English Language Politics and Economic Theory

Multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary theorists have recently begun to take an interest in the political economy of language, specifically with a concern for the impact of English as a global lingua franca. Political, linguistic, educational, and economic researchers interested in the political economy of the English language should remain aware that the diverse disciplines often lack a common language and that it can be easy to misconstrue interpretations of the political implications of linguistic globalisation. In doing so, the research area needs to develop a theoretical base that provides greater depth-of-knowledge. Thus, following a critical review of the most influential work in the area, the purpose of this article is to provide a knowledge map through a theory-based method grounded in a history of ideas.

The framing of the linguistic landscapes of Persian shop signs in Sydney

This study provides an interpretive perspective on the linguistic landscape (LL) of ethnic Persian shops in the city of Sydney, Australia. Photographic data and ethnographic observations demonstrate how linguistic and cultural displays on ethnic Persian shops are organized in different frames which are driven by local symbolic markets. These frames are investigated through an analysis of linguistic and semiotic resources drawn on these ethnic premises. The study also illustrates that the trajectory of the Persian language and its semiotic resources as mediational tools frame the collective identity of the sign producers (social actors) and symbolic and cultural means that are activated in the LL of such ethnic shops. These framing devices promote minority languages, Persian in specific, as valuable resources and commodities in the multicultural context of Sydney, and point to the possible impact of those resources on the local political economy of language. In addition, the findings reinforce the view that patterns of multilingualism are not static and are influenced by a number of factors such as cultural, economic and linguistic resources which individuals and officials use in the public space.

SAUSSURE’S TREASURE, HUMILIATION AND OTHER (NEO)LIBERAL TROPES

While driving its stake into the ground of political economy of language, this paper does two spatiotemporal jumps in order to shed some light on how particular liberal – hence politico-economic – ideologies travel. It first goes back a hundred years ago, to Geneva, and pursues a novel reading of Saussure by delineating his liberal picture of language. It then moves to 2013, in Lima, and looks at some possible consequences of Saussure’s inaugural abandonment of social relationships. In addressing a contemporary scene of humiliation – where young indigenous Peruvian Yaqui Quispe is humiliated by Universidad del Pacifico in its reappraisal of her entrance exam – the paper claims that Saussure’s liberal reified view of social relationships is a fiction that most speakers of the world languages cannot afford. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License.

INDEXING AUTHENTICITY: THE LINGUISTIC LANDSCAPE OF AN IRISH TOURIST TOWN

This article examines the linguistic landscape (LL) of Dingle, the centre for a peripheral minority language community on the Southwestern seaboard of Ireland. Dingle is a popular touristic space located within the boundary of the Gaeltacht and for this reason offers a unique setting for the examination of issues prevalent in the sociolinguistics of globalization (cf. Blommaert 2010; Coupland 2010a) including authenticity and commodification. In particular these issues are examined through an analysis of linguistic and other semiotic resources that are drawn on in this touristic space. By mapping the LL the specific aim of the study is to plot the trajectory of the Irish language as a resource for indexing Dingle as an authentic tourist space. A qualitative approach to the data is taken in an effort to uncover the symbolic and cultural resources being activated in the LL of Dingle. The study highlights how minority languages, like Irish, get mobilized as valuable resources and commodities in the context of tourism and the potential impact of this for the local political economy of language.