Sed Eng 212:

LANGUAGE, CULTURE AND SOCIETY

CONTENTS
I. Introduction: Language, Culture and IV. Language Variation: Focus on Uses
Society o Language Planning and Language
o Definition of Sociolinguistics Policy
o The Social Functions of Language o Style, Context and Register
o Language and Geographical, Ethnic, o Gender, Politeness and Stereotypes
National Identity o Language, Cognition and Culture
  o Attitudes and Applications
II. Multilingualism and Speech Communities  
o Language choice in Multilingual V. Linguistic Anthropology in a Globalized
Communities World
o Language Maintenance and Shift o The Languages of the World
o Linguistic Varieties and Multilingual o Languages and Other Communication
Nations Systems: Animal, Machine
  o Languages and World Communication
III. Language Variation: Focus on Users o Artificial and World Languages
o Regional and Social Dialects
o Gender and Age
o Ethnicity and Social Networks
o Language Change and Reconstruction
 
Introduction to LangCulSoc
In this chapter, you will be introduced to the various
concepts and meanings of sociolinguistics, the social
function of language, and the relationship of language
and geographical, ethnic, and national identity.
Particularly you shall gain insights into the difference
between sociolinguistics and sociology of language,
different factors influencing the way people speak, why
and how people speak in a given social context, and
lastly how importantly language represents a people’s
country and ethnicity.
 
Learning Outcomes
At the end of the chapter, students are expected to:
a. State the meaning of sociolinguistics
b. Examine the various perceptions of
sociolinguistics
c. Explain the social function of language; and
d. Discuss the relationship of language to
geographical, ethnic and national identity.
Definition of Sociolinguistics
• This is the study of the relationship between language and society, of
language variation, and of attitudes about language.
• Branch of anthropological linguistics that studies how language and
culture are related, and how language is used in different contexts.
• Study of relationship between language and social factors such as class,
ethnicity, age and sex.
• Study of language in social contexts
• Study of sociological factors involved in the use of language, including
gender, race, class, etc.
• Study of stylistic and social variation of language (vernacular)
• Study of language in relation to its socio-cultural context.
• Study of the effect of any and all aspects of society, including cultural
norms, expectations, and context on the way language is used.
• Study of social and cultural effects on language.
 From these definitions, it is evident that sociolinguistics
yokes sociology and linguistics. It is concerned with how
language use is a determinant of a given society’s linguistic
requirements. Each society has linguistic codes acceptable for
communication and interaction. Sociolinguistics shows how
groups in a given society are separated by certain social
variables like ethnicity, religion, status, gender, level of
education, age, etc. and how adherence to these variables is
used to categorize individuals in social class or socio-economic
class.
Variations of Language

Sociolinguistics is a developing branch of linguistics and

sociology which investigates the individual and social variation
of language.
 
Regional variation of language gives a lot of information about
the place a speaker is from.
 
Social variation tells about the roles performed by a speaker
within one community, or country.
Budgetary Requirement

Sociolinguistics is a developing branch of linguistics and

sociology which investigates the individual and social variation
of language.
 
Regional variation of language gives a lot of information about
the place a speaker is from.
 
Social variation tells about the roles performed by a speaker
within one community, or country.
Difference between Sociolinguistics and Sociology of
Language

Sociolinguistics focuses on the effect of society on the language.

Sociology of language focuses on the effect of language on

society.
Factors Influencing the Way People Speak

1. Social Class is the position of the speaker in the society,

measured by the level of education, parental background,
profession and their effect on syntax and lexis used by the
speaker. (e.g., the social class of speakers influences their way of
formulating sentences)

Two groups of language users:

• Middle Class (performing non-manual work and with more
years of education)
• Working Class (performing some kind of manual work)
2. Social Context is the register of the language used
depending on changing situations: formal language in
formal meetings and informal usage during meetings with
friends. People (particularly middle class) are able to adjust
their style to the interlocutor.

• Convergence means the process of adapting own speech

to reduce social distance. Divergence is the process of
emphasizing the social distance using idiosyncratic forms
3. Geographical Origins are slight differences in
pronunciation between speakers that point at the
geographical region which the speaker comes from.

• Dialect describes a variety of language that differs in

grammar, lexis and pronunciation from others.
• Idiolect is an individual personal variation of language use
(each has a unique way of speaking due to life experience,
education, age, and aspiration).
4. Ethnicity refers to differences between the use of a given
language by its native speakers and other ethnic groups.
• Jargon is a specific technical vocabulary associated with a
particular field of interest, or topic. (e.g. convergence,
divergence, dialect, idiolect, sociolect are sociolinguistic jargon)
• Slang refers to a type of language used most frequently by
people from outside of high-status groups, characterized by the
use of unusual words and phrases instead of conventional forms.
(e.g., thru a study of social attitudes, a certain vernacular would
not be appropriate language use in a business or professional
setting)
5. Nationality is clearly visible in the case of the English
language. British English differs from American English, or
Canadian English.
• Code switching is the use of different varieties of
language in different social situations.
6. Gender shows differences in patterns of language use
between men and women, such as quantity of speech,
intonation patterns.
7. Age refers to the influence of age of the speaker on the use
of vocabulary and grammar complexity.
Factors Influencing the Way People Speak (Summary)
• Sociolinguistics shows that speakers change the forms of language
they use in describable social circumstances.
• They might switch from a ‘high’ form of language to a ‘low’ form as
and when the social environment suggests so.
• They speak a standard educated form of their language in formal
situations and use a dialect form (whether social or geographical or
both) of their language in informal, casual situations.
• Speakers are aware of the ‘correlations’ – that one situation
demands the use of a particular form of the language and that
another social situation demands another.
• The role of the social is to establish the correlation; the role of the
individual is to implement and instantiate it as appropriate
sociolinguistic behavior.
Social Function of Language
This refers to the way people relate language to their
relationships with other people. It is how they use language and
how they communicate in a social setting.
Example:
We are going to pretend that you are in college and just started a
new internship at a hospital and have gotten sick on the third
day. You are going to call your boss and mentor, a physician
named Dr. Eric Tayag, and ask him to take the day off.
Sample 1: Hey Eric. I'm sorry, boss. I feel sick to my stomach. I'm
gonna need to take the day off. 
Sample 2: Hi Dr. Smith. I'm sorry, boss, but I feel very sick today. I
am going to need to take the day off.
Social Function of Language
Notice how both examples convey the same idea. The
meaning of the word boss is the same. The meaning of needing
to take the day off is the same. The direct meaning of what you
are trying to say is the same.
However, the second example uses word forms that are a
socially acceptable way to communicate with your supervisor.
Here, we're using terms like 'Dr. Smith', instead of 'Eric'. And 'I'm
going to', instead of 'I'm gonna'.
The first example is too informal for a newly formed boss-
employee relationship between a student and his or her
supervisor or mentor, so the second example is more
appropriate unless Dr. Smith says it is okay to be called by his
first name.
Social Function of Language
These are examples of indirect social cues we use in language
to express how we view ourselves in comparison to someone
else in society. The way we form phrases or words, despite their
variations having the same meanings, helps us understand things
like social standing when two people interact with one another.
Hence, the point is that it is not just enough to use language
to communicate. You must also use it in a way that fits the type
of social relationship you have with your audience.
LANGUAGE AND GEOGRAPHICAL, ETHNIC, AND NATIONAL
IDENTITY
• Language Geography/Language and Geography
Language geography studies the geographic distribution of
language or its constituent elements. There are two principal fields of
study within the geography of language: the “geography of languages”,
which deals with the distribution through history and space of
languages, and “linguistic geography”, which deals with regional
linguistic variations within languages. Various other terms and sub-
disciplines have been suggested, including a division within
examination of linguistic geography separating the studies of change
over time and space; ‘geo-linguistics’, a study within the geography of
language concerned with the analysis of the distribution patterns and
spatial structures of languages in contact, but none have gained much
currency.
 Many studies have researched the effect of ‘language contact’
as the languages or dialects of peoples have interacted. This
territorial expansion of language groups has usually resulted in
the overlaying of languages upon existing areas, rather than the
replacement of one language by another.
Linguistic geography, as a field, is dominated by linguists
rather than geographers. The difference results from a focus on
“elements of language, and their geographical or social variation,”
as opposed to investigation of the processes making for change in
the extent of language areas. In Trudgill’s view, linguistic
geography has been geographical only in the sense that it has
been concerned with the spatial distribution of linguistic
phenomena.
• Language and Ethnic Identity
The issue of language and ethnic identity relationships provides
considerable insights into the link between language and culture. Close and
systematic attention to the relationship between language and ethnicity
illuminates processes of cultural change and continuity (Fishman et.al., 1984).
Every language carries a distinct and weighty ethnic baggage.
There is a relationship between a speaker’s ethnic group membership
and the use of language. Through application of specific structural features,
the speaker’s linguistic variety can be used to express the speaker’s ethnic
identity. The applied structural features identify one’s ethnic variety. These
features include numerous grammatical, syntactical, morphological and
phonological differences from the standard variety of language. The
differences between the ethnic variety and the standard and/or non-standard
varieties of language can be absolute in character or they may just concern
the relative frequency of occurrence of a single structural feature.
• Language and National Identity
Language represents national identity. A country is known by what
language its people speak. Beside a boundary, a name, a flag, or a currency,
what makes a country become a respectable and unique nation is its national
language (Abassi, 2013).
Abassi stressed that national language is a clear indicator that represents
the national identity of a country. Language is a sensitive issue. It’s also part
of a nation and a person’s heritage. To understand and penetrate deep into a
community, one must be able to speak and understand the language of the
community.  Fluency in the national language will surely enable the person to
fully understand that community’s particular nuances and cultural aspects.
National language is a driving force behind unity of the nation’s people,
and makes them distinct from other nations – provided they give their
language respect.  Giving respect to one’s national language means that it
should be one’s primary language, as well as the preferred source of
communication at every level.
Recommended learning materials and resources for
supplementary reading
The following supplementary materials from the internet are
worth reading/viewing:
• What does sociolinguistics study?
https://all-about-linguistics.group.shef.ac.uk/branches-of-linguis
tics/sociolinguistics/what-does-sociolinguistics-study
 
• Importance of language in society
https://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/29223/17/9
_chapter%201.pdf
• Sociolinguistics
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Luq8I3iCNMA
References

Abassi, A. N. (2013, March 3). uncategorized/a-national-language-

represents-the-national-identity-of-a-country.
Retrieved July 31, 2020, from http://www.yourcommonwealth.org/
http://www.yourcommonwealth.org/uncategorized/a-national-
language-represents-the-national-identity-of-a-country/
All about linguistics. (n.d.). branches-of-linguistics/sociolinguistics/
what-does-sociolinguistics-study/.
Retrieved July 30, 2020, from all-about-linguistics.group.shef.ac.uk
https://all-about-linguistics.group.shef.ac.uk/branches-of-linguistics/
sociolinguistics/what-does-sociolinguistics-study/
ELLO Sociolinguistics. (n.d.). field.php/Sociolinguistics/Ethnicpattern.
Retrieved July 28, 2020, from www.ello.uos.de: http://www.ello.uos.de/
field.php/Sociolinguistics/Ethnicpattern

Oha, A. C., & Uwaheh, M. J. (2010). Sociology of Language. Abuja, nIGERIA:

National Open University of Nigeria.
Activity
Directions: Answer the following items briefly but substantially.
Upload a file copy of your answers in our official Facebook group.
Deadline of submission is on Monday, September 28, 2020.
1. Explain the relationship between sociology and linguistics in
all the definitions given.
2. Discuss the differences between sociolinguistics and sociology
of language.
3. Explain it the social function of language.
4. Explain why sociolinguistics is important.
5. How does language mirror one’s culture?