Ethnography of Communication

Abstract

The ethnography of communication (EC) is an approach to language and social interaction.ECseeks to discover the cultural particularities and general principles of communication. The particularities are demonstrated through cultural analyses of communication practices; in addition to the particularities, the generalities are established typically through comparative study. The approach foregrounds locally situated means and meanings of communication as its primary analytical concern. There are four philosophical assumptions inECabout communication, language, and social interaction: (1) communication is what people have made of it; (2) communication exhibits systemic social organization; (3) communication, language and social interaction are deeply and radically cultural; (4) and communication is formative of social and cultural lives. The approach is traced from Dell Hymes's and John Gumperz's pioneering works using a field‐based methodology, to more recent developments such as the theory of cultural communication, speech code theory, and cultural discourse analysis.