World Englishes at the Grassroots

The first book to examine the growth of Englishes in grassroots contexts Having emerged as the most widespread global language, English now has substantially more second and foreign-language speakers than native speakers. Long associated with an 'educated elite', including academics, politicians and business professionals, English is now increasingly spreading at the grassroots of societies, among speakers with limited access to formal education - a process which is becoming increasingly visible and influential. Bringing together an international roster of contributors, this book explores uses of English in a variety of grassroots multilingual contexts; drawing on a diverse range of experiences, such as motorcycle taxi drivers, market vendors, cleaners, hotel staff, tour guides, migrant domestic workers, refugees and asylum seekers. Divided into three parts, the book explores the spread of English in former areas of British domination including Africa and the East, in trade and work migration, and in forced migration by refugees. The chapters present cutting edge case studies which draw on spoken data from Bahrainis, South Africans, Tanzanians, Ugandans, Bangladeshis in the Middle East, Italians in the UK, Indians in the US, and Nigerians and Syrians in Germany. This important and innovative volume presents a first documentation of world Englishes at the grassroots of societies and an empirical basis for their further study and for the theorising of world Englishes by integrating Englishes at the grassroots into existing models of English. Key Features: - the first volume to focus on non-elitist speakers and uses of English around the globe and to assess the theoretical significance of this important sociopolitical aspect of the spread of English - presents case studies based on data from a wide range of countries and continents - employs a variety of data types, including authentic face-to-face interactions, interviews and media representations - examines ethical aspects of pursuing research involving marginalised and vulnerable communities Christiane Meierkord holds the Chair of English Linguistics at the Ruhr-University of Bochum, investigating intra- and international uses of English as a lingua franca, which she models as Interactions across Englishes. Edgar W. Schneider is Emeritus Professor of English Linguistics at the University of Regensburg, Germany, known in the field of World Englishes primarily as the originator of the "Dynamic Model" of the evolution of postcolonial Englishes.