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Joseph Benjamin Archibald Afful
University of Cape Coast

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Sociolinguistics of Names of Hotels in Accra: A Linguistic Landscape Perspective Ebenezer Agbaglo; Joseph Benjamin Archibald Afful
Linguistics Initiative Vol. 3 No. 1 (2023)
Publisher : Pusat Studi Bahasa dan Publikasi Ilmiah

Show Abstract | Download Original | Original Source | Check in Google Scholar | DOI: 10.53696/27753719.3153

Abstract

In recent times, the language in public spaces (as seen in street names, school names, names of buildings, names of metro stations, names of tourist attractions, and commercial signs) has attracted scholarly attention in onomastics, with the focus on how it reflects the linguistic situation of urban landscapes and how it can be used to construct several identities. The present study aimed to investigate names of hotels in Accra – the capital city of Ghana, with considerable financial, cultural, and industrial significance – using Landry & Bouris’s (1997) Linguistic Landscape as a theory. The data comprises 160 hotel names accessed from the website of Yello Ghana, a well-known business directory. The analysis revealed, first, that most of the hotels deployed English monolingual names, with a few utilising bilingual names. Closely allied to this finding is the trend towards globalisation, as captured in some names of hotels. These key findings have implications for the scholarship in onomastics, urban landscape, language policy and planning, and further research.
National identity construction through grammatical cohesive devices in independence day speeches in Ghana: A corpus-based study Eric Antwi; Kwabena Sarfo Sarfo-Kantanka; Joseph Benjamin Archibald Afful
Linguistics Initiative Vol. 6 No. 1 (2026)
Publisher : Pusat Studi Bahasa dan Publikasi Ilmiah

Show Abstract | Download Original | Original Source | Check in Google Scholar | DOI: 10.53696/27753719.61401

Abstract

The construction of national identities in post-colonial nations is significantly influenced by political discourse, as political leaders use language to shape and reinforce a sense of collective identity. In this context, Ghana provides a compelling case for examining how grammatical cohesive devices in Independence Day Speeches contribute to national identity formation. This study employs a corpus-based approach, focusing on Ghana’s Independence Day speeches delivered by various presidents from 2010 to 2024, to capture trends across successive administrations. Drawing on Social Identity theory and Theory of Cohesion, this study examines how references to Ghana’s political past, present, and future contribute to the formation of a unified national identity. The findings indicate that demonstratives are the most dominant grammatical cohesive devices employed by Ghanaian presidents. These demonstratives mostly describe events, people and actions pertinent to the national narrative. One noteworthy finding is the use of the additive conjunction ‘and’, which serves a dual function: it links ideas linguistically while also creating contrast within discourse. This dual role enhances the effectiveness of the speeches. These findings highlight the crucial role of cohesive devices in reinforcing a shared national identity and fostering solidarity among the populace.