Power, Mobility and Voice
Jan Blommaert's Unfinished Business
Will be published approx. on 16. June 2026
Book
Hardback
402 pages
978-1-83668-264-6 (ISBN)
Description
Builds on the profound and challenging legacy of sociolinguist Jan Blommaert, one of the most important thinkers in contemporary sociolinguistics, who dismantled the theoretical and ideological orthodoxies of his time.
This volume honours the influential work of Jan Blommaert, furthering his critical and constructive engagement with power dynamics across numerous domains. It takes Blommaert's work as a starting point to approach the challenges of a changing social world, using his frameworks to explore new contexts and applying new methodologies to established fields of study.
The chapter authors - Jan's colleagues, students and others inspired by his work - explore four themes of his scholarly legacy, expanding on his work and looking to new contexts. They elaborate on the concept of chronotopes, explore ideologies of language diversity and inequality, address normativities in complex online and offline spaces, and analyse voice as agency in time and space.
Spanning a wide range of academic disciplines and contexts, they share a core commitment to analysing language in relation to society and power, arguably the most pressing legacy of Blommaert's work.
This book is open access under a CC BY NC ND licence.
This volume honours the influential work of Jan Blommaert, furthering his critical and constructive engagement with power dynamics across numerous domains. It takes Blommaert's work as a starting point to approach the challenges of a changing social world, using his frameworks to explore new contexts and applying new methodologies to established fields of study.
The chapter authors - Jan's colleagues, students and others inspired by his work - explore four themes of his scholarly legacy, expanding on his work and looking to new contexts. They elaborate on the concept of chronotopes, explore ideologies of language diversity and inequality, address normativities in complex online and offline spaces, and analyse voice as agency in time and space.
Spanning a wide range of academic disciplines and contexts, they share a core commitment to analysing language in relation to society and power, arguably the most pressing legacy of Blommaert's work.
This book is open access under a CC BY NC ND licence.
Reviews / Votes
Although many scholars have framed the current worldwide situation as 'dire times', the ongoing legacies of colonialism with the accompanying genocides of people and their languages have always been dreadful. Building on Jan Blommaert's everlasting work, this volume speaks powerfully not only to the present but to the past and future by insightfully delving into Blommaert's optics on chronotopes, innovative research methodologies, language ideologies, and whose voices are heard and not heard. * Christian W. Chun, University of Massachusetts Boston, USA * Jan Blommaert was a curious sociolinguist, interested in huge global transformations as well as in small discursive and semiotic details; above all he was sharp and unique in his social and political analyses of digital phenomena. He would have enjoyed reading this book with its various concepts, theories and perspectives discussed in the context of the rapidly changing world. His work will continue inspiring students and researchers and will indeed not be 'finished' in the near future. * Odile Heynders, Tilburg University, The Netherlands *More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Bristol
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Channel View Publications Ltd
Target group
College/higher education
Product notice
sewn/stitched
Cloth over boards
Dimensions
Height: 210 mm
Width: 148 mm
Thickness: 24 mm
Weight
667 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-83668-264-6 (9781836682646)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
Book
approx. 06/2026
Multilingual Matters
€62.00
Shipment within 3-4 weeks
Persons
Karel Arnaut is Professor of Social and Cultural Anthropology at KU Leuven, Belgium. He teaches on the anthropology of migration as well as on language, diversity and inequality and co-coordinates a range of migration-related international projects such as AIMEC, ReROOT and ATLAS.
Ico Maly is Professor of Digital Media, Culture and Politics at Tilburg University, The Netherlands. He is editor-in-chief of Diggit Magazine and senior fellow at Far-Right Analysis Network and his research explores digital media, ideology and power.
David Parkin is Professor Emeritus of All Souls College and the School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography at the University of Oxford, UK. His work of over six decades spans urban ethnicity, rural farming practices and multimodal communication.
Massimiliano Spotti is Associate Professor of Ethnography and Digital Literacies at Tilburg University, The Netherlands. His research interests include the (dis)approval of identities via socio-technological platforms in asylum applications and software-based approaches to the learning of Dutch.
Ico Maly is Professor of Digital Media, Culture and Politics at Tilburg University, The Netherlands. He is editor-in-chief of Diggit Magazine and senior fellow at Far-Right Analysis Network and his research explores digital media, ideology and power.
David Parkin is Professor Emeritus of All Souls College and the School of Anthropology and Museum Ethnography at the University of Oxford, UK. His work of over six decades spans urban ethnicity, rural farming practices and multimodal communication.
Massimiliano Spotti is Associate Professor of Ethnography and Digital Literacies at Tilburg University, The Netherlands. His research interests include the (dis)approval of identities via socio-technological platforms in asylum applications and software-based approaches to the learning of Dutch.
Content
Contributors
Acknowledgements
Adrian Blackledge: Bourdieu as Inspiration: Poetry, Voice and Articulate Noise
Chapter 1. Karel Arnaut, Ico Maly, David Parkin and Massimiliano Spotti: Power, Mobility and Voice: An Introduction
A: Chronotopes
Chapter 2. Ben Rampton and Lavanya Sankaran: Living with the Chronotope of War: Sri Lankan Tamil Diasporans in London
Chapter 3. Jie Dong: Danmu Videos and Chronotopicity: An Ethnography of Video-Sharing Websites
Chapter 4. Jos Swanenberg and Inge Beekmans: Memes and Tilburg: Chronotopes, Identity Work and Place-Making on @tilburgmeme
B: Language Ideologies, Diversity and Inequality
Chapter 5. Sjaak Kroon: Language Diversity, Policy and Practice: Five Case Studies
Chapter 6. Janus Spindler Moller: Ethnolinguistic Cornering and the Resistance of Language Identities: Representations of an Urban Youth Style in a Radio Program
Chapter 7. Massimiliano Spotti: Language Ideological Disqualifications in a Dutch as a Second Language Classroom for Newly Arrived Migrants
Chapter 8. Constadina Charalambous and Elena Ioannidou: Language, Identity and Conflicted Heritage: Two Case Studies from Cyprus
C: Normativities in Complex Spaces
Chapter 9. Anna De Fina and Giuseppe Paternostro: Migrants' Communicative Practices in Polycentric Spaces: Anomie, Stability and Change
Chapter 10. Marco Jacquemet: The Digital Turn in Asylum Determination through the Lens of Superdiversity
Chapter 11. Ico Maly and Inge Beekmans: The Ideology of Digital Platforms: The Right Stuff
Chapter 12. Alexandra Georgakopoulou: (Un)Complicating Context: The Case of Formatted Storytelling on Social Media
Chapter 13. Sirpa Leppaenen and Elina Westinen: Counterspeech: Resisting Hate on Social Media
D: Voice and Agency in Time/Moments
Chapter 14. Zane Goebel and Udiana Puspa Dewi: Representing the Voices of Those Living with Seawater Incursion in Indonesia
Chapter 15. Martha Sif Karrebaek, Narges Ghandchi and Marta Kirilova: 'It Makes Sense': Credibility and Impartiality in an Interpreter-Mediated Asylum Case in Court
Chapter 16. David Parkin: Indirect Communication: Seeking Therapy and Avoiding Stigmatization
Chapter 17. Karel Arnaut, Shila Anaraki, Hannelore Hooft, Carolien Lubberhuizen and Elsemieke van Osch: Abductions: Unpacking Orders, Mobilities and Struggles through Mediating (Text-)Objects
Chapter 18. Alastair Pennycook: Complexity and the Total Semiotic Fact: Corner Shop Chronicles
Postscript
Chapter 19. Jef Verschueren: The Pragmatics of 'Free Speech'
Index
Acknowledgements
Adrian Blackledge: Bourdieu as Inspiration: Poetry, Voice and Articulate Noise
Chapter 1. Karel Arnaut, Ico Maly, David Parkin and Massimiliano Spotti: Power, Mobility and Voice: An Introduction
A: Chronotopes
Chapter 2. Ben Rampton and Lavanya Sankaran: Living with the Chronotope of War: Sri Lankan Tamil Diasporans in London
Chapter 3. Jie Dong: Danmu Videos and Chronotopicity: An Ethnography of Video-Sharing Websites
Chapter 4. Jos Swanenberg and Inge Beekmans: Memes and Tilburg: Chronotopes, Identity Work and Place-Making on @tilburgmeme
B: Language Ideologies, Diversity and Inequality
Chapter 5. Sjaak Kroon: Language Diversity, Policy and Practice: Five Case Studies
Chapter 6. Janus Spindler Moller: Ethnolinguistic Cornering and the Resistance of Language Identities: Representations of an Urban Youth Style in a Radio Program
Chapter 7. Massimiliano Spotti: Language Ideological Disqualifications in a Dutch as a Second Language Classroom for Newly Arrived Migrants
Chapter 8. Constadina Charalambous and Elena Ioannidou: Language, Identity and Conflicted Heritage: Two Case Studies from Cyprus
C: Normativities in Complex Spaces
Chapter 9. Anna De Fina and Giuseppe Paternostro: Migrants' Communicative Practices in Polycentric Spaces: Anomie, Stability and Change
Chapter 10. Marco Jacquemet: The Digital Turn in Asylum Determination through the Lens of Superdiversity
Chapter 11. Ico Maly and Inge Beekmans: The Ideology of Digital Platforms: The Right Stuff
Chapter 12. Alexandra Georgakopoulou: (Un)Complicating Context: The Case of Formatted Storytelling on Social Media
Chapter 13. Sirpa Leppaenen and Elina Westinen: Counterspeech: Resisting Hate on Social Media
D: Voice and Agency in Time/Moments
Chapter 14. Zane Goebel and Udiana Puspa Dewi: Representing the Voices of Those Living with Seawater Incursion in Indonesia
Chapter 15. Martha Sif Karrebaek, Narges Ghandchi and Marta Kirilova: 'It Makes Sense': Credibility and Impartiality in an Interpreter-Mediated Asylum Case in Court
Chapter 16. David Parkin: Indirect Communication: Seeking Therapy and Avoiding Stigmatization
Chapter 17. Karel Arnaut, Shila Anaraki, Hannelore Hooft, Carolien Lubberhuizen and Elsemieke van Osch: Abductions: Unpacking Orders, Mobilities and Struggles through Mediating (Text-)Objects
Chapter 18. Alastair Pennycook: Complexity and the Total Semiotic Fact: Corner Shop Chronicles
Postscript
Chapter 19. Jef Verschueren: The Pragmatics of 'Free Speech'
Index