Ethnosyntax: Explorations in Grammar and Culture

This text looks at the ethnosyntax concept - the proposition that the grammar of a language is intimately linked to the culture of its speakers. It focuses on three related questions: how far culture accounts for linguistic variation; how culture and grammar are connected; and to what extent one may constitute the other. It looks, for example, at the ways in which grammatical - including semantic - resources may be constrained by social values, and at the possible sociocultural significance of grammatical devices. The chapters add up to a contribution to the renewed debate among linguists and anthropologists on the relationship between grammar, culture, and cognition. The authors represent a wide range of research traditions, some of which have not until now explicitly addressed the grammar and culture issue. They consider the subject in the context of a wide range of cultures in North America, Europe, and Australasia.

Review:

...a fascinating collection of essays and case studies exploring links between grammar and culture ... a rich introduction to a fertile field of study Jamin R. Pelkey, SIL International Book Reviews