Continuing Discourse on Language - A Functional Perspective, Volumes 1 and 2 - Ruqaiya Hasan†
16. Semantic variation
Continuing Discourse on Language - A Functional Perspective, Volumes 1 and 2 - Ruqaiya Hasan†
Geoff Williams [+]
University of Sydney
Description
Semantic variation is a particularly complex and intriguing concept developed in SFL research through transdisciplinary work. Three fields have contributed: linguistics, sociology and psychology. The concept was foregrounded by Hasan (1989) as a legitimate and significant research field in linguistics, contra Weiner and Labov (1983). However, the origins of interest in the concept can be traced to the early twentieth century, through various attempts at modelling and theoretical clarification in mid-century, to work which Hasan and her colleagues undertook during the 1980s specifically as semantic variation research. this chapter presents a summary and overview of current theoretical trends in this application of SFL.