Ethnography of Speaking Course | Language & Society | IIT Guwahati
Course Details
| Exam Registration | 50 |
|---|---|
| Course Status | Ongoing |
| Course Type | Core |
| Language | English |
| Duration | 8 weeks |
| Categories | Humanities and Social Sciences |
| Credit Points | 2 |
| Level | Undergraduate/Postgraduate |
| Start Date | 16 Feb 2026 |
| End Date | 10 Apr 2026 |
| Enrollment Ends | 16 Feb 2026 |
| Exam Registration Ends | 27 Feb 2026 |
| Exam Date | 26 Apr 2026 IST |
| NCrF Level | 4.5 — 8.0 |
Unlocking the Social Code: An 8-Week Journey into the Ethnography of Speaking
Language is far more than a system of grammar and vocabulary; it is the living, breathing fabric of society. How we speak reveals who we are, where we belong, and how we perceive the world. The Ethnography of Speaking delves into this intricate relationship, examining language as a social and cultural practice. This comprehensive 8-week course, designed and instructed by Prof. Bidisha Som of IIT Guwahati, offers a multidisciplinary exploration of how language shapes, and is shaped by, human society.
Meet Your Instructor: Prof. Bidisha Som
Leading this intellectual journey is Prof. Bidisha Som, a Professor of Linguistics at the Indian Institute of Technology Guwahati. With seventeen years of teaching and research experience, Prof. Som specializes in the cognitive science of language, focusing on the dynamic interaction between language, culture, and cognition. Her expertise spans psycholinguistics of bilingualism, cognitive linguistics, language processing, and atypical language development. A recipient of prestigious grants from the Government of India (DST) and the EU, she collaborates with global experts in linguistics, psychology, and neuroscience, bringing a rich, interdisciplinary perspective to the course.
Who Should Enroll?
This course is meticulously designed for a broad audience:
- Students: UG, PG, and PhD scholars from any discipline with an interest in language-related studies.
- Researchers & Academics: Early-career researchers and professionals in linguistics, social psychology, affective psychology, anthropology, and social cognition.
- Industry Professionals: Experts in Artificial Intelligence seeking to create nuanced, culturally-aware language models, and professionals in advertising, marketing, and media who wish to understand the profound impact of linguistic nuance on society.
Course Overview: A Deep Dive into Language in Society
Over eight weeks, the course moves from foundational theories to advanced applications, bridging linguistics with psychology, anthropology, and neuroscience.
Detailed Course Layout
| Week | Core Theme | Key Topics |
|---|---|---|
| Week 1 | Language as a Social Reality | Historical theories (Hobbes, Locke, Rousseau), modern linguistics, sociolinguistics, and social neuroscience. |
| Week 2 | Speaker-Based Variation | Dialects, regional & social variation, gender, age, ethnicity, and language change. |
| Week 3 | Usage-Based Variation | Style, register, politeness, cross-cultural communication, narratives, and social class. |
| Week 4 | Speech Communities | Language identity, attitudes, ideology, socialization, and case studies. |
| Week 5 | Language Contact | Pidgins, creoles, multilingualism, code-switching, and code-mixing. |
| Week 6 | Language Dynamics & Discourse | Diglossia, language shift/maintenance/death, conversation analysis, and critical discourse analysis. |
| Week 7 | Applied Domains | Language policy & planning, language in politics/media, and educational applications. |
| Week 8 | Foray into Cognition | Collective cognition, social cognition in discourse, cognitive sociolinguistics, and social neuroscience of language. |
Essential Reading Materials
The course curriculum is supported by seminal texts in the field, including:
- Trudgill, P. - Sociolinguistics: An Introduction to Language and Society
- Holmes, J. - An Introduction to Sociolinguistics
- Meyerhoff, M. - Introducing Sociolinguistics
- Everett, D. - Language: The Cultural Tool
- Shore, B. - Culture in Mind
- Warnick, J. & Landis, D. (Eds.) - Neuroscience in Intercultural Context
Why This Course Matters
In our increasingly interconnected and AI-driven world, understanding the social underpinnings of language is not just academic—it's essential. This course equips you with the framework to analyze how language constructs social reality, influences cognition, and drives human interaction. Whether you aim to advance research, inform policy, develop better AI, or craft resonant communication strategies, the Ethnography of Speaking provides the critical tools and insights for success. Enroll today to begin deciphering the profound social code of human language.
Enroll Now →