Journal | EL.LE
Monographic journal issue | 10 | 1 | 2021
Research Article | Code-Switching Between Lingua Francas

Code-Switching Between Lingua Francas

The Case of a Plurilingual Facebook Group

Abstract

This article reports on English-Italian code-switching in a Facebook group of university students. The aim of the study is to describe the students’ interactional practices and their alternate use of English and Italian as lingua francas. 773 posts and comments written by 81 members of the group were analysed in a pragmatic and conversational perspective. The study shows that code-switching was ruled by precise norms of interaction and served to manage participant constellations. It also facilitated mutual understanding among students with different degree of language competence, and contributed to the creation of the plurilingual ‘small culture’ of the group.


Open access | Peer reviewed

Submitted: Feb. 8, 2020 | Accepted: May 10, 2020 | Published March 31, 2021 | Language: it

Keywords ELFLingua francaFacebookPlurilingualismCode-switching


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