Social Networks and World Englishes

World Englishes and social networks is a relatively new strand of research which is mainly concerned with describing the naturalistic language use of speakers and the variability that exists within individual speakers' network interactions. Within world Englishes, Kachru referred to the importance of identifying the sociolinguistic realities of Englishes in specific societal contexts, as opposed to only studying the language ideologies or the perceived identities of speakers. These latter approaches can often be taken as an indirect understanding of the language practices or speakers. This entry explores the current status of research on world Englishes and social networks and provides some examples of studies in the area, before closing with suggested areas for future research.