Over 100 languages are described, including many minor languages such as Basque, Navajo and Zulu. Articles are ordered alphabetically and each has a standardised structure for ease of reference. Technical terminology is used only where necessary.

This third edition of Compendium of the World’s Languages has been thoroughly revised to provide up-to-date and accurate descriptions of a wide selection of natural language systems. All cultural and historical notes as well as statistical data have been checked, updated and in many cases expanded. Presenting an even broader range of languages and language families, including new coverage of Australian aboriginal languages and expanded treatment of North American and African languages, this new edition offers a total of 342 entries over nearly 2000 pages. Key features include: Complete rewriting, systematization and regularisation of the phonology sections Provision of IPA symbol grids arranged by articulatory feature and by alphabetic resemblance to facilitate use of the new phonology sections Expansion of morphology descriptions for most major languages Provision of new illustrative text samples Addition of a glossary of technical terms and an expanded bibliography Comparative tables of the numerals 1-10 in a representative range of languages, and also grouped by family Drawing upon a wealth of recent developments and research in language typology and broadened availability of descriptive data, this new incarnation of George Campbell’s astounding Compendium brings a much-loved survey emphatically into the twenty-first century for a new generation of readers. Scholarly, comprehensive and highly accessible, Compendium of the World’s Languages remains the ideal reference for all interested linguists and professionals alike.

From Afrikaans to Zulu, almost 100 languages from the comprehensive Compendium of the World's Languages are featured in this new concise version. Many articles have been revised. The Concise Compendium presents a detailed comparative study of the major and many of the lesser known languages of the world. Included are representatives of all language families, with samples of Amerindian, such as Navajo and of African languages, such as Fulani and Nama; languages of politically independent groups in the former USSR, like Uzbek and Belorussian; those of political pressure groups, such as Breton and Catalan and significant community/ethnic languages, including Amharic and Vietnamese. Throughout, the treatment is factual and jargon-free. Articles are ordered alphabetically and each has a standard structure for ease of reference: * general historical and sociolinguistic introduction * writing system * sound system * grammatical system A passage from the Gospel of St. John illustrates each language with a written tradition. These scripts are explained in an appendix at the end of the book. Presents 100 of the world's major languages and representatives of different language groups, politically significant languages and particularly interesting ones.

From Afrikaans to Zulu, almost 100 languages are featured in this new concise version of the comprehensive Compendium of the World's Languages. Many articles have been revised in the light of recent scholarship.

This second edition of The Routledge Concise Compendium of the World’s Languages has been completely revised to provide up-to-date and accurate descriptions of a wide cross-section of natural-language systems. All cultural and historical notes as well as statistical data for each language have been checked, updated and in many cases expanded. Now offering an even broader range of languages including a greater number of the lesser-known ones, such as Cree, Maltese and Haitian Creole, this new edition of The Routledge Concise Compendium covers a total of 111 languages. Key features include: complete rewriting and systematization of the phonology sections for all languages provision of IPA symbol grids arranged by articulatory feature and by alphabetic resemblance to facilitate use of the new phonology sections expansion of morphology descriptions for all languages provision of new illustrative text samples addition of a glossary of technical terms comparative tables of the numerals 1-10 in all languages covered, and also grouped by family classification by genetic relationship of all languages covered. Using the wealth of recent developments and research in language typology and broadened availability of descriptive data, this new incarnation of The Routledge Concise Compendium brings a much-loved survey emphatically into the twenty-first century for a new generation of readers. The Routledge Concise Compendium of the World’s Languages remains the ideal compact reference for all interested linguistics and professionals alike. Gary King is Series Advisor for the Roultedge Colloquials and the author of numerous books on language and linguistics. He is also UCAS co-ordinator and a lecturer at a large sixth-form college. George L. Campbell worked for the BBC World Service and was a polyglot linguist and translator.

This second edition of The Routledge Concise Compendium of the World’s Languages has been completely revised to provide up-to-date and accurate descriptions of a wide cross-section of natural-language systems. All cultural and historical notes as well as statistical data for each language have been checked, updated and in many cases expanded. Now offering an even broader range of languages including a greater number of the lesser-known ones, such as Cree, Maltese and Haitian Creole, this new edition of The Routledge Concise Compendium covers a total of 111 languages. Key features include: complete rewriting and systematization of the phonology sections for all languages provision of IPA symbol grids arranged by articulatory feature and by alphabetic resemblance to facilitate use of the new phonology sections expansion of morphology descriptions for all languages provision of new illustrative text samples addition of a glossary of technical terms comparative tables of the numerals 1-10 in all languages covered, and also grouped by family classification by genetic relationship of all languages covered. Using the wealth of recent developments and research in language typology and broadened availability of descriptive data, this new incarnation of The Routledge Concise Compendium brings a much-loved survey emphatically into the twenty-first century for a new generation of readers. The Routledge Concise Compendium of the World’s Languages remains the ideal compact reference for all interested linguistics and professionals alike. Gary King is Series Advisor for the Roultedge Colloquials and the author of numerous books on language and linguistics. He is also UCAS co-ordinator and a lecturer at a large sixth-form college. George L. Campbell worked for the BBC World Service and was a polyglot linguist and translator.