Affordances and borderscapes: language ideologies, nationalisms, generations and geographies of resistance in Cyprus

Article


Karayianni, C. and Christou, A. 2024. Affordances and borderscapes: language ideologies, nationalisms, generations and geographies of resistance in Cyprus. Languages. 9 (9). https://doi.org/10.3390/languages9060224
TypeArticle
TitleAffordances and borderscapes: language ideologies, nationalisms, generations and geographies of resistance in Cyprus
AuthorsKarayianni, C. and Christou, A.
Abstract

In this article, we explore the ways language has been used in Cyprus during different historical periods as a means of a dividing power, with the use of Cypriot dialects as a form of resistance and reunification of the island. We situate these translanguaging themes within a context of affective biopolitics that impacts Cypriot generations in shaping their everyday life through borderscapes and nationalisms. More specifically, we first examine how the official languages of the island (Greek and Turkish) have been used in the dominant public sphere(s) of Cyprus to marginalise Cypriot dialects, which, in turn, have been used as an oral means of communication, but also to impose symbolic signifiers of the biopolitics of borders and nationalisms in dividing communities. Secondly, we explore ways in which Cypriot dialects have been used as forms of linguistic resistance to nationalism, offering an alternative collective identity for generations of both communities, even during periods when nationalism was dominant in both communities. The translanguaging exploration centres on a close discourse analysis of one particular radio programme—the ‘Cypriot radio sketch’—that has been very popular among Cypriots since the appearance of radio in Cyprus in 1953. Finally, we analytically and discursively contextualise attempts of revival of the Cypriot dialects by younger generations as communicative forms of resistance to powers of partition, as well as translanguaging pathways to actualise their desire for the reunification of the island. We eclectically draw on a multi-method approach to combine datasets from interviews, media and social media while combining critical discourse analysis to theorise the affordances, borderscapes and affective biopolitics of generational language use within geographies of nationalism and resistance in the borderscapes of a divided Cyprus.

KeywordsCyprus; language ideologies; translanguaging; nationalism; resistance; affective biopolitics; borderscapes
Sustainable Development Goals16 Peace, justice and strong institutions
Middlesex University ThemeSustainability
Research GroupSocial Policy Research Centre (SPRC)
PublisherMDPI AG
JournalLanguages
ISSN
Electronic2226-471X
Publication dates
Online19 Jun 2024
PrintJun 2024
Publication process dates
Submitted15 Jan 2024
Accepted31 May 2024
Deposited30 Sep 2024
Output statusPublished
Publisher's version
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File Access Level
Open
Copyright Statement

© 2024 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. This article is an open access article distributed under the terms and conditions of the Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY) license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).

Additional information

This article belongs to the Special Issue Translanguaging and Intercultural Communication

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)https://doi.org/10.3390/languages9060224
Web of Science identifierWOS:001255906900001
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Is part ofhttps://www.mdpi.com/journal/languages/special_issues/multilingualism_translation
LanguageEnglish
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