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Article published In:
Language Problems and Language Planning
Vol. 38:3 (2014) ► pp.265–291

English language spread in academia

Macro-level state policies and micro-level practices of scholarly publishing in Turkey

| Gazi University

This article first historically examines the macro-level Turkish state policies with regard to scholarly publishing within the framework of the English language spread paradigms of diffusion-of-English and language-ecology. Then, the effects of these policies at the micro-level are investigated in two major Turkish universities through a survey of scholars’ perceptions and practices of scientific publishing in English. The results reveal a rapid spread of English in academia as the language of scientific publishing consistently encouraged by the state policies and somewhat by academics which may lead to a gradual ‘domain loss’ for Turkish; however, reactions against English dominance are also evident in various forms in language planning, attitudes, and practices. Thus, language spread and ecology seem to co-exist in some interesting and contradictory ways.

Keywords: Turkish scholars, diffusion and ecology paradigms, Turkish language policy, scholarly publication, English spread, English as a lingua franca (ELF)
Published online: 22 December 2014
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https://doi.org/10.1075/lplp.38.3.03uys
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