Tying together work on a number of languages and linguistic varieties in different locales, this book provides students and researchers with a convenient, unified overview of variationist analysis in linguistics. Variation in Linguistic Systems takes a theoretical and quantitative approach to the study of variation in language, focusing on the role of language-internal constraints on variation and the relation of linguistic variation to linguistic theory. It introduces the basic concepts of variationist linguistics and includes key discussions on language change, language contact, the different types of variation, multivariate analysis with GoldVarb, and variation in sound and grammatical systems.

Here is an ideal textbook for an introductory course on variation, as well as a useful resource for scholars with some background in linguistics who are interested in the study of language variation and its relation to the wider field of linguistics.

About the Author

James A. Walker is Associate Professor of Linguistics in the Department of Languages, Literatures, and Linguistics at York University in Toronto. His area of research is the quantitative analysis of sociolinguistic variation, including interests in language contact, bilingualism, ethnicity, pidgins and creoles, as well as the relationship among phonology, morphology, and syntax.

Reviews

'...the text is revelatory... refreshing and illuminating... I wish I had written this book. It is comrehensive yet concise. And it is relevant. Students and practiced variationists alike can learn something from it... and linguists concerned with theory can also learn something... In sum, there is something for everyone in this book.' - English World-Wide

"A one-stop-shop for the study of variationist analysis." - Anne Marie Devlin, Canadian Journal of Linguistics

'...the text is revelatory... refreshing and illuminating... I wish I had written this book. It is comrehensive yet concise. And it is relevant. Students and practiced variationists alike can learn something from it... and linguists concerned with theory can also learn something... In sum, there is something for everyone in this book.'- English World-Wide

Book Information
ISBN 9780415990684
Author James A. Walker
Format Paperback
Page Count 158
Imprint Routledge
Publisher Taylor & Francis Ltd
Weight(grams) 330g