Dialect: A dialect (from the Greek word διάλεκτος, dialektos) is a variety of a language used by people from a particular geographic area. The number of speakers, and the area itself, can be of arbitrary size. It follows that a dialect for a larger area can contain plenty of (sub-) dialects, which in turn can contain dialects of yet smaller areas, etc.

A dialect is a complete system of verbal communication (oral or signed but not necessarily written) with its own vocabulary and/or grammar.

The concept of dialects can be distinguished from:—

sociolects, which are a variety of a language spoken by a certain social class,
standard languages, which are standardized for public performance (e.g. written standard),
jargons, which are characterized by differences in vocabulary (or lexicon according to linguist jargon), and
slang.

Varieties of language such as dialects, idiolects and sociolects can be distinguished not only by their vocabulary and grammar, but also by differences in phonology (including prosody). If the distinctions are limited to phonology, one often uses the term accent of a variety instead of variety or dialect.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dialect
 

One of two contextual concepts which explain the possible outcomes of second language learning.

Additive bilingualism occurs in an environment in which the addition of a second language and culture does not replace the first language and culture; rather, the first language/culture are promoted and developed, such as in dual language programs or developmental bilingual education programs.

Additive bilingualism is linked to high self-esteem, increased cognitive flexibility, and higher levels of proficiency in L2 (Baker, 2000).
 

A language is a method of communication and is a method used by human beings to describe their experiences.

Human spoken languages can be described as a system of symbols (sometimes known as lexemes) and the grammars (rules) by which the symbols are manipulated.

Language learning is normal in human childhood. Most human languages use patterns of sound or gesture for symbols which enable communication with others.

There are thousands of human languages, and these seem to share certain properties, even though every shared property has exceptions.

There is no defined line between a language and a dialect, but it is often said that a language is a dialect with an army and a navy, a statement credited to Max Weinreich.

Humans and computer programs have also constructed other languages, including conlangs such as Esperanto, Interlingua and Klingon, programming languages, and various mathematical formalisms. These languages are not necessarily restricted to the properties shared by human languages.
 

Context-embedded communication (from Jim Cummuns) provides several communicative supports to the listener or reader, such as objects, gestures, or vocal inflections, which help make the information comprehensible. Examples are a one-to-one social conversation with physical gestures, or storytelling activities that include visual props.

Source: http://www.nwrel.org/request/2003may/overview.html
 

Decolonization is the process by which a colony gains its independence from a colonial power, a process opposite to colonization. Decolonization could be achieved by attaining independence, integrating with the administering power or another state, or establishing a "free association" status. The UN has stated that in the process of decolonization there is no alternative to the principle of self-determination. Decolonization may involve peaceful negotiation and/or violent revolt by the native population. Decolonization in the strict sense is distinct from the break-up of traditional empires, and in modern academic discourse the period of decolonization generally refers to two major waves of independence from European colonial rule:

There appears to be some debate over whether the United States was decolonized after it gained independence, however this could just be rhetoric from those who do not view it as a legitimate nation.

In the 20th and 21st centuries "decolonization" usually refers to the achievement of independence by the various European colonies and protectorates in Asia and Africa following World War II. This conforms with an intellectual movement known as Post-Colonialism. A particularly active period of decolonization occurred between 1945 to 1960, beginning with the independence of Pakistan and India from Britain in 1947.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Decolonisation
 

A developing country is a country with a relatively low standard of living, undeveloped industrial base, and moderate to low Human Development Index (HDI). The term has tended to edge out earlier ones, including the Cold War-defined "Third World".

Development entails a modern infrastructure (both physical and institutional), and a move away from low value added sectors such as agriculture and natural resource extraction. Developed countries usually have economic systems based on continuous, self-sustaining economic growth and high standards of living.

The application of the term 'developing country' to all of the world's least developed countries could be considered inappropriate: a number of poor countries are not improving their economic situation (as the term implies), but have experienced prolonged periods of economic decline.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Developing_nations
 

Cultural imperialism is the practice of promoting the culture or language of one nation in another. It is usually the case that the former is a large, economically or militarily powerful nation and the latter is a smaller, less affluent one. Cultural imperialism can take the form of an active, formal policy or a general attitude.

Empires throughout history have been established using war and physical compulsion (military imperialism). In the long term, populations have tended to be absorbed into the dominant culture, or acquire its attributes indirectly.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_imperialism
 

Social class refers to the hierarchical distinctions between individuals or groups in societies or cultures. While anthropologists, historians and sociologists identify class as a social structure emerging from pre-history, the idea of social class entered the English lexicon about the 1770s. Social classes with more power usually subordinate classes with less power. Social classes with a great deal of power are usually viewed as elites, at least within their own societies.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Social_class
 

Sociolinguistics is the study of the effect of any and all aspects of society, including cultural norms, expectations, and context, on the way language is used.

It also studies how lects differ between groups separated by certain social variables, e.g., ethnicity, religion, status, gender, level of education, etc., and how creation and adherence to these rules is used to categorize individuals in social class or socio-economic classes. As the usage of a language varies from place to place (dialect), language usage varies among social classes, and it is these sociolects that sociolinguistics studies.

For example, a sociolinguist might determine through study of social attitudes that Black English Vernacular would not be considered appropriate language use in a business or professional setting; he or she might also study the grammar, phonetics, vocabulary, and other aspects of this sociolect much as a dialectologist would study the same for a regional dialect.

The study of language variation is concerned with social constraints determining language in its contextual environment. Code-switching is the term given to the use of different varieties of language in different social situations.

William Labov is often regarded as the founder of the study of sociolinguistics.

Sociolinguistics differs from sociology of language in that the focus of sociolinguistics is the effect of the society on the language, while the latter's focus is on the language's effect on the society.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sociolinguistics
 

Conversation analysis (commonly abbreviated as CA) is the study of talk in interaction. CA generally attempts to describe the orderliness, structure and sequential patterns of interaction, whether this is institutional (in the school, doctor's surgery, courts or elsewhere) or casual conversation. Thus, use of the term “conversation” to label this disciplinary movement is misleading if read in a colloquial sense, as many have. In light of this, one of CA’s principle practitioners, Emanuel Schegloff, has more recently identified “talk-in-interaction” as CA’s topic. Perhaps for this same reason, others (e.g., Jonathan Potter) who use CA methods identify themselves as discourse analysts (DA), though that term was first used to identify researchers using methods different from CA (e.g., Levinson, 1983), and still identifies a group of scholars larger than those who use only CA methods.

Inspired by ethnomethodology, it was developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s principally by the sociologist Harvey Sacks and, among others, his close associates Emanuel A. Schegloff and Gail Jefferson. Sacks died early in his career, but his work was championed by others in his field, and CA has now become an established force in sociology, anthropology, linguistics, speech-communication and psychology. It is particularly influential in interactional sociolinguistics, discourse analysis and discursive psychology, as well as being a coherent discipline in its own right.

Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Conversation_analysis