Linguanomics What is the Market Potential of Multilingualism?

by Hogan-Brun, Gabrielle

• ISBN13: 9781474238298
• ISBN10: 1474238297
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2017-02-09
• Publisher: Bloomsbury Academic

Summary

Globalization, the Internet and an era of mass travel have combined to produce a world with a language mix on a huge scale. Linguanomics explains this multilingualism in a material, economic and cultural sense.

What is the effect of this multilingualism on society, organizations and individuals? What are the economic benefits and drawbacks? Should we invest in language skills? Should there be interventionist policies, and if so, at what level? Should there be a global lingua mundi? The debate surrounding multilingualism is often clouded by emotion and prejudice. With an analysis devoid of rhetoric, Gabrielle Hogan-Brun takes an objective look at this charged area.

The result is Linguanomics: a major step towards a clearer understanding of the market potential of multilingualism, its benefits, costs and points of contention. Asking significant questions of profound concern to the future of global collaboration, Linguanomics is an essential guide to students, teachers, policy makers and politicians and anyone who cares about the role of language in the modern world.

Author Biography

Gabrielle Hogan-Brun is at the University of Bristol, UK. She has written widely on language and education, with a particular focus on addressing and accommodating cultural and linguistic diversity in Central Eastern Europe.

Table of Contents

1. Trading Across Cultures
2. Mobility and the Marketplace
3. 'She has an ear for languages': Myths and Facts Surrounding Language Learning
4. Languages and Economics
5. Language Policy and Practices
6. Investments and Prospects
7. On Adding Speakers
8. From Marginalisation to Industry
9. Lessons from failures?
Glossary
Notes and references
Index
Selected bibliography