Graffiti, advertising posters, informational signs, and informal inscriptions of all kinds shape the public spaces of large cities and small towns alike, leaving both historical and contemporary traces of linguistic practice. Each serves different purposes: conveying information, promoting products, or expressing the identity of minority-language communities. “We examine the distribution of monolingual and multilingual signs in public space, their linguistic and semiotic features, as well as their functions and evolution over time,” says Lupica Spagnolo, explaining the core principles of linguistic research. The resulting analyses offer valuable insights into linguistic landscapes: Which languages are present? Where did they come from? Who uses them? And how have they influenced one another?
The course begins with an introduction to the main theoretical approaches and empirical methods for mapping linguistic diversity. Then, students are asked to put them into practice. “We explore how languages are used in public spaces,” says Lupica Spagnolo, “specifically in the places where students live.” This localized perspective is especially well suited to a course taught simultaneously at three universities — in Germany, Italy, and the Czech Republic — involving the University of Potsdam, the University of Cagliari, and Masaryk University. Nearly 50 students are taking part this winter semester, made possible through EDUC’s collaborative teaching framework. To prepare, students completed a web-based training module that introduced core theoretical concepts through self-paced online study. Only afterward did the group come together for a large virtual meeting, where instructors presented distinctive features of the linguistic landscapes surrounding each university and highlighted existing research. The course focuses on three main themes, developed in collaboration with colleagues from literary studies: identity, memory, and transformation.
Learning through field research
The course then moved into fieldwork. Working in small teams, students designed and conducted their own research projects centered on a guiding question: How do people use different languages in public spaces? Potsdam-based students were free to choose sites across the state of Brandenburg. Some stayed close to campus, examining the continued presence of French — the language of Frederick the Great’s court — in the park and palace complex of Sanssouci. Others investigated the role of Spanish and additional languages in transgressive graffiti found in restrooms at Potsdam’s university campuses (Neues Palais and Golm). A third group explored the interaction of German, Polish, and English in Frankfurt (Oder). In Brno and Cagliari, student teams developed regionally inspired research questions of their own.
In December, all participants reconvened online to present and discuss their findings. “It was an inspiring experience for students and teachers alike,” says Lupica Spagnolo. “We were able to connect theory and practice directly. Linguistic research is both regional and international. A comparative perspective encourages us to look beyond the local context and generate broader insights.”
Connecting through EDUC
Participants also benefit in less obvious ways. “Working internationally encourages students to step outside familiar routines, encounter new people and methods, and — thanks to the online format — gain international experience and language practice even if they cannot or prefer not to travel,” Lupica Spagnolo notes. Because students collaborated across universities between online sessions, exchanges extended well beyond the larger group meetings. “The idea was for them to meet online, discuss how to implement their fieldwork, compare preliminary findings, identify shared patterns — and, of course, build networks.”
Such an initiative is not without its challenges, she acknowledges. Bringing together 50 participants from three countries presents logistical hurdles, even in a digital age. Some were quite traditional in nature: while the German winter semester runs from October to February, Italian and Czech students conclude theirs before Christmas. Meetings and collaborative work therefore had to be completed by late December. Differences in teaching and learning cultures also required careful coordination, particularly given the seminar’s interdisciplinary format, which brings together students of linguistics and literary studies. Finally, transferring much of the course into a digital learning environment demanded significant effort. Although Lupica Spagnolo had developed much of the online self-study material for an earlier iteration of the seminar in 2021, a dedicated virtual infrastructure was needed to support cross-institutional collaboration. Over the past few years, EDUC has built such an environment on the widely used Moodle platform. “Giovanni Fonseca from the Potsdam EDUC team advised us in advance and helped ensure that everything was accessible for students. That support was invaluable,” she says. The joint course thus became not only a journey through unfamiliar linguistic landscapes but also an exploration of new learning environments. “This shift in perspective is particularly meaningful and important,” Lupica Spagnolo emphasizes.
For Potsdam students, the project continues beyond the final online sessions. Together with Lupica Spagnolo, they are now preparing their fieldwork results for public dissemination. The findings will be featured on a website developed by the Center for Language – Variation – Multilingualism (ZVM), which aims to document multilingualism in Brandenburg, as well as on the Instagram account of the Chair of Romance Linguistics (French and Italian). In the long term, there are plans to involve local artists in transforming the students’ empirical research into visually compelling formats.
Further information:
The web-based training course “Linguistic Landscapes: Languages in the Public Space” is available online at: https://courses.educalliance.eu/course/121
An overview of EDUC course offerings for students can be found at: https://www.uni-potsdam.de/en/educ/for-students/online-courses