxford University Press

4. Joel Sherzer, The Sociology of Language. An Interdisciplinary Social Science Approach to Language in Society Oct.1974, JStor

5. Basil Bernstein, Class, Codes and Control. Volume 1. Theoretical Studies Toward A Sociolofy of Language 1972, Harvard Educational Review.

External Links

1. Joshua A. Fishman

2. Bernard Spolsky