“My Library in One Shot” & Library Lunchtime Lecture
This week, Louisa Buckingham, assistant professor in the MA TEFL program and director of BilWrite, will deliver the first Library Lunchtime Lecture for the spring semester: “Making Sense of Language Use: Shop Advertising in English in a Lingua Franca Context.” In her talk, Dr. Buckingham will examine how English is used to advertise goods and services on commercial signs on shops in a context of pronounced ethno-linguistic diversity in the Arabian Gulf. The analysis of linguistic features is based on data drawn from a corpus of over 1,600 signs photographed throughout Oman. Strategies used in this form of advertising include formulations intended to enhance prominence and increase explicitness, the lexicalization of cultural concepts, lexical innovation and borrowing, and the use of foreign cultural referents. The use of English in this corpus reflects localized cultural values and practices and may display the influence of both Arabic and South Asian English dialects. The extensive use of particular innovative structures or words suggests their widespread acceptance and emergent nativization within this genre. Dr. Buckingham’s lecture will take place in the Main Campus Library Art Gallery on Wednesday, March 5, at 12:40 p.m. The talk will be in English and lunchtime refreshments will be provided.
As mentioned briefly in last week’s Bilkent News, the Library is currently running a student photography competition entitled “My Library in One Shot.” The competition is open to all Bilkent students, both undergraduate and graduate. For detailed information about the competition and how to submit your photo, see our website:
http://library.bilkent.edu.tr/libraryweek/competition.html.
Good luck!