Nyelv – gazdaság – tájkép. A gazdasági nyelvi tájkép kutatásának néhány lehetséges iránya erdélyi nézőpontból
Language – Economics – Landscape. Possible Directions of Research of the Linguistic Landscape from a Transylvanian Perspective

Author(s): Angella Sorbán
Subject(s): Language and Literature Studies
Published by: Scientia Kiadó
Keywords: language;economics; landscape;Transylvania
Summary/Abstract: The paper sketches possible directions of the analysis of the economic linguistic landscape from an interdisciplinary perspective, embedding the question into the historical context of the region’s economics, society, and mentality. The topic of the linguistic landscape has been approached using, on the one hand, the theoretical framework of production of space (Lefebvre 1974) and, on the other hand, the dynamics of language use. On this basis, this analysis focuses on the process how economic actors shape the linguistic environment through their decisions, economic calculations, awareness of rights, and ingenuity. Two practices of language usage are discussed: the culturally sensitive marketing and the ways of reinventing words from the era of socialism. Although the linguistic landscape in Transylvania is heterogeneous, one remarkable characteristic is the mixing of Western and local branding patterns. The adaptation of Western features to the local context and vice versa gives evidence of the creativity of economic actors as well as of the specific expression of different local or regional identities.The relation between language and economics is complex and multifaceted. Although the attention given to the linguistic factors in economic research is much less than they would deserve, language has obviously got various functions. In the economic field, there are linguistic tools for influencing economic processes, economic culture, economic discourse, and customer consumption. At the same time, language could express different identities as well as power or resistance in very subtle ways.

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