Tag Archives: banal nationalism

Finding Switzerland in Japan Finding Switzerland in Japan

Posted on October 6, 2010 by Ingrid Piller

As a non-speaker and non-reader of Japanese I went to Japan fully expecting to be confused. However, the only confusing moment I experienced had nothing to do with anything Japanese: when I stepped off the train at Hakone Station, I … Continue reading →

Posted in Language & tourism | Tagged , , , , , , | 2 Comments

John_multilingual_Leaflet1 Diversity made invisible in 2010 Australian federal election

Posted on July 26, 2010 by Kimie Takahashi 高橋君江

This weekend, if you were out shopping, you couldn’t escape the electioneering for the 2010 Australian federal election. I do my grocery shopping in Eastwood, one of Sydney’s most multicultural suburbs and was infuriated by the mismatch between our diverse … Continue reading →

Posted in Language, migration & social justice, Recent Posts | Tagged , , , , , | 4 Comments

Banal multilingualism

Posted on June 17, 2010 by Ingrid Piller

As someone who is concerned about Australia’s monolingual mindset and the damage it does to individuals and our society as a whole, I probably should have been pleased to discover this souvenir apron and stove gloves in a Sydney dollar … Continue reading →

Posted in Language & consumerism, Recent Posts | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 10 Comments

Shibboleth: Kyrgyz or Uzbek?

Posted on June 15, 2010 by Ingrid Piller

In his recent post “Accent and History,” Khan asked whether it’s possible to escape the prison of our accent and our language. Looking at the civil war and humanitarian disaster that is currently raging in and around the city of … Continue reading →

Posted in Language, migration & social justice, Recent Posts | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

Accent and history

Posted on June 10, 2010 by Muhammad Ali Khan

This is the story of a young Pakistani man, let’s call him Reza. Reza spent his early years in what was then East-Pakistan and what is today a different country, Bangladesh. Reza’s family were Muslims from Bihar, who at the … Continue reading →

Posted in Language, migration & social justice, Recent Posts | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 13 Comments