Language is a social reality. Language facilitates socialization process and configures patterns of our relationship with each other. It becomes a marker of tour identity and a common thread that binds us together. It is imperative to understand that our social order is developed alongside our linguistic allegiance, shared narratives, collective memories, and common social history. This course discusses some of the fundamental concepts in sociolinguistics that enables us understanding the nature, scope and various social manifestations of language.INTENDED AUDIENCE: UG/PG students of Linguistics, Sociology, Literature, Mass Communication as Core Paper BE/ME/MS/BSc/MSc/PhD etc. students as Elective Paper
Overview
Syllabus
Week 1 : Language as a System of Sub-systems; Hockett’s Design Features
Week 2 : Language as a Social Reality; Language and Culture
Week 3 : Linguistic Relativity: Sapir-Whorf Hypothesis; Language and Gender
Week 4 : Language and Identity; Language Myths
Week 5 : Speech Community; Standard and Vernacular Languages
Week 6 : Process of Standardization; Dialects, Sociolects and Register
Week 7 : Language Maintenance and Language Shift; Bilingualism: Compound, Coordinate, Subordinate
Week 8 : Multilingualism; Code Switching and Code Mixing
Week 9 : Pidgin and Creole; Language, Contact, and Variation
Week 10 : Linguistic Diversity of India: Language Families: Indo-Aryan, Dravidian, Austro-Asiatic, Tibeto-Burman; Language Census of India
Week 11 : Language Policy and Planning in India: Scheduled Languages [Schedule VIII], Official Language Act, Trilingual Formula
Week 12 : Languages in the Constitution of India
Taught by
Prof. Om Prakash
