ABSTRACT
The sociolinguistic landscape in Britain is rapidly changing. Factors such as migration, mobility and language contact continue to affect communities. Linguistic consequences of such changes are not always predictable, but sociolinguistic studies can highlight these changes. This chapter outlines a selection of contemporary research which focuses on variationist studies investigating regional variation in Britain. It covers research carried out in Scotland and Wales, the north and south of England as well as including research carried out on some under-researched areas, such as the East and West Midlands, the South-West and British Sign Language. The chapter also points to areas which require further research, such as accent discrimination, the influence of different ethnolects and varieties affected by migration and language contact. It aims to showcase the sociolinguistic research which has been taking place in Britain since the first edition of this book.
