Kritički osvrt na razvoj sociolingvistike / A Critical Review of the Development of Sociolinguistics

Abstract

The paper provides a critical review of the development of sociolinguistics, from its classical theoretical foundations to its later methodological and interpretative expansions. Starting from the opposition between the structuralist conception of language as a closed and homogeneous system and the sociolinguistic insistence on variation, usage and social context, the paper examines the scholarly contributions of authors such as Ferdinand de Saussure, William Labov, Dell Hymes, John Gumperz, Antoine Meillet, Françoise Gadet and others. Particular attention is devoted to the transition from classical variationist sociolinguistics towards a broader understanding of the discipline, as well as to the shift from the description of linguistic variables to the analysis of language as social practice. The paper also discusses similarities and differences between French and American sociolinguistic traditions. The research is based on a critical examination of relevant sociolinguistic literature, with the aim of showing how sociolinguistics has developed from the description of the relationship between language and society into a more complex theoretical and methodological field for the analysis of linguistic variation, social meanings and communicative practices. Ultimately, the paper demonstrates that the development of sociolinguistics lies in its capacity to interpret linguistic diversity as a socially, historically and functionally shaped phenomenon.