Linguistic landscape: A case study of shop signs in Aqaba city, Jordan

Abstract

This research paper aims at investigating the language of business in Jordan in order to find out to what extent the foreign language, English in this case, has influence on the local language, i.e. Arabic, in business sector and what governs the presence of foreign elements in business language? Is it the type of business, customers, or other factors? Another aim is to find out whether these foreign words/phrases are used elsewhere in the local language or they are specific to certain business contexts. A final aim is to see the present status of English in Aqaba and the attitudes of shop owners towards English as a foreign language.