LIN-541 Introduction to Sociolinguistics

Course Overview

Sociolinguistics is the discipline that studies the interaction of language and social life. This course will examine the major areas of sociolinguistics, including multilingualism, language contact, variation, language policy and planning and language attitudes. Methodological issues pertaining to the collection of sociolinguistic data will also be examined. The application of sociolinguistics to education, the law, medicine and sign language interpretation will be covered. All issues will be considered as they pertain to both spoken and signed languages.