Cultures, Contexts, and World Englishes

ESL & Applied Linguistics Professional

by Yamuna Kachru, Larry E. Smith

This volume aims to familiarize readers with the varieties of world Englishes used across cultures and to create awareness of some of the linguistic and socially relevant contexts and functions that have given rise to them. It emphasizes that effective communication among users of different Englishes requires awareness of the varieties in use and their cultural, social, and ideational functions. Cultures, Contexts and World Englishes:





demonstrates the rich results of integrating theory, methodology and application

features critical and detailed discussion of the sociolinguistics of English in the globalized world

gives equal emphasis to grammar and pragmatics of variation and to uses of Englishes in spoken and written modes in major English-using regions of the world.



Each chapter includes suggestions for further reading and challenging discussion questions and appropriate research projects designed to enhance the usefulness of this volume in courses such as world Englishes, English in the Global Context, Sociolinguistics, Critical Applied Linguistics, Language Contact and Convergence, Ethnography of Communication, and Crosscultural Communication.

234 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Yamuna Kachru (5 March 1933 in Purulia - 19 April 2013 in Urbana, Illinois)(, यमुना काचरु (Devanagari)) was Professor Emerita of Linguistics at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

She was the wife of Braj Kachru and the mother of Shamit Kachru. She published a series of research articles in applied linguistics, mostly on the problem of linguistic creativity. Kachru was a co-founder of the International Association of World Englishes.