Anthropological Linguistics: An Introduction

by William A. Foley

It starts from a theoretical viewpoint of both language and culture as conventionalised forms of situated practice and uses this as a unifying framework to cover the full range of topics normally treated under the rubric of language and culture.

Genres: Linguistics, Anthropology, Language, Nonfiction

520 pages, Paperback

First published August 4, 1997

Reviews

[Ginny]

I might have hated this book with a fervent, burning passion, and it might have been a major slog to get through, but there is no denying that it is a solid ‘intro to Linguistic Anthropology’ text. Just be prepared to be bored while you’re reading it.

[Misarweth]

Un excellent opus sur la linguistique anthropologique ou l'anthropologie linguistique.
Livre qui sert de soutien au cours.
Chaque chapitre se lit comme un article, mais il existe une cohérence de ratisser le large champ panormaique des diverses positions.

Comment la culture influe t'elle sur notre langue?
Comment notre langue conditionne notre culture?

C'est aussi intéressant que ça.

[Kevin]

Very good overview over theories in anthropological linguistics. Foley does not take a stance for one or the other possibility, but finds a balance in between. However, the chapter on language evolution doesn't really match the overall theme of the book.

[Kevin K. Gillette]

An excellent lead-in to the more anecdotal volume by Harriet Ottheimer.