Languages and the First World War: Communicating in a Transnational War

1. Front Matter

   Pages i-xii

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2. Introduction

   1. Introduction

      • Christophe Declercq, Julian Walker

      Pages 1-21

3. Languages at the Front

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 23-23

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   2. ‘The … “parlez” is not going on very well “avec moi”’

      • Krista Cowman

      Pages 25-43

   3. ‘We did not speak a common language’

      • Richard S. Fogarty

      Pages 44-61

   4. Habsburg Languages at War

      • Tamara Scheer

      Pages 62-78

   5. Fritz and Tommy

      • Peter Doyle, Robin Schäfer

      Pages 79-97

   6. Caught in the Crossfire

      • Sandrijn Van Den Noortgate

      Pages 98-112

4. Writing Home

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 113-113

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   2. Poetry, Parables and Codes

      • Hilary Footitt

      Pages 115-127

   3. ‘Dear Mother, I am very sorry I cannot write to you in Welsh …’

      • Ifor ap Glyn

      Pages 128-141

   4. Sociolinguistic Aspects of Italian War Propaganda

      • Koenraad Du Pont

      Pages 142-158

   5. Belgium and the Semantic Flux of Flemish, French and Flemings

      • Christophe Declercq

      Pages 159-172

5. The Home Front

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 173-173

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   2. Malta in the First World War

      • Hillary Briffa

      Pages 175-189

   3. From Hatred to Hybridization

      • Gavin Bowd

      Pages 190-208

   4. Persuasion vs. Deception

      • Nick Milne

      Pages 209-225

   5. Linguistic Syncretism as a Marker of Ethnic Purity?

      • Marnix Beyen

      Pages 226-237

6. Collecting Conflict Words

   1. Front Matter

      Pages 239-239

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   2. English Words in War-Time

      • Lynda Mugglestone

      Pages 241-257

This book examines language change and documentation during the First World War. With contributions from international academics, the chapters cover all aspects of communicating in a transnational war including languages at the front; interpretation, translation and parallels between languages; communication with the home front; propaganda and language manipulation; and recording language during the war. This book will appeal to a wide readership, including linguists and historians and is complemented by the sister volume Languages and the First World War: Representation and Memory which examines issues around the representation and memory of the war such as portrayals in letters and diaries, documentation of language change, and the language of remembering the war.                                             

• Great War
• Western Front
• military
• interpreting
• refugee
• Transnationalism
• Diaspora
• Forced Migration Studies

“Scholars and doctoral students in areas such as First World War Studies, transcultural studies, sociolinguistics, and the cultural history of war will find much of interest here.” (Heather Merle Benbow, First World War Studies, Vol. 9 (2), March, 2019)

“The First World War has long been recognised as possessing exceptional interest as an example of how social and political upheaval can transform linguistic practice. The editors of these two volumes deserve congratulation for assembling an international team of scholars and for publishing a fascinating collection of new and important research. For anyone interested in the subject at any level, Languages and the First World War: Communicating in a Transnational War will be an essential starting point.” (David Stevenson, Professor, London School of Economics and Political Science, UK)

• London, UK

  Julian Walker

• University College London, London, UK

  Christophe Declercq

Julian Walker is an educator at the British Library, an artist and writer. His books on language include Discovering Words, Team Talk: Sporting Words and their Origins and Trench Talk: Words of the First World War.



Christophe Declercq is a lecturer in translation (University College London, UK and University of Antwerp, Belgium) who has been working on Belgian refugees in Britain for well over a decade. On the subject, he has spoken widely at conferences in both Britain and Belgium, has worked with the BBC and VRT (Belgian television) and manages several social media outlets.                                                                                 

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