Languages and Their Speakers provides an introduction both to languages themselves and to their social functions. Written especially for nonlinguistics majors, the book considers how speakers know their languages—know them as grammatical systems and know them as part of a cultural matrix.

Languages and Their Speakers

Timothy Shopen, Editor

1987 | 312 pages | Paper $26.50
Philology and Linguistics
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Table of Contents

Illustrations
Introduction
Preface to the 1987 Edition

I. JACALTEC: FIELD WORK IN GUATEMALA
Introduction
Field Methods
The Jacaltec Language
The Linguistic Horizons of Jacaltec Speakers
Suggestions for Further Reading

II. MANINKA
Introduction: Maninka Language and Society
Maninka Grammar
The Use of Language in Maninka Culture
Suggestions for Further Reading
Appendix

III. BECOMING A COMPETENT SPEAKER OF MALAGASY
Introduction
Background
Forming Sentences in Malagasy
Malagasy Subjects and Complex Structures
Conditions on the Use of Speech
Behavioral Norms and Speech Usage
Suggestions for Further Reading

IV. HOW TO TALK TO YOUR BROTHER-IN-LAW IN GUUGU YIMIDHIRR
Embedded Speech
The Language of Cooktown
The Guugu Yimidhirr Language
The Social Context of Speech in Traditional Guugu Yimidhirr Society
Language in the Modern Guugu Yimidhirr Community
Suggestions for Further Reading
Glossary

V. JAPANESE: A STORY OF LANGUAGE AND PEOPLE
Introduction
A History of Japan
The Structure of Japanese
Japanese and Its Relation to the Environment
Suggestions for Further Reading