Language, Culture, and Communication

Language, Culture, and Communication introduces students to the topics and theories of the broad field of linguistic anthropology by examining the multifaceted meanings and uses of language. It emphasizes the ways in which language encapsulates speakers’ meanings and intentions. Through language structure and language use, speakers convey messages about their own identities, their understandings of the world and their place in it. The book includes discussion of cultural and symbolic meanings conveyed by language and the social and political dimensions of language use.

New to the Ninth Edition:
- New Chapter 7, “Digital Communication,” discusses technological change, social media, artificial intelligence, and the rapid development of various systems and platforms for communication
- New Chapter 6, “Signed Languages,” offers an expanded discussion of ASL vocabulary and grammar as well as language practices in Deaf communities
- New discussion of African American Vernacular English (AAVE) stresses the intersection of language and lived experience
- New case studies in every chapter highlight central concepts so that students can focus directly on understanding the many faceted goals of language in use
- Expanded discussion of language and nation building in multilingual communities (including code switching and translanguaging) emphasizes how our speaking styles are “borderless”

Author Biography

Nancy Bonvillain is professor of anthropology and linguistics at Bard College at Simon’s Rock. She is author of over twenty books on language, culture, and gender. She received her PhD from Columbia University and has taught at Columbia University, The New School, SUNY Purchase and Stonybrook, and Sarah Lawrence College.