What is the Difference Between Sociolinguistics and Sociology of Language?

Sociolinguistics and sociology of language are two closely related fields that study the interaction between society and language. However, they have different focal points:

Sociolinguistics studies language in relation to society, focusing on how social factors such as gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic class, region, and occupational dialect affect language use and variation. It examines the differences in language use among various social groups and how these differences are reflected in the language itself.
Sociology of language (also known as macrosociolinguistics) studies society in relation to language, focusing on how society is impacted by language and how language use reflects societal structures and norms. It looks at the broader relationship between language and society, such as how language policies, practices, and ideologies influence social dynamics and power structures.

In summary, the key difference between sociolinguistics and sociology of language lies in their focus: sociolinguistics concentrates on the study of language and its relation to society, while sociology of language focuses on the study of society and its relation to language. Both fields contribute to our understanding of the complex interaction between language and society, but they emphasize different aspects of this relationship.

On this page

What is the Difference Between Sociolinguistics and Sociology of Language?

Comparative Table: Sociolinguistics vs Sociology of Language

Here is a table illustrating the differences between sociolinguistics and sociology of language:

Feature	Sociolinguistics	Sociology of Language
Focus	Language in relation to social factors such as region, class, occupational dialect, and gender	Relations between language and society
Scope	Studies how various social factors affect language, such as gender, ethnicity, age, and social class	Examines how language functions within society and how society influences language
Approach	Investigates how people speak differently in various social contexts and how people use specific functions of language to convey aspects of their identity and social environment	Analyzes the role of language in shaping social structures, institutions, and cultural practices
Methods	Uses linguistic data and sociological theories to describe and model social variation in language	Employs sociological methods and theories to study the interplay between language and social processes

While both fields study the interaction between language and society, sociolinguistics focuses on language, whereas sociology of language focuses on society.

Guilherme Mazui

Guilherme Mazui is graduated in journalism from the Federal University of Minas Gerais (UFMG) and a master's degree in Communication from the University of São Paulo (USP). In addition, he has experience in advertising writing and has worked as a content editor in several companies.