An introduction to the interdisciplinary field of linguistic anthropology which approaches language and culture as intrinsically related and mutually constitutive - language is seen as a cultural resource and language use as a cultural practice. Following a historical and theoretical outline of the discipline, theories of culture and the concept of linguistic diversity are discussed. Other chapters deal with the methodology of ethnography and the transcription of recorded speech, the meaning of conversational structures, speech acts, intentionality, conversational analysis, participation frameworks and structures. Research practicalities are discussed in an appendix.