Sociolinguistics: other interfaces, new applications

Abstract

The Dossier “Sociolinguistics: Other Interfaces and New Applications,” a follow-up to the volume “Sociolinguistics: Interfaces and Applications,” published in 2024 and available at https://www.pimentacultural.com/livro/sociolinguistica-interfaces/, brings together research that highlights the vitality of contemporary sociolinguistic studies, covering different objects of study, methodologies, and theoretical frameworks. Researchers explore theoretical and methodological connections based on the classical framework of sociolinguistics, as well as new fields of application that use sociolinguistics as a starting point or endpoint, as a theoretical or methodological partner, or as the guiding thread of the analysis. The broadening of the analytical lens—whether through theoretical linkages or interdisciplinary practices—has more effectively highlighted both the motivations behind linguistic uses and new mechanisms of linguistic analysis. Although there is a vast body of work on Variationist Sociolinguistics and Educational Sociolinguistics, sociolinguistic studies that interface with other theoretical approaches are more recent; so too are studies that broaden the analytical perspective to include the motivations that shape the subjectivity of language. With the aim of broadening the debate between sociolinguistics and new methodologies or other theoretical perspectives, we present this thematic dossier, which brings together theories, methodologies, and contexts.