The Role of English in the Linguistic Landscape of Sri Lanka
Miroslav Cerny
DOI: 10.18355/XL.2016.09.03.51-57
Abstract
One of the most growing domains within the field of sociolinguistics is called linguistic landscape. Generally speaking, this term refers to “the visibility and salience of languages on public and commercial signs in a given territory or region” (Landry and Bourhis 1997: 23), stressing the fact that language practices in public and commercial spaces and places indicate relevant information about our language attitudes. The present treatise draws attention to functions of languages as they are used in the city of Kandy (Sri Lanka), with the focus put on the role of the English language, trying to map and discuss motivations behind Sri Lankan language choices.
Key Words
English, linguistic landscape, Sri Lanka, Kandy, language diversity, multilingualism