Presented In Partial Fulfillment of The Requirements for The Degree of Master of Arts
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Date
2013-04
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Addis Ababa University
Abstract
The objective of this research is to examine the linguistic landscape of two
areas in Addis Ababa, namely Bole and Merkato. The data are collected
through the researcher's observation, photographing, and informal
interviews held with business owners and customers. The data are analyzed
using qualitative and quantitative approaches to determine the visibility of
different languages, the number of languages used, the characteristics of bi/
trilingual signs, and the importance and visibility of English as a foreign
language. According to the findings, Amharic and English are the most
visible languages in the linguistic landscape. The distribution of these two
languages, however, differs in the two study areas. Amharic is the most
visible language in Merkato, while English is dominant in Bole. The study
also highlights the visibility of English in the linguistic landscape. The main
reason for using English is associated with its symbolic function for the
readers of the signs. The study reveals that the signs from government
institutions (the top-down flow) and the signs from private sources
(bottom-up flow) exhibit a difference with regard to language use and
language arrangement on signs. The most widely used languages in the topdown
flow are Amharic and English. However, English is the most visible
language in the bottom-up flows of Bole, while Amharic is the most visible
language in Merkato. The study also reveals the status of local languages
and foreign languages in the linguistic landscape ofthe two areas.
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