Admission requirements
None.
Description
How do people signal different (social, ethnic, gender) aspects of their identity through language? Conversely, how does a person's position in social hierarchy affect the way(s) they speak and the kinds of language(s) they have access to? And how do language users combine linguistic with other semiotic resources (visual, graphic) to create meaning? In this course, we take up language as a social phenomenon, produced by the (linguistic) actions of individuals but also constraining what those actions can be and how they are interpreted. Topics discussed include: languages as products of ideology; resources & repertoires; language variation; multimodality & social media; code mixing; style & Identity; language attitudes; linguistic landscapes; and language flows. The course has a distinct multi-modal and cross-linguistic focus and students are encouraged to bring their own examples illustrating textbook concepts to class. For their final paper, students can select one of the projects listed at the end of each chapter to work on as a group project or propose their own. Project topics must be submitted after midterm week and approved by the instructor before students can begin working on them.
Course Objectives
By the end of this course, students will have:
familiarized themselves with basic sociolinguistic concepts and terms
developed an awareness of how verbal and nonverbal resources combine to create the multiple meanings communicated by spoken and visual signs
familiarized themselves with sociolinguistic methods to analyze these meanings
be able to produce a simple analysis of a sociolinguistic phenomenon in a language variety of their choice
Timetable
Timetables for courses offered at Leiden University College in 2025-2026 will be published on this page of the e-Prospectus.
Mode of instruction
Lectures twice weekly.
Assessment Method
participation 10%, ongoing
midterm exam (in class exam with 5 short answer questions) 45%, Week 4
final project: group project including
- in-class presentation 15% (group grade, same for all team members), Week 7
- final paper 30% (2000 words, individual grade), Week 8
Reading list
The required textbook for this course is:
- Jones, R. H., & Themistocleous, C. (2022). Introducing Language and Society. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Registration
Courses offered at Leiden University College (LUC) are usually only open to LUC students and LUC exchange students. Leiden University students who participate in one of the university’s Honours tracks or programmes may register for one LUC course, if availability permits. Registration is coordinated by the Education Coordinator, course.administration@luc.leidenuniv.nl.
Contact
Prof.dr. Marina Terkourafi, m.terkourafi@hum.leidenuniv.nl
Remarks
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