World Englishes
The Study of New Linguistic Varieties

This book discusses the spread of English around the world from a social and linguistic perspective.

Rajend Mesthrie (Author), Rakesh M. Bhatt (Author)

9780521793414, Cambridge University Press

Hardback, published 19 June 2008

296 pages, 5 b/w illus.
22.1 x 14.1 x 2.2 cm, 0.51 kg

'… the boo includes a wealth of carefully selected data which is presented with authority and clarity in order to focus on the features that are shared by a range of New Englishes, and many readers will find the collation of data analyzed within a range of theoretical approaches useful … The book therefore offers a concise and well-written overview of issues connected with the description and analysis of World Englishes, and it constitutes a valuable contribution to the growing volume of material in this field.' Journal of Sociolinguistics

The spread of English around the world has been and continues to be both rapid and unpredictable. World Englishes: The Study of New Linguistic Varieties deals with this inescapable result of colonisation and globalisation from a social and linguistic perspective. The main focus of the book is on the second-language varieties of English that have developed in the former British colonies of East and West Africa, the Caribbean, South and South-East Asia. The book provides a historical overview of the common circumstances that gave rise to these varieties, and a detailed account of their recurrent similarities in structure, patterns of usage, vocabulary and accents. Also discussed are debates about language in education, the rise of English in China and Western Europe, and other current developments in a world of global travel and migration.

1. History: the spread of English
2. Structural features of New Englishes I: morphology and phrasal syntax
3. Structural features of New Englishes II: cross-clausal syntax and syntactic theory
4. More on structure: lexis, phonology, and optimality syntax
5. Pragmatics and discourse
6. Language contact and language acquisition issues in New English research
7. Conclusion: current trends in the spread of English.

Subject Areas: Sociolinguistics [CFB]