Linguistic Anthropology: A Reader is a comprehensive collection of the best work that has been published in this exciting and growing area of anthropology, and is organized to provide a guide to key issues in the study of language as a cultural resource and speaking as a cultural practice. * Revised and updated, this second edition contains eight new articles on key subjects, including speech communities, the power and performance of language, and narratives * Selections are both historically oriented and thematically coherent, and are accessibly grouped according to four major themes: speech community and communicative competence; the performance of language; language socialization and literacy practices; and the power of language * An extensive introduction provides an original perspective on the development of the field and highlights its most compelling issues * Each section includes a brief introductory statement, sets of guiding questions, and list of recommended readings on the main topics