The Sociolinguistics of Digital Englishes

The internet has revolutionised the way we interact and caused a complete shift in the dynamics of our communication. The Sociolinguistics of Digital Englishes introduces core areas of sociolinguistics and explores how each one of them has been transformed by the current era of globalization, particularly with regard to the spread of English and its current status as a global language. The key topics covered include language, power and internet competence; gender and race construction on the internet; and code-switching and virtual Englishes. This book will be key reading for all students studying Sociolinguistics and Digital Communication, with an interest in language in the globalised multimedia world.

The Sociolinguistics of Digital Englishes introduces core areas of sociolinguistics and explores how each one has been transformed by the current era of digital communication and the Internet. Addressing the changing dynamics of English(es) in the digital age, this ground-breaking book:

• discusses the spread of English and its current status as a global language;
• demonstrates how key concepts such as language change, speech communities, gender construction and code-switching are affected by digital communications;
• analyzes examples of the interaction of Englishes and social media such as Facebook, Twitter and Urban Dictionary; and
• provides questions for discussion and further reading with each chapter.

Accessible and innovative, this book will be key reading for all students studying sociolinguistics and digital communication or with an interest in language in the globalized multimedia world.