Language in a Black Community (Multilingual Matters) - Softcover

Edwards, Viv

Softcover

ISBN 10: 090502852X ISBN 13: 9780905028521

Publisher: Multilingual Matters, 1984

Synopsis

Legislation enacted during the 1960s reduced immigration from the West Indies to the United Kingdom to a trickle, and by the mid-1970s virtually all children entering school had been born in Britain. This is the first study which addresses itself specifically to the question of language use in the new generation of British Black speakers. Previous discussions of black language in Britain have tended to rely heavily on anecdotal accounts and self-reports. In contrast, Language in a Black Community is based on an actual corpus of data which draws on the speech of a wide range of young British Blacks in a wide range of situations. The social characteristics of the speakers, including educational background, attitudes towards mainstream white society and social networks, are related to different kinds of language behaviour and the findings seriously question many assumptions which over the years have become conventional wisdom.

About this title

About the Author

Viv Edwards is Professor of Language in Education at the University of Reading where she is also Director of the National Centre for Language and Literacy. She is editor of the international journal Language and Education and has researched and published widely in the areas of multilingualism and education. Her book on Multilingualism in the English-speaking World received the 2005 British Association for Applied Linguistics book award. She is also a fellow of the Royal Society for Arts.

Edition details

• Publisher: Multilingual Matters
• Publication date: 1984
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 090502852X
• ISBN 13: 9780905028521
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 176