Takao Suzuki (sociolinguist)

Takao Suzuki (鈴木 孝夫, Suzuki Takao; Tokyo, 9 November 1926 – 10 February 2021) was a Japanese sociolinguist, He was the author of ことばと文化, translated into English as Words in Context.

Suzuki argued that:

  • Sociolinguists do not pay enough attention to the subtle differences between word usage in different cultures.
  • Japanese linguists have traditionally been too occupied with Western linguistic categories, which are less than effective in studying Japanese.