In Buffy the Vampire Slayer (BtVS) the "tongue is as pointed as the stake" (Overbey and Preston-Matto 2002), and linguistic inventiveness and the manipulation of accepted lexical norms have become trademarks of the show.

This paper seeks to examine the creative linguistic development of BtVS with reference to one particular character, Anya. Anya’s excessively blunt honesty, her ability to say what no else could, or would, say, has been a fundamental part of the humour and indeed pathos of the show. It is also integral to her portrayal as an ex-vengeance demon: an Other in the world of the Scooby gang.

In contrast to the other characters in BtVS, whose language is marked by creativity, Anya’s linguistic presence is represented by a gradual appropriation of the linguistic and social mannerisms of the Scooby gang and, by inference, American society in general. In her transition from ex-vengeance demon to human, Anya also undergoes what might be termed a linguistic "undemonization" (Money 2002).

This paper will use analogies from second language teaching, and particularly the notion of intercultural communicative competence, to explore the gradual progression of Anya’s linguistic and socio-cultural awareness throughout the show. Focussing on the central factors of skills, knowledge, education and attitudes (Byram, 1997), it seeks to gain an understanding of the sociolinguistic aspects involved in Anya’s eventual acculturation into the linguistic and social norms of the Scooby gang.

Byram, Michael (1997), Teaching and Assessing Intercultural Communicative Competence. Clevedon: Multilingual Matters.

Money, Mary Alice (2002), ‘The Undemonization of Supporting Characters in Buffy’ in Wilcox, Rhonda V. and Lavery, David (eds), Fighting the Forces: What’s at Stake in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.

Overbey, Karen Eileen, and Preston-Matto, Lahney (2002), ‘Staking in Tongues: Speech Act as Weapon in Buffy’ in Wilcox, Rhonda V. and Lavery, David (eds), Fighting the Forces: What’s at Stake in Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Lanham: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers.