Towards an understanding of the dynamic nature of practiced language policies

This chapter is a theoretical reflection on the dynamic nature of ‘practiced language policies’. Whilst practiced language policies are often represented as a list of norms of language choice that speakers orient to in interaction to know when a language(s) is appropriate or not, this can possibly lead to the erroneous understanding that practiced language policies are fixed. Here, I argue that practiced language policies are dynamic. This dynamic nature is characterised by three elements: (1) the multi-dimensions of a domain (Fishman, Cooper and Newman 1971); (2) the potential lack of reciprocity of perspectives in talk; (3) the emergence of new norms. In this chapter, I discuss each of these three characteristics in turn, drawing on examples taken from a variety of contexts.