English Language and Literature
Maryam Mirzaei
Abstract
This study explores the use of nicknames among trilingual youth, investigating the influence of identity, culture, language, and attitudes on their propensity to assign nicknames to others. This research is cross-sectional and uses survey research. Results reveal that nicknames mirror the intricacy ...
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This study explores the use of nicknames among trilingual youth, investigating the influence of identity, culture, language, and attitudes on their propensity to assign nicknames to others. This research is cross-sectional and uses survey research. Results reveal that nicknames mirror the intricacy of social relations in a trilingual society. Young people’s attitudes towards others’ titles are predominantly negative, while their views on their own titles are more positive. Physical attributes form the basis for the most common nicknames. In this trilingual village, nicknames are primarily given to incapacitated individuals, those with differing religious beliefs, and those who do not share commonalities with the dominant language (Georgian, the native language of the dominant group) and ethnicity. The dominant language group is more inclined to assign titles. Most titles are based on descriptive phrases rather than verbal, prepositional, or adverbial phrases.
Shirin Ahmadi; Fatemeh Parham
Abstract
The purpose of the current study was to identify features of national identity in translational and non-translational children’s literature and analyze the contribution of these texts to identity formation of Iranian children. For the purpose of this study, 16 translational and non-translational ...
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The purpose of the current study was to identify features of national identity in translational and non-translational children’s literature and analyze the contribution of these texts to identity formation of Iranian children. For the purpose of this study, 16 translational and non-translational realistic young adult novels, 8 translational and 8 non-translational, that were published in Iran were scrutinized thoroughly to extract instances of national identity. The instances were extracted based on ethnic-civic categorization of national identity features which is a combination of two taxonomies of the civic and ethnic features of national identity provided by Smith (1991). The extracted instances were carefully analyzed and compared to reach a conclusion. The results of the study revealed that Iranian children’s exposure to features of non-Iranian national identity is twice the number of their exposure to features of Iranian national identity. Furthermore, only some of the aspects of national identity are introduced to children through novels. In fact, the low frequency of some elements of national identity, including economic, ideological, political and legal features, shows that the more complicated aspects of national identity are marginalized in these texts. The study showed that young adult novels have modest contribution to Iranian children’s national consciousness.
