Linguistic Landscape - Volume 10, Issue 2, 2024

Abstract

Previous studies of the Linguistic Landscape in Timor-Leste conducted over a decade ago found Portuguese language use dominated official signage, although English dominated overall through its presence on commercial signs, especially those targeting the more affluent parts of society. This innovative study revisits a previously examined LL in order to investigate changes in language practice over time, with particular attention to how the recently independent nation expresses its national identity in public spaces and how language policy decisions have taken effect. The findings show that the visibility of Portuguese has increased while that of English has reduced. This suggests that being Portuguese-speaking may be aligned with expressions of Timorese identity. Further, while multiple languages are found in the LL, of the indigenous languages only Tetun, one of the two official languages of Timor-Leste, has a presence. This may raise concerns about the vitality of those other indigenous languages.

Abstract

In the wake of the ‘climate apocalypse’ global discourse, the environmental agenda of the European Green Deal and the overarching objective for the European Union are to deliver a high level of protection and improvement of the quality of the environment. European cities are under pressure to reinvent urban environments and develop resilience to environmental risks. This paper looks at semiotic material appearing in Essen, a city in Germany awarded the European Green Capital title. Grounded in the multimodal social semiotic approach and ecolinguistics, the paper investigates strategically emplaced ‘green’ semiotic material which shape environmental values and privilege. The paper illustrates the political economy of city clean-ups which every so often result in questionable environmental choices and fail to alleviate social inequalities. The analysis ultimately shows how semiotic forms of sustainability are evidently implicated in the creation of urban eco-arenas accentuating the socioeconomic stratification and privileges of valorized places.

Abstract

In recent times, Linguistic Landscape (LL) research has been extended to cover several variables, domains, modes, and geo-political contexts. Arguably, humour remains understudied in LL research. This article, therefore, examines incongruities in LLs using a corpus of digital signs and incongruous inscriptions gathered across several mediums in urban Ghana. Drawing on the incongruity theory, we examined the levels of incongruities in the corpus. The study found that incongruities in public signs in urban Ghana manifest at the lexical, grammatical, semantic, and phonological levels. We conclude that the resolutions of these incongruities induce laughter and humour in the audience with the shared sociolinguistic knowledge, and humour intelligence. The findings have implications for the theory on humour and the research on LL.

Abstract

Recent sociolinguistic studies have emphasized the role of the Linguistic Landscape in analyzing language attitudes and identities in relation to minoritized languages. The present study examines language attitudes and perceptions of Asturian speakers towards the use of Asturian, a minoritized regional language spoken in Asturies, Spain, in the public space. Data was gathered through a survey questionnaire distributed amongst residents of Mieres, a municipality located in the center of Asturies. Through qualitative and quantitative analyses, results show that the presence of Asturian linguistic and semiotic resources reinforces participants’ Asturian identity. Findings reveal positive language attitudes: not only do participants believe that speaking Asturian is an essential part of being Asturian, but they want Asturians to continue learning and speaking the language. This study shows how the Linguistic Landscape is a valuable tool in uncovering language attitudes and perceptions, which are inextricably linked to one’s identity within a community.

This article reviews Making sense of people and place in linguistic landscapes978-1-3501-5953-2978-1-3500-3798-4978-1-3500-3799-1978-1-3500-3800-4£ 31.99£ 130.00£ 28.79

This article reviews Linguistic Landscapes: A Sociolinguistic Approach978-1-107-17754-3978-1-316-62843-0978-1-316-82280-7£ 105