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RESEARCH PRODUCT

Frozen actions in the Arctic linguistic landscape: a nexus analysis of language processes in visual space

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Abstract This article examines the linguistic landscape (LL) of seven villages above the Arctic Circle, in the region called North Calotte. The area forms a complex nexus of contested and changing multilingualism, particularly as regards to endangered indigenous Sami languages and Kven and Meankieli minority languages. Viewing LL as a discursively constructed space and consequently signs as ‘frozed actions’ by various actors, and by adopting a Nexus analytical approach we examine three interrelated aspects of Arctic LLs: (1) the synchronic aspect by addressing the question of how languages are used in the landscapes of northern villages in the year 2008; (2) the historical aspect through identifying traces of different processes in these landscapes; and (3) the functional aspect by exploring what happens to endangered indigenous and minority languages in these LLs. In this article we argue that the Arctic LL is multi-layered, containing minority, national and global language orders, each organising and pr...