The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language [Paperback]

David Crystal (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0521559677 | ISBN-13: 978-0521559676 | Publication Date: February 13, 1997 | Edition: 2

This Second Edition of The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language presents a mass of new information and introduces the subject of language to a fresh generation of students and general readers. Probably the most successful general study of language ever published, The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language covers all the major themes of language study, including popular ideas about language, language and identity, the structure of language, speaking and listening, writing, reading, and signing, language acquisition, the neurological basis of language, and languages of the world. Exposing this work to a new generation of readers, the Second Edition extends the range of coverage to include advances in areas such as machine translation, speech interaction with machines, and language teaching. There is new material on acoustics, physiological concepts of language, and World English, and a complete update of the language distribution maps, language-speaking statistics, table of the world's languages, and further reading. All geopolitical material has been revised to take account of boundary changes. The book has been redesigned and is presented for the first time in full color, with new pictures and maps added.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The most diverse, enjoyable, and thought-provoking encyclopedia on language. Though not an alphabetical encyclopedia, the coverage of the 65 thematic chapters is encyclopedic--ideal for anyone interested in words, speech, writing, and thought, and certain to be a continual point of reference for any writer for years to come. Very Highly Recommended. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

This is a collection of concise and readable essays on the many subfields of linguistics, ranging from the invention of the alphabet to the Kurzweil Reading Machine and covering both theoretical and applied approaches to the subject. Numerous illustrations and charts make the text more vivid, and a glossary, a table of the world's languages, and several indexes make it eminently usable. Respected British linguist Crystal has done an admirable job of condensing information from many specialized fields into a form that will be intelligible to lay readers as well as linguists. Useful for public as well as academic libraries. Catherine V. von Schon, SUNY at Stony Brook Lib.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 488 pages
• Publisher: Cambridge University Press; 2 edition (February 13, 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0521559677
• ISBN-13: 978-0521559676
• Product Dimensions: 10.8 x 8.6 x 1.3 inches
• Shipping Weight: 4.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #226,095 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #37 in Books > Education & Reference > Encyclopedias > Literature

More About the Author

David Crystal is honorary professor of linguistics at the University of Wales, Bangor. He has written or edited over 100 books and published numerous articles for scholarly, professional, and general readerships, in fields ranging from forensic linguistics and ELT to the liturgy and Shakespeare. His many books include Words, Words, Words (OUP 2006) and The Fight for English (OUP 2006).

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Linguaphile's Delight, December 4, 2002

By 

F. Hamilton "[e-mail]" (St. Louis, MO United States) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language (Paperback)

_The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language_, Second Edition, by David Crystal is a linguaphile's delight. It provides a wealth of information to engage the mind indefinitely.

Instead of being organized alphabetically, as most encyclopedias are, _The Encyclopedia of Language_ is divided into eleven parts that comprise sixty-five thematic sections. Each section includes a comprehensive discussion of the theme, enhanced by sidebars and colorful visuals. Sections range in length from two to twenty pages, making the chunks of information small enough to be palatable yet large enough to be satisfying.

Topics addressed include language and thought, the structure of language, the anatomy and physiology of speech, written language, language acquisition, languages of the world, language disabilities, and language change. Obviously, this is only a sample. In addition, the book has eight appendices, including an extensive glossary and a table giving information about nearly 1,000 of the world's languages.

While many of Crystal's topics have their technical aspects, the author keeps his tone conversational and his information accessible to the lay reader. In this way he celebrates the existence of human language and deepens our appreciation of it.

23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic reference of linguistics and languages, May 26, 2000

By 

Jeffrey L. Guthery (Seoul Korea (South)) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language (Paperback)

I have always found linguistics to be a fascinating subject, but my encounters with the majority of textbooks on this subject have made for rather dry reading. Bearing this is mind, I initially approached this book with low expectations. However, once I opened the cover I could not put it down again. David Crystal has a quite a talent for presenting various topics surrounding language in a way that is both extremely interesting and easy to understand. The eleven chapters address in general terms language structure, geographic and social factors relating to language, physiological and neurological aspects of speech and language acquisition, languages of the world, written language, and a great deal of more information covering a variety of language-related topics, to include sign language, body language, and animal communication. No one is going to become an expert on linguistics by merely reading this book, but it is a superb general reference and introduction to language and linguistics.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A brief comment, November 21, 2004

By 

magellan (Santa Clara, CA) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Language (Paperback)

This book is a linguaphile and language lover's delight, to read or just to browse like a coffee table book. It covers just about every major topic in the study of language you can think of, from traditional classical and comparative philology and linguistics to modern developmental and neurological studies of language.

The book is comprised of 11 major sections and 65 smaller sections, with 8 appendices devoted to various topics, and there is an extensive glossary of linguistic terms as well as a table giving essential information about almost 1000 of the world's languages. Although a scholarly book, it's well written and Crystal never gets overly pedantic or dry. This is no doubt one of the most comprehensive and detailed compendia of information for the general reader about the subject of language ever written.

After reading this, you'll be more than ready to tackle a formal or more technical introductory text in linguistics, if you want to continue your studies. If you do, I highly recommend David Lyons's classic, Introduction to Theoretical Linguistics, now out of print but worth getting if you can find a used copy. If you can't find that there are several other recent texts that are quite good. But if you decide to stick with this book, you'll still have learned a lot. Whichever way you decide, good luck and happy reading.