ENGLISH is a juggernaut whose sweep across the globe is marked not only by the ever-swelling ranks of those who speak it as a second language, but also by its intrusion into other languages and cultures. While far from omnipresent, English is seen and heard in enough contexts in non-English-speaking countries that social scientists must carefully explore its role alongside indigenous languages. This study, which focused on the city of Rome, examines one dimension of English as an invader – its presence on street signs, on store fronts, in shop windows, outside commercial and public buildings, in billboards and other street advertisements, and in graffiti. It takes a more expansive and comprehensive approach than previous studies in examining the use of English in a foreign locale, in order to get a better sense of how widespread it is on the streets of a non-English-speaking country and in what contexts it appears.
Following his article ‘Global English invades Poland’
(ET50, Apr 97, Vol 13.2), the author explores the comparable impact of English on advertising
in a second Eastern European nation.Global English continues its unchecked spread, not only as the second language
of choice for more people than any other, but also as an infiltrator whose words creep
into the fabric of other languages through such avenues as film, television, popular music,
the World Wide Web, advertising and youth culture.
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