Navigating Multilingualism: Language Choices and Practices in the Linguistic Landscape of Ambo Town

Wekjira, Merga Feyera and Bátyi, Szilvia (2024) Navigating Multilingualism: Language Choices and Practices in the Linguistic Landscape of Ambo Town. ALKALMAZOTT NYELVTUDOMÁNY, 2024 (2). pp. 118-132. ISSN 1587-1061

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Abstract

The question of language use in multilingual contexts is never neutral. Languages exist in a complex, hierarchical system influenced by political, economic, attitudinal, religious, and other factors. This study explores language choices and practices in the linguistic landscape of Ambo town, Ethiopia, employing the Multilingual Inequality in Public Spaces (MIPS) framework (Gorter, 2021; Gorter & Cenoz, 2020; 2024). Utilizing the "one main street" approach (Rosenbaum et al., 1977), a corpus of 231 signs, consisting of 28 governmental (top-down) and 203 non-governmental (bottom-up) signs, was analyzed to understand the dynamics of language use in public signage. Interviews with five sign makers provided insights into the motivations behind language choices. The findings reveal a bottom-up dominance in the linguistic landscape, with non-governmental signs reflecting local language preferences. Top-down signs are predominantly bilingual, adhering to official policies that prioritize the working language (Afan Oromo) alongside the country’s primary working language (Amharic language). The study also highlights the increasing visibility of a global language (English) in commercial signage, driven by globalization, but raises concerns over the underrepresentation of minority languages. Sign makers emphasized the economic and communicative benefits of multilingual signage. Overall, the study underscores a complex interaction between top-down policies and bottom-up practices, suggesting a need for more inclusive language policy implementation to better reflect Ambo Oromia's linguistic diversity. Keywords: multilingualism, linguistic landscape, bottom-up and top-down, Ambo town

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