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Article published In: Linguistic Landscape
Vol. 4:2 (2018) ► pp.128–152

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Medical tourism and its niched impact in Tabriz, Iran

Opportunities and challenges for Iranian Azerbaijanis

 | Nanyang Technological University
Published online: 27 August 2018
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https://doi.org/10.1075/ll.17032.mir
Abstract
Tourism with all its concomitant economic and sociocultural influences across the globe accounts for today’s largest mobilization of people, money, and culture. This study explores how the arrival of medical tourists from the Republic of Azerbaijan in the city of Tabriz in Iran over the last few years has had a niched impact on the linguistic landscape of the city. Drawing upon theoretical developments within the sociolinguistics of globalization and mobility and linguistic landscapes, the research sheds light on how Azerbaijanis in Tabriz mobilize certain semiotic resources to both construct locality and channel mobility for their co-ethnic medical tourists, both establishing a sense of ‘at-homeness’ and attracting more travelers and economic gain. Given the legal prohibition of using foreign languages on public signage, the research also uncovers contesting language ideologies which may contribute to the development of a tension between Azerbaijani, as the largest minority language, and Farsi, the only official language, challenging the semiotic domination of Farsi over Azerbaijani.
فارسی
صنعت گردشگری با همه تاثیرات اقتصادی و اجتماعی – فرهنگی آن در سراسر جهان بزرگترین سهم را در حرکت سیال مردم، پول و فرهنگ دارد. این مطالعه نشان می‌دهد که چگونه ورود توریسم سلامت از کشور جمهوری آذربایجان به شهر تبریز طی سالهای گذشته بر روی چشم اندازهای زبانی شهر تاثیرات منطقه ای ویژه ای گذاشته است. با بررسی ادبیات موضوعی حوزه زبان‌شناسی اجتماعی و حرکت سیال افراد، و چشم اندازهای زبانی این تحقیق روشن می‌کند که چگونه آذربایجانی ها در شهر تبریز برخی از منابع زبانی خود را به کار می گیرند تا حرکت توریست سلامت از کشور آذربایجان را برای هم زبانهای خود تسهیل کنند که هم باعث ایجاد احساس "در خانه بودن" برای گردشگران می شود و هم باعث جذب بیشتر توریست و منافع اقتصادی می گردد. با توجه به ممنوعیت قانونی استفاده از زبان های خارجی در علایم و تابلو های اماکن عمومی این پژوهش همچنین از ایدیولوژی های زبانی پرده بر می دارد که می تواند منجر به تنشی بین زبان آذربایجانی و فارسی – تنها زبان رسمی کشور- و به چالش کشیدن استیلاء زبان فارسی بر آذربایجانی شود.
Article outline
  • 1.Introduction
  • 2.Azerbaijanis in Iran and their co-ethnics in the Republic of Azerbaijan
  • 3.Sociolinguistics of tourism and mobility
  • 4.Methodology
  • 5.Data analysis
    • 5.1Rules and regulations of advertisement
    • 5.2Medical tourism and linguistic landscapes
  • 6.Discussion and conclusion
  • Notes
  • References
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