The Sociology of Language and Religion

'The profound linkage between language and religion has, until recently, lain beyond the scope of a linguistics detached from speakers' identities and cultures, and a sociological methodology wary of entering too deeply into belief systems. Tope Omoniyi has taken the lead in putting language and religion squarely on the research agenda, inspiring growing numbers of others to follow. With this book, so marvellously clear in its description and analysis, rich in ethnographic detail, and with abundant linguistic and textual examples, the emerging field moves well beyond facile categories. The studies in The Sociology of Language and Religion will be widely cited for years to come for their mature understanding of the traditions, enduring yet ever-changing - and sometimes, as with 'Holy Hip Hop', invented on the hoof - through which people interpret themselves and others within two infinite unfathomables: the universe of their beliefs, and the languages and discourses in which they are constructed.' - John E. Joseph, University of Edinburgh, Scotland