Center for the Study of Language and Society

Welcome to the Center for the Study of Language and Society

The CSLS focuses on scientifically researching the relationship between language and society and their mutual interconnectivity in the widest sense.

The CSLS assumes in principal that language is to be seen as a fait social; every language is learnt, constructed, and constituted by and through individuals in interaction with other individuals. Similarly, society cannot be seen as simply given but rather as being created through the interactions of individuals and social actors. This interactionist and constructivist view of language and society is in stark contrast to the main-stream linguistics of generative grammar informed by Chomsky's ideal speaker-listener. Rather, language is seen as the symbolic capital (Bourdieu) in the societal negotiation of power and in the valuation of languages and societal variety. Thus, language is an essential instrument in the constitution and organization of societies and identities.