Language policy research directions embedded in the sociolinguistic enterprise

Abstract

Abstract While language policy and planning studies are a separate research field in sociolinguistics, they must develop in line with empirical and theoretical findings presented in the other branches of sociolinguistics. The distinctiveness of language policy and planning research lies in its interest in language management, while language practices and language attitudes, beliefs, and ideologies are also objects of study in sociolinguistics in general, as well as in other disciplines in the humanities and social sciences. Language policy and planning studies benefit from work carried out in other research traditions, and this relationship can be mutually beneficial if there is mutual will to exchange ideas, models and approaches. The position argued for in the present contribution is that it can be wise for language policy and planning researchers to take Spolsky’s work on language policy still further, particularly his fundamental assumption that language policy has three interrelated yet independent components, namely language practices, language beliefs, and language management. In doing so, language policy and planning studies can be sure to be at once firmly rooted in a wider research context, while their distinctiveness as a separate sub-field of sociolinguistics is underscored.