語言人類學（Linguistic Anthropology）是人類學的分支，將語言學研究方法運用於人類學問題上，將符號或特殊語言形式與過程聯結到社會文化過程的詮釋。
最早的理論典範原本被稱為語言學（linguistics），雖然當這門學科及相關的研究領域發展成熟之後，稱為 「人類學式的語言學」（anthropological linguistics）。這個領域專門研究這個次學科所獨有的一些主題：對於被視為注定要滅絕的語言所做的語言學記錄（有一些北美原住民語言成為這個次學科學者所關注的焦點），例如：
在1960年代，戴爾·海姆斯主要負責發起第二種理論典範，將「語言人類學」（linguistic anthropology）這個名稱固定下來，雖然他也創造了「言談民族誌」（ethnography of speaking，或「溝通民族誌」 ethnography of communication）這個術語，來描述他為這個學術領域所設想的架構。這包含了運用錄音設備等新的科技發展。
海姆斯也引介了一種新的分析單位。有鑑於在第一種理論典範聚焦於表面上獨特的「語言」（引號表示當代的語言人類學家將「一個語言」的概念視為一種理想建構，從而掩蓋了這個語言內部的複雜性，以及「跨越」所謂的語言界線的複雜性）；第二種理論典範的分析單位是「言談事件」（speech event）。（言談事件是一個事件，由發生在這個事件之中的言談所界定的，例如，一場晚宴並不是一個言談事件，而是一個言談情境，在這種情境下，言談可能會發生，也可能不會發生。）有許多學者專注於在這些言談事件中，參與者對他們的語言表現型態所提出的解釋。
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海姆斯也開創了語言人類學的一種研究方法，民族詩學。
海姆斯希望將語言人類學更密切聯結到人類學這個母學科。語言人類學這個名稱強調它的首要身份是人類學，並且是「人類學式的語言學」。如今這在大多數的大學是一門獨立學科（而不是在法蘭茲·鮑亞士和薩丕爾的時代）。然而，語言人類學這個理論典範，標誌著它跟人類學的其他分支學科進一步的疏遠。
在1980年代後期興起的第三種理論典範，並不是繼續追求來自一個讓人類學感到陌生的學科（語言學）的各項議題，語言人類學家有系統地專注於自己母學科人類學所提出的各項議題，但運用了語言學的資料和方法。在這第三種理論典範的熱門研究議題，包括社會身份認同的調查研究、普遍共同具有的意識形態，以及在個人和團體之間的互動中，論述的建構與運用方式。
當代語言人類學研究延續了上述的三個理論典範。有幾個領域關連到第三種典範，也就是對於人類學議題的研究，這是當代語言人類學家特別專注的領域。
語言人類學的作品有許多從語言學角度探討社會文化認同的議題。語言人類學家庫利克（Don Kulick）在巴布亞紐幾內亞一個名為迦普恩（Gapun）的村落，依據對許多場景的分析，研究語言與認同的關係。[3]庫利克探討了迦普恩的兒童如何使用兩種語言──傳統語言「塔伊阿普」（Taiap）只在自己村落使用，從而標示了一種根本賦予的（primordially）迦普恩人身分認同。另一種語言則是巴布亞皮欽語（在紐幾內亞盛行的官方語言）。 （語言人類學家使用「標示」（indexical）這個字的意思是指標性。[4]）
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