Combining linguistics and philosophy of language, this single-volume reference guide surveys the life and work of key figures in the development of ideas about language. The eighty entries range from antiquity to the present day, each focusing on a thinker in the Western tradition who has had a significant impact on the description or theory of language.

Each entry: • explains the main ideas of the thinker • outlines how their ideas have developed • assesses their significance and influence • includes brief biographical details, placing the thinker in context • concludes with suggestions for further reading.

No prior knowledge of linguistics or philosophy is assumed. Suggestions for further reading of primary texts and secondary sources encourage readers to explore further. Thinkers examined range from Plato and Aristotle, through Berkeley, Leibniz, Kant, Russell, Wittgenstein, and Austin, to Sacks, Kristeva, and Chomsky.

Features • Entries are extensively cross-referenced, allowing readers to trace influences, developments and debates both in contemporary thinking and across time • Designed for use by undergraduate, postgraduate, academic and other readers with an interest in linguistics and the philosophy of language.

Siobhan Chapman is a Lecturer in English Language at the University of Liverpool. Christopher Routledge is a freelance writer and editor.

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