The Linguistics Journal September 2009 Special Edition Language

The Linguistics Journal – September 2009
English with a British interlocutor in England. The issue of cultural identity turns out to play an
extremely salient role in these women’s self concept in intercultural communication.
Identity is also the topic of discussion of the next two papers, one from Iran, a country that is becoming
increasingly more active in Linguistics research, and the other Lebanon. Mahdavy’s paper is an empirical
study into the reflection of Iranian identities in the headlines of national daily newspapers. The study
suggests that identities are reflected differently in each newspaper investigated, for example, with some
being relatively negative towards a more western identity while others see it more conservatively. Diab
investigates Lebanese university students’ perceptions of their ethnic, national, and linguistic identity and
their preferences for choice of first foreign language (FL) and medium of instruction in pre-university
schools in Lebanon. Findings revealed: the first FL learned was an important factor influencing these
students’ preferences for medium of instruction; the importance of English as an essential international
language for Lebanese university students in this study; and that some students whose first FL is French
expressed a strong affiliation with French language and culture.
The next three papers deal with minority groups in a number of countries. Over the years, voices have
been raised for legal rights for the indigenous minorities of the world and for the preservation of
indigenous languages. Baykal studied the discursive strategies employed for the revival of the ethnic
identities of Romani people living in the Sulukule region in İstanbul, Turkey. While the group is
linguistically Turkish, the ‘gentrification’ process in the region has threatened their human, social,
cultural, and historical rights. David, Cavallaro and Coluzzi describe the language policies, planning and
implementation in Malaysia, Singapore, Brunei and the Philippines and discuss the impact of such
policies on the maintenance of a number of minority languages. The findings indicate that some
countries have language policies that benefit some of the minority languages; while others do not seem to
be doing enough to prevent the shift to majority languages. Finally, Cavallaro and Rahman present the
plight of the Santals, a significant speech community among forty-five other distinctive minority groups
in Bangladesh. With its rich cultural heritage and history, the Santali language has a unique value for the
Santal and deserves special attention for conservation. This paper first gives a detailed description of the
Santals and their language. Issues of linguistic rights are discussed in the context of indigenous people in
Bangladesh, and suggestions are made for the process of integrated public involvement in the
The Linguistics Journal – Special Edition Page 6