Language, Culture, and Society : an Introduction to Linguistic Anthropology

"Why should we study language? How do the ways in which we communicate define our identities? And how is this all changing in the digital world? Since 1993, many have turned to Language, Culture, and Society for answers to questions like those above because of its comprehensive coverage of all critical aspects of linguistic anthropology. This seventh edition carries on the legacy while addressing some of the newer pressing and exciting challenges of the 21st century, such as issues of language and power, language ideology, and linguistic diasporas. Chapters on gender, race, and class also examine how language helps create - and is created by - identity. The seventh edition includes expanded discussions of online communication, social media outlets, and the ways the internet is changing how we interact. Coverage of race and ethnicity has also been expanded to include Latin- and Asian-American contributions to English vernacular. Enhanced and updated pedagogical features include learning objectives at the beginning of each chapter, discussion and comprehension questions at the end of each chapter, and a glossary for easy reference, making this an essential text for any course covering the evolution of language."--Page [4] of cover Half Title 2 Title Page 3 Copyright Page 4 Table of Contents 5 Preface 10 1. Introducing Linguistic Anthropology 12 Learning Objectives 12 Why Should We Study Language? Language in Daily Life 12 Modern Myths Concerning Languages 13 A Brief History of Anthropology 16 Anthropology, Linguistics, and Linguistic Anthropology 19 Summary and Conclusions 21 Resource Manual and Study Guide 21 Questions for Discussion 21 Project 21 Objective Study Questions 22 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 22 2. Methods of Linguistic Anthropology 24 Learning Objectives 24 Contrasting Linguistics with Linguistic Anthropology 24 Three Strains of Linguistic Anthropology, and More: Theoretical and Historical Perspectives 25 The Fieldwork Component, and the Components of Fieldwork 29 Summary and Conclusions 34 Resource Manual and Study Guide 35 Questions for Discussion 35 Objective Study Questions 35 Answer Key 36 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 36 3. The “Nuts and Bolts” of Linguistic Anthropology I: Language Is Sound 37 Learning Objectives 37 Anthropologists Notice Language 37 The Anatomy and Physiology of Speech 40 Articulation of Speech Sounds 42 From Phones to Phonemes 46 Prosodic Features 51 Summary and Conclusions 52 Resource Manual and Study Guide 53 Questions for Discussion 53 Objective Study Questions 53 Problems 54 Answer Key 58 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 58 4. The “Nuts and Bolts” of Linguistic Anthropology II: Structure of Words and Sentences 60 Learning Objectives 60 Combining Sounds into Larger Formal and Meaningful Units 61 Morphemes and Allomorphs 62 Morphological Processes 64 Morphophonemics 65 Showing Grammatical Relationships: Inflections Versus Word Order 65 Chomsky and Transformational-Generative Grammar 66 Summary and Conclusions 68 Resource Manual and Study Guide 69 Questions for Discussion 69 Objective Study Questions 69 Problems 70 Answer Key 73 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 74 5. Communicating Nonverbally 76 Learning Objectives 76 Paralinguistics 76 Kinesics 77 Proxemics 78 Sign Languages 79 Writing 80 Summary and Conclusions 94 Resource Manual and Study Guide 94 Questions for Discussion 94 Project 94 Objective Study Questions 95 Answer Key 95 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 95 6. The Development and Evolution of Language: Language Birth, Language Growth, and Language Death 97 Learning Objectives 97 Communication and Its Channels 97 Communication Among Nonhuman Primates 98 When Does a Communication System Become Language? 100 Design Features of Language 101 Language as an Evolutionary Product 103 Monogenesis Versus Polygenesis 105 The Life and Death of Languages 105 Summary and Conclusions 109 Resource Manual and Study Guide 111 Questions for Discussion 111 Projects 111 Objective Study Questions 113 Answer Key 114 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 114 7. Acquiring and Using Language(s): Life with First Languages, Second Languages, and More 116 Learning Objectives 116 The First Steps of Language Acquisition in Childhood 116 Some Theories of Language Acquisition 118 Language and the Brain 120 Bilingual and Multilingual Brains 121 Code-Switching, Code-Mixing, and Diglossia 122 Summary and Conclusions 123 Resource Manual and Study Guide 124 Questions for Discussion 124 Projects 124 Objective Study Questions 124 Answer Key 125 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 125 8. Language Through Time 126 Learning Objectives 126 How Languages Are Classified 126 Internal and External Changes 129 How and Why Sound Changes Occur 131 Reconstructing Protolanguages 133 Reconstructing the Ancestral Homeland 134 Time Perspective in Culture 136 Summary and Conclusions 137 Resource Manual and Study Guide 137 Questions for Discussion 137 Objective Study Questions 137 Problems 138 Answer Key 139 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 139 9. Languages in Variation and Languages in Contact 141 Learning Objectives 141 Idiolects 141 Dialects 141 Styles 144 Language Contact 145 Pidgins 145 From Pidgins to Creoles 147 Language Contact in the Contemporary World 148 The World of Languages 149 Summary and Conclusions 150 Resource Manual and Study Guide 151 Questions for Discussion 151 Projects 151 Objective Study Questions 152 Answer Key 153 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 153 10. The Ethnography of Communication 155 Learning Objectives 155 Speech Community and Related Concepts 156 Units of Speech Behavior 156 Components of Communication 157 Recent Trends in the Ethnography of Speaking 161 Summary and Conclusions 162 Resource Manual and Study Guide 162 Questions for Discussion 163 Objective Study Questions 163 Answer Key 163 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 163 11. Culture as Cognition, Culture as Categorization: Meaning and Language in the Conceptual World 165 Learning Objectives 165 The Scope of Semantics 165 Concepts, Words, and Categories 167 The Rise and (Relative) Fall of Ethnoscience 168 Meaning in Discourse and Conversation 171 Summary and Conclusions 174 Resource Manual and Study Guide 175 Questions for Discussion 175 Projects 175 Objective Study Questions 176 Answer Key 176 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 177 12. Language, Culture, and Thought 178 Learning Objectives 178 The Double-Edged Sword of the Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis: Linguistic Determinism and Linguistic Relativity 178 The Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis Reconsidered 180 Color Nomenclature and Other Challenges to Linguistic Relativity 184 Theoretical Alternatives to Linguistic Relativity 188 Future Tests of Linguistic Relativity and Linguistic Determinism 190 Summary and Conclusions 192 Resource Manual and Study Guide 193 Questions for Discussion 193 Projects 193 Objective Study Questions 194 Answer Key 194 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 194 13. Language, Identity, and Ideology I: Variations in Gender 196 Learning Objectives 196 “Gender” Versus “Sex” 196 Grammatical Versus Biological Gender 197 Do Men and Women Speak Differently? 198 Gender and Language: Theoretical Movements 203 Does Grammatical Gender Affect How We Think? 208 Language and Gender: Hegemony, Power, and Ideology 209 Language in Gay, Lesbian, and Transgender Subcultures 213 Some Current Thoughts on Language and Gender Differences 215 Summary and Conclusions 216 Resource Manual and Study Guide 217 Questions for Discussion 217 Projects 217 Objective Study Questions 219 Answer Key 221 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 221 14. Language, Identity, and Ideology II: Variations in Class, “Race,” Ethnicity, and Nationality 223 Learning Objectives 223 Language, Social Class, and Identity 223 Language, “Race,” and Ethnicity 226 Language and Nationality 239 Summary and Conclusions 243 Resource Manual and Study Guide 243 Questions for Discussion 243 Projects 243 Objective Study Questions 245 Answer Key 245 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 246 15. The Linguistic Anthropology of a Globalized and Digitalized World 248 Learning Objectives 248 Language Planning 249 Literacy, Writing, and Education 250 Intercultural Communication 252 Always On: New Literacies and Language in an Online Global World 255 Ethical Questions and Standards of Conduct 266 Summary and Conclusions 268 Resource Manual and Study Guide 269 Questions for Discussion 269 Project 270 Objective Study Questions 270 Answer Key 271 Notes and Suggestions for Further Reading 271 Glossary 272 Bibliography 281 Index 297 Why should we study language? How do the ways in which we communicate define our identities? And how is this all changing in the digital world? Since 1993, many have turned to Language, Culture, and Society for answers to questions like those above because of its comprehensive coverage of all critical aspects of linguistic anthropology. This seventh edition carries on the legacy while addressing some of the newer pressing and exciting challenges of the 21st century, such as issues of language and power, language ideology, and linguistic diasporas. Chapters on gender, race, and class also examine how language helps create - and is created by - identity. New to this edition are enhanced and updated pedagogical features, such as learning objectives, updated resources for continued learning, and the inclusion of a glossary. There is also an expanded discussion of communication online and of social media outlets and how that universe is changing how we interact. The discussion on race and ethnicity has also been expanded to include Latin- and Asian-American English vernacular. --! From back cover "Why should we study language? How do the ways in which we communicate define our identities? And how is this all changing in thedigital world? Since 1993, many have turned to Language, Culture, and Society for answers toquestions like those above because of its comprehensive coverage of allcritical aspects of linguistic anthropology. This seventh edition carries onthe legacy while addressing some of the newer pressing and exciting challengesof the 21st century, such as issues of language and power, languageideology, and linguistic diasporas. Chapters on gender, race, and class alsoexamine how language helps create-and is created by-identity. New to this edition are enhanced and updated pedagogical features, such aslearning objectives, updated resources for continued learning, and theinclusion of a glossary. There is also an expanded discussion of communicationonline and of social media outlets and how that universe is changing how weinteract. The discussion on race and ethnicity has also been expanded toinclude Latin- and Asian-American English vernacular."--Provided by publisher