Professor Robert B. Le Page was one of the pioneers to study the theoretical, structural and applied aspects of Sociolinguistics—particularly in pidgin and creole studies. His interpretation of the roles that creoles play in our understanding of language is revolutionary and his works have influenced scholars to re-examine the notions of language in general, with special emphasis on Caribbean languages. This book is a collection of essays by Le Page. This book discusses the concept of language and how it shapes one's identity. The essays deal with Le page's sociolinguistic studies in contact situations. Categorised into four major sections–Theoretical Aspects, Pidgin and Creole Studies, General and National Language and Identity–the papers discuss everything relevant as well as problematic in pidgin and creole languages and linguistics, e.g. notion of language and concept of competence in the context of Creole studies, problems of linguistic continua, de-creolisation and re-creolisation, Caribbean connections in the classroom, standardisation of Caribbean languages, linguistic myths and snobberies, vernacularisation of literacy, stylistic application of linguistic, use of metaphors in the context of language and race, language and nationalism, etc. Moreover, the problematic question of having a national language in the newly-independent states of Malaysia and Singapore and how it influences the idea of nationalism are also discussed here. This book will be of interest to students and scholars of fluid multilingual situations interested in studies of language planning, language and education in general and pidgin and creole studies in particular. Contents: Acknowledgements About Robert B. Le Page and This Book Introduction Interview: Robert B. Le Page in Conversation with Rama Kant Agnihotri and Mahendra K. Verma Section I: Theoretical Aspects 1. The Need for a Multidimensional Model 2. The Concept of Competence in a Creole/Contact Situation 3. Projection, Focussing and Diffusion 4. What is a Language? 5. Theoretical Aspects of Sociolinguistic Studies in Pidgin and Creole Languages 6. Problems of Description in Multilingual Communities 7. The Evolution of a Sociolinguistic Theory of Language 8. What Can We Learn from the Case of Pitcairnese? 9. You Can Never Tell Where a Word Comes From: Language Contact in a Diffuse Setting Section II: Pidgin and Creole Studies 10. Hugo Schuchardt’s Creole Studies and the Problem of Linguistic Continua 11. De-creolisation and Re-creolisation: A Preliminary Report on the Sociolinguistic Survey of Multilingual Communities Stage II: St. Lucia 12. General Outlines of Creole English Dialects in the British Caribbean 13. Caribbean Connections in the Classroom 14. Some Premises Concerning the Standardisation of Languages, with Special Reference to Caribbean Creole English Section III: General 15. Linguistic Myths and Snobberies 16. Writing Systems and the Vernacularisation of Literacy 17. The Standardisation of Languages and the Vernacularisation of Literacy 18. The Language Barrier: An Essay in the Stylistic Applications of Linguistics 19. Conflicts of Metaphor in the Discussion of Language and Race Section IV: National Language and Identity 20. The National Language Question: Linguistic Problems of Newly Independent States 21. Retrospect and Prognosis in Malaysia and Singapore 22. Language and Nationalism Index