Quebec has a tradition of language columns, articles discussing questions related to the French language produced by a single author and published regularly in the periodical press. This study examines the content and discourse of a sample of these language columns produced by six authors in Quebec during the twentieth century to explore possible…

This paper examines how intercultural communication (ICC) and the notion of culture are framed in on-line promotional discourse of higher education (HE) ICC courses. It analyses a specialised corpus comprised of 14,842 words from 43 course websites of master's programmes in ICC in the UK and the US--internationally, the two largest providers of…

The public's concern with the fate of the standard language has been well documented in the history of the complaint tradition. The print media have for centuries featured letters to the editor on questions of language use. This study examines a corpus of 258 language-related letters to the editor published in the English-speaking print media. By…

Critical analysis of three cases of grammatical borrowing of Frisian from Dutch leads to the specific conclusion that the Frisian grammatical system does not "Dutchify," and to general conclusions concerning the ways that minority languages can and cannot be influenced by dominant languages. (Author/CB)

Contributions of the methodological procedures and principles offered by Labov and Gumperz are evaluated, especially regarding the problem of observer effect in community-level investigations of linguistic minorities. The need for accountability and openness in data collection and analysis procedures is emphasized. (39 references) (Author/LB)

Twelve papers on codeswitching are reviewed briefly in this introduction to a special journal issue. The following topics are covered: borrowing versus codeswitching, codeswitching in a political discourse context, situational uses. (16 references) (LB)

This paper reviews the research output on English language education in China published in 24 international journals from 2001 to 2006 and delineates the nature of this corpus of research. The review covers research in the following areas: the linguistic situations and culture of learning in China in relation to English language education,…

Discusses Dutch in the Northern France, specifically the historical retreat of Dutch from Pas-de-Calais, historical evolution of the language situation in the Department du Nord, reactions to official language policy and language loss, characteristics of Flemish in France, alienation from other Dutch dialects by communicative isolation, linguistic…

Language use among linguistic minorities of the Northern Calotte (areas of Norway, Sweden, and Finland that lie above the Arctic Circle) is reviewed from the perspective of history and ecology of language. Two case studies examining language shift in these areas, where Norwegian, Swedish, Finnish, and Sami are spoken, are also considered.…

Provides a brief overview of the sociolinguistic situation in which the Catalan immersion program is being implemented and discusses the issues related to the main feature that distinguishes the program--the low socioeconomic background of the students. Also discussed are current theories about the discontinuity between the language used at home…

Presents an approach to a typological outline for categorizing minority-language situations in such areas as speaker, language, and setting juxtaposed with dimensions including sociology, linguistics, and psychology. (36 references) (Author/CB)

Traces the history and describes the present state of France's regional languages (Alsacien, Basque, Breton, Catalan, Corsican, Flemish, and Occitan) and analyzes the common problems encountered by speakers of these languages. (Author/CB)

Gives a short overview of the historical development of various aspects of the linguistic situation in Belgium. Particular focus is on knowledge and use of the varieties of French and Dutch in Brussels and on the educational system. Attention is also given to attitudes toward the language and language varieties and to aspects of language contact.…

General survey of history of Ingrian Finns and discussion of Ingrian Finnish dialect are presented. On the basis of morphological analysis of interviews with Ingrian Finns in Canada, Sweden, and Russia, an attempt is made to ascertain how Ingrian Finnish dialects have been preserved or changed in different parts of the world and under the…

The cross-cultural use of French in francophone Africa has resulted in creative linguistic and stylistic modifications reflecting the sensibilities, inherited cultural patterns, and disposition of its users. French is acquired in the sociocultural context of Africa and not the Christian, Franco-European intellectual milieu. Readers of literary…