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Abstract
In this article we explore the role that the linguistic landscape, in the sense of all the written language in the public space, can have in second language acquisition (SLA). The linguistic landscape has symbolic and informative functions and it is multimodal, because it combines visual and printed texts, and multilingual, because it uses several languages. In this paper we look at its potential use as a source of input in SLA, in general, and in the acquisition of pragmatic competence, in particular. We also inquire into the role of the linguistic landscape in the acquisition of multimodal literacy skills and multicompetence. We conclude that the linguistic landscape is a learning context and can also be used for raising awareness in SLA.
1. Linguistic landscape as a field of study
Language is visible in the public domain in its textual mode as words which are displayed on shop windows, commercial signs, posters, official notices, traffic signs, etc. This "linguistic landscape" refers to all the language items that are visible in a specified part of the public space. The public space has not received much attention in specific research in second language acquisition (SLA). Although there were some earlier studies (e.g., Spolsky and Cooper 1991), research of the linguistic landscape as a theme in its own right is a relatively new development and the number of publications in this area has grown substantially over the last few years (see Backhaus 2006; Gorter 2006; Gorter and Cenoz 2007). More recently, an increasing number of researchers in applied linguistics and sociolinguistics have started to take a closer look at the languages used in urban print and are gradually expanding the scope of the studies (Shohamy and Gorter in press).
The definition of linguistic landscape given by Landry and Bourhis (1997: 25) is commonly quoted in the literature:
The language of public road signs, advertising billboards, street names, place names, commercial shop signs, and public signs on government buildings combines to form the linguistic landscape of a given territory, region, or urban agglomeration.
The main concern of research on the linguistic landscape is with an analysis of the use of language in its written form in the public sphere. Language speaks to us from numerous signs in...