Various sociolinguistic studies highlight the intrinsic bond between culture andrnlanguage. However, variations exist in line with the angles from which the studiesrnexplain the link. This thesis approaches the issue from a different perspective, withrna focus on the reciprocal influence between the socio-cultural context and languagernas reflected in language use, language attitude, and ethnolinguistic identity.rnAddressing this issue in the context of the Gurage cluster, which comprisesrnlinguistically heterogeneous groups, makes it interesting to discern the interface.rnMesqan is an ethnolinguistic group within the Gurage cluster. Both quantitative andrnqualitative data collection techniques were employed to obtain information in ruralrnand urban areas, namely, Mesqan Woreda, Butajira town, and Yirgalem town.rnMesqan is generally used in informal domains of day-to-day interaction, andrnAmharic is the language of education and administration. Highly valued culturalrnand social events impose norms of interaction and interpretation on language users,rnand strict adherence to the rules is sanctified by the exclusive use of their ethnicrnlanguage, i.e. Mesqan.rnLanguage attitude and language use mutually influence each other; however, highrnlevel of attitude towards the in-group language neither necessarily points to highrndegree of use in various domains, nor essentially shows high level of proficiency.rnHence, the relationship between language attitude and language use is notrnnecessarily reciprocal. Similarly, there is an inherent link between language andrnethnic identity; nonetheless, the bond is stronger in a situation where the ethnicrnlanguage is dominantly used as a mother tongue in various domains, and serves as arnkey index of ethnic identity; and, it is weaker in a context the ethnic language holdsrna symbolic role in the identity construction. The extent to which the speakers havernpositive attitude towards their in-group language also determines the placernlanguage holds in the construction of ethnic identity.rnThe complexity and fluidity of ethnic identity within the Gurage cluster and the rolernlanguage plays in the identity construction, and a sociolinguistic and grammaticalrndescription of the secret language of the Moyat 'a group of people who follow arntraditional belief call for a comprehensive study in the future .