Course information

Title

Introduction to Sociolinguistics

Lecturer

Dr. Anna Fenyvesi

Course code

YSE_BTK011-00764

Credit

3

Location

Kristó

Time

Thursday 10-12

Course description

Short description

The course offers an overview of the main topics of sociolinguistics and the sociology of language, as well as provides a basic introduction to the most important methods used in sociolinguistic research and analysis. The lectures will be built around a discussion of topics and notions such as the speech community, dialect, code, variation, pidgins and creoles, bilingualism, multilingualism, diglossia, address systems, language and gender, language planning, language maintenance, and language shift.

In the final exam, students will be required to answer 10 “True/False, Because” type questions.

Schedule

Week 1: Introduction – What is sociolinguistics? - Wardhaugh Chapter 1.

Week 2: Language, dialects and varieties. - Wardhaugh Chapter 2.

Week 3: Pidgins and creoles. - Wardhaugh Chapter 3.

Week 4: Code choice. - Wardhaugh Chapter 4.

Weeks 5 & 6: Speech communities; Variation. - Wardhaugh Chapters 5 & 6.

Week 7: Language change. - Wardhaugh Chapter 8.

Week 8: Language and culture. - Wardhaugh Chapter 9.

Week 9: Language and disadvantage. - Wardhaugh Chapter 14.

Week 10: Language and gender. - Wardhaugh Chapter 13.

Week 11: Address forms. - Wardhaugh Chapter 11.

Weeks 12 and 13: Language planning. - Wardhaugh Chapter 15.

Semester

Fall

Requirements

Requirements to get the grade

Written exam (100%)

Reading list

Wardhaugh, Ronald. 1992. An introduction to sociolinguistics. Oxford: Blackwell.

Suggested reading list

any other introduction to sociolinguistics textbook