1. Studying Language in its Social Context.- 2. Beliefs about Language.- 3. One Society, Many Languages.- 4. Language and Interpersonal Relationships.- 5. Language and Culture.- 6. Language Variation and Place.- 7. The Sociolinguistic Variable.- 8. Language Variation and Style.- 9. Language Variation and Social Status.- 10. Language Variation and Sex.- 11. Language Variation and Ethnicity.- 12. Language Variation and Time.- 13. Languages in Contact.- 14. Language, Mode and Media. 

“In Language in its Social Context, Professor James A. Walker presents a masterful exposition on sociolinguistics, which is comprehensive, current, and engagingly relevant. This meticulously structured work navigates through linguistic ideologies, multilingual societies, and the factors influencing language variation. By deftly weaving the sociological, anthropological, and variationist approaches, Walker not only elucidates the complexities of language in society but also grounds them in tangible real-world contexts. The inclusion of practical research projects transforms readers from passive observers to active participants in the exploration of linguistics. A must-read for scholars and students alike, this book is poised to become an indispensable reference in the annals of sociolinguistic literature—a true tour de force." -Hongjie Dong, Professor at the School of Liberal Arts, Xi’an University, China This textbook provides an accessible overview of the field of sociolinguistics. Blending qualitative and quantitative approaches and including examples drawn from different contexts and societies all over the world, the author introduces progressively complicated topics to help students build their confidence and understanding gradually as they work through the book. The chapters cover all the core topics on an introductory sociolinguistics course, including language and power, dialects, language and gender, language planning and multilingualism, and each chapter ends with a set of exercises, suggestions for small-scale projects which the author has used successfully with his own students and suggested further readings (both classic and more recent). This book assumes no background in Linguistics and is intended as an introduction to sociolinguistics that can be used at any level of undergraduate or graduate study, or by interested outsiders to the field.James A. Walker is a Professor of Linguistics at La Trobe University (Melbourne, Australia). After completing degrees in Linguistics and Anthropology at the University of Toronto and University of Ottawa, he was a Professor of Linguistics at York University (Toronto, Canada) until 2017. He is the author of Variation in Linguistic Systems (2010) and Canadian English: A Sociolinguistic Perspective (2015).

“In Language in its Social Context, Professor James A. Walker presents a masterful exposition on sociolinguistics, which is comprehensive, current, and engagingly relevant. This meticulously structured work navigates through linguistic ideologies, multilingual societies, and the factors influencing language variation. By deftly weaving the sociological, anthropological, and variationist approaches, Walker not only elucidates the complexities of language in society but also grounds them in tangible real-world contexts. The inclusion of practical research projects transforms readers from passive observers to active participants in the exploration of linguistics. A must-read for scholars and students alike, this book is poised to become an indispensable reference in the annals of sociolinguistic literature—a true tour de force.”-Hongjie Dong, Professor at the School of Liberal Arts, Xi’an University, China"This is a book developed over many yearsof teaching many hundreds of students about the social context of spoken language. All of this learning of teaching shows. An eminently readable text, the book is structured to expose readers to a comprehensive view of the intersecting perspectives of the sociology of language, the ethnography of communication, and language variation and change. Covering ideology to relational practice to style, status, and sex, sexuality, and gender, Language in its Social Context is a thoughtful introduction to a number of complicated and complex topics. Full of practical and validated exercises and suggestions for further reading, this text is as useful for students as it is for professors." -Alexandra D’Arcy, Professor and Associate Dean of Research, University of Victoria, Canada  

Ranges across different languages and societies, such as North and South America, Europe, Asia, & Africa Draws on examples of real-life interaction taken from the author's and others' fieldwork & travels Includes exercises and small-scale projects that students can conduct in their own communities