Giving voice: A personal essay on the shape of sociolinguistics

Abstract

From the vantage point of 21 years editing theJournal of Sociolinguistics, I survey and assess the shape of our field. I identify six strands or trends that I see in play over that time: languageandsociety, social theorization, the centralization of style, diversification, new orthodoxies and a sense of history. I advocate in particular for a sociolinguistics of voice, especially so the voices that are unheard or muffled in society may be given an audience. In closing I pay tribute to the exceptional colleagues with whom I have worked on the Journal over these years.

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