This paper presents a comparative analysis of the linguistic landscapes (LL) of two distinct ethnic areas in Shin-Okubo, Japan: Koreatown and Islamic Street. By paying particular attention to the difference in the formation of the two immigrant communities, this study aims to better understand various functions of language on signage and their…

Not only does language practice in shop signs generate a sense of place with particular meanings to visitors, it also indicates the kind of economic activity performed in that place. By investigating and comparing the shop name signs in the two largest foreign migrant neighbourhoods in Guangzhou, specifically, Baohan Straight Street (African…

This article examines the relationship between Pho, a type of Vietnamese soup, and Vietnamese national identity in the linguistic landscape of Edmonton, Alberta (Canada). The study suggests that Pho has not only been used by Vietnamese restaurants in Edmonton for indexical function but also for symbolic evocation associating with Vietnamese…

This study adopts an apparent-time diachronic linguistic landscape (LL) approach to investigate the vitality of an ethnic minority language in China, namely the Nuosu Yi ([foreign characters omitted]). Diachronic LL research is concerned with changes in language use on signage over time. It provides insights into phenomena such as language shift,…

This study analyses the multilingual linguistic landscapes made up of languages, visual materials, and built environments in Seongsu-dong, where old industrial sites and new commercial places are indiscriminately juxtaposed. This study focuses particularly on (1) how languages are associated with different built environments of new commercial…

The identity of a city matters in a global age. This article explores the discursive construction of the global city's identity in relation to semiotic landscape, using the construction of Shanghai as a global city as a case study. In this increasingly globalising world, Shanghai authorities have recently demonstrated the desire to establish…

Jawi is the orthography in which Malay has been written since the Middle Ages, when it was adapted from the Arabic script. Introduced by Muslim traders, it was adapted to Malay phonology using diacritics that modified six letters. It was used until the Roman script (Rumi) brought in by European traders and colonisers began to supplant it in the…

Drawing on data from a Bangladeshi-run mixed-goods store in Tokyo -- a site of diversity in terms of customers, the products and interactions -- we argue in this paper that in order to understand translinguistic ordinariness, or what we call "mundane metrolingualism", we have to explore both the ideas of ordinariness and of diversity in…

This paper presents the first in-depth analysis of linguistic landscape (LL) of a migrant area in Dubai. While Arabic is the official language of the country, few foreigners learn it and English has become the lingua franca that allows migrant communities to communicate. Nonetheless, English and Arabic are mother tongues to a minority of resident…

This study examines the experiences of mixed-race Korean Americans in their journey to develop and use their heritage language, Korean, through in-depth autobiographical interviews. Participants highlighted the role of 'Korean-speaking spaces' such as Korean churches or grocery stores, where the expectation is to speak Korean, as important sites…

This article looks at the presence of Italian in the linguistic landscape (LL) of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Rather surprisingly, Italian is quite visible, and it might even be the most used European language after English. After a general introduction on the Italian language and Malaysia, including the latter's LL, the article goes on to outline the…

This paper investigates a metrolingual language object and creative place-making in Dumbo, Brooklyn within the era of late capitalism. It is an analysis of how two simple letters 'O' and 'Y', when put together create two short words 'OY' and 'YO' yet carry exponential meaning about metrolingual language ideologies, language users and powerful…

This paper focuses on the linguistic composition of commercial signs in the linguistic landscape (LL) of Athens, Greece. Previous studies have mainly been carried out in officially multilingual and multi-ethnic areas [Ben-Rafael, E., Shohamy, E., Amara, M. H., & Trumper-Hecht, N. (2006). "Linguistic landscape as symbolic construction of…

After the end of the civil war in 1990, a major reconstruction effort was underway in Beirut, the capital of Lebanon. With reconstruction came significant changes to the city's landscape and identity. Adopting a linguistic landscape (LL) lens, this study aims at better understanding these changes by asking what languages are used on the store…

The visibility and salience of specific languages in public spaces are important parameters of their ethnolinguistic vitality in a society. Drawing upon data from first-hand fieldwork, this paper explores the display of multiple languages in shop names presented in Singapore's neighbourhood centres in order to reveal how local shop owners address…