Linguistic anthropology is the study of language as a social and cultural practice. At the University of Arizona, we provide students with the theoretical tools needed to understand language in its larger sociopolitical context. Our current faculty specialize in the study of migration, border studies, citizenship, sociopolitical transformation, globalization, consumption, and mass media. Our program emphasizes the analysis of language structure, including both qualitative and quantitative approaches. We offer methodological training in the areas of ethnographic discourse analysis, face-to-face interactional analysis, quantitative variationist analysis, and video ethnography. 

The linguistic anthropology faculty are engaged in the following areas of research:

•   Youth Language and Culture
•   Race, Gender, Class and Language
•   Language Ideologies
•   Sociophonetics
•   Sociolinguistic Variation

Core Faculty

• Norma C. Mendoza-Denton
• Jennifer Roth-Gordon
• Qing Zhang

Affiliated Faculty

• Linda R. Waugh

Retired Faculty

• Ellen B. Basso
• Jane H. Hill
• Susan U. Phillips

Other Links

• Diebold Linguistic Anthropology Teaching Laboratory