THE USE OF ENGLISH WORDS IN URDU MAGAZINE PRINT ADVERTISEMENTS: AN ANALYSIS

Authors

  • Huma Akhtar
  • Hamna Khalid

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.58800/bujhss.v2i1.2

Keywords:

language-mixing, advertisements, multilingual text, analytical framework, body copy, slogans, headlines, multilingual texts, copy writer, language-contact, linguistic innovation.

Abstract

English is an international language which is widely used around the globe. The use of English words is also evident in Urdu in the form of code-switching or code-mixing. There has been an ample amount of research on spoken language-mixing or code-mixing using informal and institutional conversations and very limited research has been carried out using written data. The use of English in Urdu in written text shows emergence of multilingual text. This paper briefly reviewed the research on written language-mixing in order to explore the use of English in Urdu print advertisements and the contexts in which English is used. Bhatia’s (2001) model was used to analyze the structure of multilingual texts such as advertisements with the main emphasis on four parts out of eight. They included “product name, slogan, headline, body copy” (Bhatia, 2001). The frequency of non-English words present in advertisements is another clear indication of multilingualism which exists in written texts. The findings show that English words are frequently used in Urdu magazine advertisements and they appear in various contexts, from cosmetics to appliances and food items. The findings will help in highlighting the need to devise analytical framework for analyzing multilingual written discourse than adopting frameworks from spoken discourse. The analysis will also throw light on the emerging trends and literacy practices so as to ascertain whether language mixing is a consequence of language contact or linguistic innovation on the part of the copy writers.

Downloads

Published

12-03-2021

How to Cite

Huma Akhtar, & Hamna Khalid. (2021). THE USE OF ENGLISH WORDS IN URDU MAGAZINE PRINT ADVERTISEMENTS: AN ANALYSIS. Bahria University Journal of Humanities &Amp; Social Sciences, 2(1), 14. https://doi.org/10.58800/bujhss.v2i1.2

Issue

Section

Articles