The Ethnography of Communication is concerned with how and why language is used and how its use varies in different cultures. In this now standard introduction to the subject, Muriel Saville-Troike presents the essential terms and concepts introduced and developed by Dell Hymes and others and surveys the most important findings and applications of their work. Drawing on insights from social anthropology and psycholinguistics and using examples from a great many languages and cultures she builds up a model which includes communication within the overall framework of cultural competence. This second edition has been thoroughly revised to reflect the substantial contributions made in recent years to the development and application of the subject. The book now incorporates a yet broader range of examples and illustrations for analyzing the patterns of communicative phenomena in the languages of the world.
"This third edition of
The Ethnography of Communication is a real treasure. For someone new to linguistic anthropology in general, or to the ethnography of communication in particular, it provides a thorough and accessible introduction to the basic contents and concepts, vocabulary, methodologies and theories of contemporary research in the intertwined topics of language and culture. For others, it is a refresher course and a briefing on the progress of the past couple of decades... a thoughtful and important work."
Journal of Multilingual and Multicultural Development "If you read one book on the ethnography of communication, read this one. Its coverage of what has been a major area of study for scholars in sociolinguistics, communication, and linguistic anthropology for the past three decades is comprehensive, insightful, and, in this third edition, completely brought up to currency with developments in the field." Ron Scollon, Georgetown University
"This is a fine introductory text and an excellent reference volume as well. In short, it is a first–rate work by a world–class scholar." TESOL Quarterly
"The Ethnography of Communication more than meets the pointed criteria for a good textbook. In addition, it is well written, interesting, and enlightening." Language and Social Psychology