Geo of Languages - Case Studies

Soja (1989)

World is constructed by society through the medium of language, which in turn is also a social construction.

Nicaraguan Sign Language

The first recorded sign language to emerge spontaneously without influence from other languages, developed by deaf children in the 1980s.

Bourdieu (1977)

Language is not just an instrument of communication, it is an instrument of power. A person speaks to be believed, obeyed, respected, distinguished. 

Appadurai (1990)

Various landscapes that allow for a better understanding of the greater global cultural flow. These are 

1. Ethnoscapes = Flow of people

2. Technoscapes = Flow of tehcnology

3. Financescapes = Flow of money

4. Mediascapes = Flow of information

5. Ideoscpaes = Flow of ideas

Olympic Scapes Case Study - Ethnoscapes

Physical migration of players, business networks, and removal of locals. 

Olympic Scapes Case Study - Financescapes

Global, regional, and international business networks flock to invest in a host city. Issues with labor and malpractice in setting up the event. Issues with ownership, control and power, structured inequalities 

Olympic Scapes Case Study - Technoscapes & Medioscapes

Evident in the speed with which information and images spread globally.