Commentary: A sociolinguistics of globalization

Commentary on essays in a theme issue of Journal of Sociolinguistics titled "Sociolinguistics and Globalization" reviews each contribution to extract building blocks for the construction of a new theory for the sociolinguistics of globalization. It is emphasized that specific varieties &am...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of sociolinguistics 2003-11, Vol.7 (4), p.607-623
Main Author: Blommaert, Jan
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Cultural Relativism
Global Local Relationship
Globalization
Language
Language Varieties
Semiotics
Social Function
Sociolinguistics
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Summary:Commentary on essays in a theme issue of Journal of Sociolinguistics titled "Sociolinguistics and Globalization" reviews each contribution to extract building blocks for the construction of a new theory for the sociolinguistics of globalization. It is emphasized that specific varieties & repertoires of language practice, not languages per se, are being globalized; relevant concepts for the understanding of this process include scale, social niche, language ideology, & the creation of semiotic opportunities. The key property of semiotic entities in globalization is argued to be their mobility; to capture sociolinguistic processes of mobility, two theoretical instruments are proposed: (1) a notion of the world system as a context for the operation of language, whereby local events assume translocal interpretations; & (2) Dell Hymes's (1966) notion of second linguistic relativity, ie, relativity of the social function of language across cultures & societies, necessitating new attention to ethnographic research & an innovative perspective on the relation between form & function. 40 References. J. Hitchcock
ISSN:1360-6441
1467-9841
DOI:10.1111/j.1467-9841.2003.00244.x