Introduction

This part introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters. The part examines the direction, drawing on John R. Rickford’s research to argue for the relevance of language contact for understanding the basis for sociolinguistic variation. It addresses a range of topics pertaining to language in South Africa, both in terms of the contact languages that evolved and the changes that are taking place. The part also examines the obstacles that confront Creole speakers in Caribbean nations in their efforts to negotiate the legal system. It considers situations like St. Lucia where the language of government is not the Guyanese Creole’s lexifier language as well as ones like Jamaica where it is. The part also addresses Rickford’s work in support of the creolist hypothesis in different ways. It looks to Rickford’s work on the social history of African American English to document the history of a variety of American Sign Language spoken by African Americans.