The German language today: a linguistic introduction

Charles Russ9780415104388, 0415104386, 0203425774, 9780203425770

The German Language Today shows the linguistic variety that exists within the German speech community as well as describing the main systematic linguistic features of the language. Covering the factors which produce competing forms in German, Charles Russ describes the sounds, inflectional processes, syntactic structures and different layers of words in language.
The text is detailed in its coverage of both sociolinguistic and linguistic topics, use of illustrative texts and examples, and the application of modern linguistic concepts to German. Giving recognition to the fact that languages are constantly changing, always accumulating new words and meanings, Russ provides the first analysis of the implications of German unification upon the German language and its speaking community–East and West alike.