Journal of Language and Politics

The Journal of Language and Politics (JLP) represents a forum for analysing and discussing the various dimensions in the interplay of language and politics. The basic assumption is that the language of politics cannot be separated from the politics of language. The notion of ’Political Discourse’ does not remain limited to the ’institutional’ field of politics (e.g. parliamentary discourse, election campaigns, party programmes, speeches, etc.) but opens to all linguistic manifestations that may be considered to be political, provided that it is convincingly argued what makes them ’political’. In order to illuminate new and old forms of political discourses inter- and transdisciplinary perspectives and elaborated linguistic methodologies have to complement each other.

Articles should bring together sociological concepts, political theories, and historical analysis. Methodologies can be qualitative or quantitative and must be well grounded in linguistics or other relevant disciplines. They may focus on different dimensions (pragmatics, semantics, social cognition, semiotics) of political discourse. Since political discourses overlap with other discourses, e.g. economic and scientific discourses, perspectives of interdiscursivity and intertextuality are considered to be important. Articles based on ethnographic studies will be particularly welcome.

The Journal of Language and Politics is associated with the book series Discourse Approaches to Politics, Society, and Culture, edited by Ruth Wodak and Grey Myers.