Izvorni znanstveni članak
https://doi.org/10.15291/csi.4811
RUSSIAN IN ARTISTIC AND REGULATORY DISCOURSES? THE APPEARANCE AND THEMATIC COMPOSITION OF MULTILINGUAL SIGNS IN LINGUISTIC LANDSCAPE OF THE CZECH TOWN OF KARLOVY VARY
Grzegorz Lisek
; University of Greifswald, Greifswald, Njemačka
Sažetak
This paper investigates the linguistic landscape (LL) of Karlovy
Vary in the Czech Republic, specifically addressing
the under-explored artistic and regulatory discourses in the
city. In the context of current geopolitical changes, the study
critically examines the presence, constellation, and thematic
functions of languages in urban signage, with special attention
to the shifting perception and visibility of Russian as
a language which was perceived as problematic before the
COVID-19 pandemic by local residents and politicians. The
aim is to fill a research gap concerning LL studies in the
Czech context and to explore functional multilingualism in
a Central European urban environment. The analysis uses a
sub-corpus systematically collected from a central city street
in Karlovy Vary. Methodologically, the study combines qualitative
categorization based on theoretical frameworks proposed
by Opiłowski and Makowska (2023) and Scollon and
Scollon (2003), with a quantitative frequency analysis inspired
by Gorter (2018). The findings reveal a predominance
of Czech, frequently combined with English in multilingual
signs within both researched discourses. Russian emerges
marginally and only within regulatory discourse linked to
spa regulations, signifying its limited symbolic role. Thematically,
artistic signs primarily advertise cultural events (concerts,
shows, films), while regulatory signs cover topics such
as spa rules, waste management, and parking. These insights
highlight local practices of multilingual communication and
the retreat of Russian from the city after the pandemic and
Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, offering implications for future
research in sociolinguistic studies of language visibility.
Ključne riječi
artistic and regulatory discourses; Czech language; linguistic landscapes (LL); Russian language; multilingualism
Hrčak ID:
334064
URI
Datum izdavanja:
25.7.2025.
Posjeta: 579 *