“Chambers offers a lucid introduction to the basic issues that relate language and society, and leads the reader directly to the quantitative data that define the field. At each turn, we benefit from his personal and insightful weighing of the evidence on why we speak the way we do.” William Labov, University of Pennsylvania “This book is indispensable for everybody in the field, from undergraduates to advanced researchers. Well-written, engaged, and inspiring, it is at the same time a state-of-the-art account of variationist sociolinguistics and a challenge to go on and enhance our knowledge.” Daniel Schreier, University of Zürich “Professor Chambers's book successfully combines a theoretical grounding in variationist sociolinguistics with generous descriptions of the research on which the theories are based. This makes it particularly inspiring for students who themselves want to try their hands at this field of study.” Mats Mobärg, University of Gothenburg