English Language Series – serie

This book presents a new interpretation of the history of English. Access to large corpuses of English has allowed scholars to assess the minutiae of linguistic change with much greater precision than before, often pinpointing the beginnings of linguistic innovations in place and time. The author uses the findings from this research to relate major historical events to change in the language, in particular to areas of linguistic inquiry that have been of particular importance in recent years, such as discourse analysis, stylistics and work on pidgins and creoles. The book does not attempt to chronicle changes in syntax or pronunciation and spelling, but is designed to complement a corpus-based study of formal changes. The story of English is brought up to the late 1990s to include, amongst other things, discussions of Estuary English and the implications of the information superhighway.

English is increasingly becoming the world's lingua franca. If we are not native speakers of one of the many varieties of English, then we may be students of English, or use English regularly for academic or business purposes. The English Language series, which is international in focus, aims to synthesize the wealth of existing linguistic research both on and in English. Each volume in the series is designed to present these findings in an accessible, enlightening and entertaining way not only to students of English linguistics but to learners and users of English across the globe.The English Writing System describes how writing is not simply ancillary to other aspects of language but vitally important to almost everything we do, from signing our wills to sending a text message. This book discusses the mechanics of the writing systems of English; the different ways people process words on a page and the mistakes they can make; how children and second language learners acquire these systems; the historical development of the language and the progress of writing technology: in short, the effectiveness of the writing systems of English.Combining an academic perspective from linguistics and psychology with insights into everyday spelling mistakes, The English Writing System will interest students and teachers of linguistics, literature, the English language, psychology and education.

This study on modality in English examines in detail the nature of the association of modal auxilliaries with different categories of the modal verb.

This text presents an account of present-day word formation in English. Starting with a discussion of some basic issues, including the definition of "word", motivation, lexicalization, productivity, the relevance of historical information and the usefulness of dictionaries and other databases.

Provides an explanation of what is involved in the creation of a text, offering the reader the basic requirements of composition, grammar and the lexicon. The general theory of composition is given in this text, together with numerous exercises and projects, including a chapter on the Internet.

"Professor Leech has given us the first full-length textbook suitable for teaching the 'new stylistics' to undergraduates."Language and Style

'Stylistics' is the study of language in the service of literary ends. This title demonstrates how stylistic analysis can be applied to novels and stories. It shows the practical ways in which linguistic analysis and literary appreciation can be combined, and illuminated, through the study of literary style.

English Accents and Dialects is an essential guide to contemporary social and regional varieties of English spoken in the British Isles today. Together with invaluable overviews of numerous regional accents and dialects, this fifth edition provides a detailed description of key features of Received Pronounciation (RP) as well as several major non-standard varieties of English.Key features:main regional differences are followed by a survey of speech in over 20 areas of the UK and Ireland, audio samples of which are available to download at www.routledge.com/cw/hughesrecent findings on London English, Aberdeen English and Liverpool Englishcontains new entries on Hull, Manchester, Carlisle, Middlesbrough, Southampton, London West Indian, Lancashire and the Shetlandsadditional exercises with answers online accompany the new varieties clear maps throughout for locating particular accents and dialects. This combination of reference manual and practical guide makes this fifth edition of English Accents and Dialects a highly useful resource providing a comprehensive and contemporary coverage of speech in the UK and Ireland today.

This book presents a new interpretation of the history of English. Access to large corpuses of English has allowed scholars to assess the minutiae of linguistic change with much greater precision than before, often pinpointing the beginnings of linguistic innovations in place and time. The author uses the findings from this research to relate major historical events to change in the language, in particular to areas of linguistic inquiry that have been of particular importance in recent years, such as discourse analysis, stylistics and work on pidgins and creoles. The book does not attempt to chronicle changes in syntax or pronunciation and spelling, but is designed to complement a corpus-based study of formal changes. The story of English is brought up to the late 1990s to include, amongst other things, discussions of Estuary English and the implications of the information superhighway.