ABSTRACT

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 population. A multitude of other languages are spoken among expatriates. Despite that variety, the visibility and salience of particular languages in LL is a reflection of, most often, their differing social standing. As such, this research shows how multilingualism, language contact, social hierarchy as well as official policies with regards to language use in UAE, have led to the minimisation of third languages use in LL. Through a multilingual analysis of signs in Souk Naif area, this research provides important insights on the meaning of linguistic landscapes in cosmopolitan cities in the Arabian Gulf, specifically, how bottom-up sign makers negotiate the public space, why English is the primary language used, and finally, why high levels of multiculturalism lead to deterritorialisation and commodification of languages in LL.

摘要

本文首次对迪拜移民区的语言景观 (LL) 进行了深入分析。虽然阿拉伯语是该国的官方语言，但很少有外国人学习它，英语已成为允许移民社区交流的通用语。尽管如此，英语和阿拉伯语是少数常住人口的母语。外籍人士使用多种其他语言。尽管存在这种多样性，但特定语言在 LL 中的可见性和显着性通常反映了它们不同的社会地位。因此，这项研究表明，多语言、语言接触、社会等级以及阿联酋有关语言使用的官方政策如何导致在 LL 中尽量减少第三语言的使用。通过对 Souk Naif 地区标志的多语言分析，