Drawing on data from over thirty different languages and societies, it shows how language is more than simply a form of social action; it is also an effective tool with which we formulate models of social life and conduct. These models - or particular forms of social behaviour - are linked to the classification of ‘types’ of action or actor, and are passed ‘reflexively’ from person to person, and from generation to generation. Providing a novel and unified way of accounting for a variety of social phenomena, this book will be welcomed by all those interested in the interaction between language, culture, and society.

• Presents a brand new, unified framework for accounting for the relationship between language and a range of social phenomena
• Chapters contain numbered summaries of the major points discussed, allowing the reader to review and consolidate their understanding of the arguments presented
• Discusses data from over 30 languages and societies

Contents
1. Reflexivity;
2. From referring to registers;
3. Register formations;
4. The social life of cultural value;
5. Regrouping identity;
6. Registers of person deixis;
7. Honorific registers;
8. Norm and trope in kinship behaviour.