Two-Way Traffic: How Linguistic Landscapes Reflect and Influence the Politics of Language

Abstract

The relationship between linguistic landscape (LL)1 and sociolinguistic situation is a bidirectional one, as the LL can both reflect and influence the relative power and status of different languages (Cenoz and Gorter, 2006: 67–8). In this chapter, the nature of this bidirectional relationship will be explored in terms of the politics of language in three European countries: Norway, Scotland and Italy. Qualitative empirical evidence will be used to demonstrate how the LL and regional or minority language policy are intertwined in these three countries, which have each seen considerable controversy over the use of minority languages in official signage. In Norway, the case of Sami will be considered, with indications that support for this ‘classic’ minority language is now growing in the majority population. In Scotland, examples will be shown of the treatment of Gaelic in the LL, particularly in Scotland’s capital city, Edinburgh. Finally, the Italian case will highlight how the inclusion in the LL of northern Italian dialects or ‘local languages’, in particular Lombard, has been a political issue with consequences beyond the sphere of language policy.