Papers: Globalization and language practices by Bal Krishna Sharma
Sociolinguistics of Protesting, 2026
Our aim in this chapter is to analyze the diverse visual, textual, discursive
and material resour... more Our aim in this chapter is to analyze the diverse visual, textual, discursive
and material resources mobilized in citizens’ protests to hold the Nepali government
accountable for addressing the health and safety needs of the people during
the pandemic. As we examine them, we ask: to whom do these communicative
repertoires speak, and to what end? We argue that these resources foster a sense
of collective identity among a very diverse mass of individuals by making the
protest visually salient. The communicative activities the protesters engage in
reconfigure online and physical spaces. Simultaneously, practices transcend traditional
forms of social movement often shaped by the normative ideologies of
politics, ethnicity and gender in the context of Nepal. Protesters projected a positive
self-image by performing their identities as responsible, aware and civilized.
Some of the activities that indexed such identities were that: protesters followed
social distancing rules, they were appropriately masked and they did not incite
any violence. Meanwhile, actors used protests to perform a delegitimation (van
Dijk 1998) function by questioning the competency, authority and morality of the
government in addressing the needs of the country during the pandemic. What is
of particular interest to us as sociolinguists is the rich array of transient visual and
material semiotics that were constructed in diverse spaces as part of the protest
performance.
Language, Culture and Society , 2025
Existing research on global rap has extensively documented the creative appropriation of Western ... more Existing research on global rap has extensively documented the creative appropriation of Western popular music and its potential for progressive politics. Little attention has been paid to exploring the less favorable aspect of this phenomenonhow rap can potentially perpetuate discriminatory societal ideologies. With this concern, the present study aims to examine the darker side of the genre, with a focus on free style rap battles. We present an analysis of representative lyrics and performances from rap battles that took place in Kathmandu, Nepal. In our analysis, we illustrate how the creative use of the language of pop culture, including embodiment, cultural metaphors and rap slang within these battles, serves to perpetuate ideologies related to misogyny, racism, and colorism. Many of these toxic ideologies are already deeply ingrained in Nepali society, while others, including racism, find their way into Nepal through the influence of global rap.
Information, Communication & Society , 2025
Analyzing the chronology of the events that ensued in relation to a statuary rape case between a ... more Analyzing the chronology of the events that ensued in relation to a statuary rape case between a film actor and a juvenile singer in Nepal, this article examines how discourse on social media was employed to perpetrate violence against the rape survivor and women in general. We focus on how participation in online media reinforces beliefs associated rape culture and genderbased sexual abuse. Specifically, the analysis demonstrates four key discursive strategies being used to slut shame the rape survivor: victim blaming, revictimization, moral judgment and cancellation. Our findings yield two primary arguments. Firstly, technological affordances and platforms perpetuate slut shaming by reinforcing the norms and mechanisms inherent in digital misogyny across various social media platforms. Secondly, these discourses not only reflect but also reinforce toxic patriarchal norms prevalent offline in Nepali society, which normalize and institutionalize sexual violence against women. Our arguments draw on thematic and discourse analysis of comments, images and videos circulated on Facebook, TikTok and YouTube.
Media, Culture and Society , 2025
This study examines social media discourse in connection with two separate highprofile statutory ... more This study examines social media discourse in connection with two separate highprofile statutory rape cases involving two male celebrities in Nepal: film and music video actor Paul Shah and cricket icon Sandeep Lamichhane. In the first case, we analyze the discursive actions of the actor's fans and supporters, who uncritically back him by disputing the credibility of the rape allegation to protect him, all of which appear to further elevate his celebrity status. Conversely, in the second case, we investigate counterpublics' discursive articulations aiming at giving extrajudicial punishment to the athlete through callouts and boycotts, which degrade his celebrity status. Data were primarily collected from Facebook and Twitter, including external images and hyperlinks shared on those platforms. By examining how individuals support male celebrities and perpetuate rape culture, while others generate counter-hegemonic discourses to combat it, the findings shed light on the interplay between technology, societal norms, and feminist activism.
The Encyclopedia of Applied Linguistics, 2024
This entry explores the impact of neoliberalism on multilingual education. Neoliberalism, an econ... more This entry explores the impact of neoliberalism on multilingual education. Neoliberalism, an economic ideology that prioritizes market competition and individualism over government intervention and public welfare, has reshaped the way bi/multilingual education functions globally. Multilingual education, which recognizes the importance of linguistic diversity and promotes the teaching of multiple languages in schools, is seen as a tool for improving educational outcomes for multilingual students and promoting social and linguistic justice. However, neoliberal policies have often prioritized English monolingualism or elite bi/multilingualism over linguistic diversity, leading to the diminished value of multilingual education programs.
World Englishes, 2023
This article discusses some key functions and features of English in participatory popular cultur... more This article discusses some key functions and features of English in participatory popular culture and social media in Nepal. Analytical attention is paid to how English use in rap battles is entangled with other local languages and semiotic modes to create translingual practices and how online metapragmatic comments about the rap battles give rise to diverse language ideologies. The study shows that by creating their social life offline and online, Nepali young adults project themselves as individuals who have access to niche Englishes via popular culture. English use by Nepali youth functions not only as an instrument to understand Western popular culture but also as a symbolic resource to index a range of such social identities as 'educated' , 'civilized' and 'competent'. The article concludes by arguing that Nepali young adults create new subjectivities that are often suggestive of social transformation.
Language and Intercultural Communication in Tourism: Critical Perspectives, 2021
The volume interrogates culture and interculturality in tourism in detailed analyses of discursiv... more The volume interrogates culture and interculturality in tourism in detailed analyses of discursive details in tourism interactions and focuses on the notion of culture as a process or phenomenon engaged in or enacted on by individuals. Drawing on discourse analytic and ethnographic approaches, the book brings together perspectives from the lived experiences of residents, hosts and ethnographers to explore the extent to which linguistic and cultural differences are constructed, identities negotiated, and power relations maintained and perpetuated in tourism encounters. The volume draws on insights from those working across a range of geographic contexts and explores the interplay of these issues in English as well as other languages and language varieties used in tourism interactions.
Language and intercultural communication in tourism, 2021
This chapter aims to investigate how cultural stereotypes are
constructed in instructional discou... more This chapter aims to investigate how cultural stereotypes are
constructed in instructional discourse for tourism workers. The analysis
of stereotypes is important because it reveals some underlying ideologies
about intercultural communication in tourism. In these contexts,
workers are taught how to communicate in tourist–guide interactions.
The study is part of my larger linguistic ethnography that investigates the role of language and communication in tourism (Sharma, 2016). The
data consists of instructional discourses for pre- service tour guides in a
tour guide training program in Kathmandu, Nepal (see Sharma, 2018 for
more details).
Oxford Bibliographies, 2021
Tourism as a global economic activity utilizes communication to create and represent cultural dif... more Tourism as a global economic activity utilizes communication to create and represent cultural differences between the tourist and the Other through various media and spaces, despite the fact that such differences have become weaker and deterritorialized due to transnational mobility and globalization. Tourism communication reinscribes ethnocultural stereotypes, and this action is often motivated by a quest for cultural authenticity in the Other. The Other commodifies its cultural stereotypes with various discursive and semiotic tools and is often motivated by the exchange value of its cultural identity. Most previous scholarship on global tourism communication focused on North-South tourism mobilities, based on the stereotypical image of the tourist as an English-speaking white male. The recent demographic shift in world tourism presents us with a different picture. There are touristic encounters between people who move from one part of the Global South to another, and English does not necessarily serve as the default language of communication in these exchanges. There is also a shift in theoretical orientation in understanding what intercultural communication entails. Instead of treating culture and interculturality as essentially determined by broad variables such as nationality or ethnicity, attention is now given to the process that individuals engage in and perform via communication. Although there are some scholars who view intercultural communication in tourism as a positive force in raising people’s cross-cultural awareness, recent scholarship is mostly informed by a critical lens in that tourism is used to (re)produce, maintain, and justify relationships of inequality between the traveler and the local. A critical focus on intercultural communication provides important insights into our understanding of contemporary tourism and its situatedness within broader societal structures of power and ideologies.
The Sociolinguistics of Global Asias, 2022
In this chapter, we focus on the globalization of the Chinese language and discuss how its presen... more In this chapter, we focus on the globalization of the Chinese language and discuss how its presence is contributing to the transformation of the visual landscape in one South Asian country: Nepal. As one of the rapidly
transforming countries in South Asia, Nepal is a case study for understanding the sociocultural, linguistic, economic, and political implications of the spread of the Chinese language. The chapter aims to explore the changes that are reconfiguring Nepal’s economic, educational, and political spheres in relation to the Chinese language. An examination of these changes not only has implications for understanding Nepali society, but it invokes the importance of rethinking the sociolinguistics of globalization (Blommaert, 2010; Gao, 2017). We make the argument that global flows do not only originate in the West and are not solely channeled through the English language. We urge sociolinguists to turn their attention to the flows and networks within non- Western regions, particularly in the context of low-income and developing countries.
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Papers: Globalization and language practices by Bal Krishna Sharma
and material resources mobilized in citizens’ protests to hold the Nepali government
accountable for addressing the health and safety needs of the people during
the pandemic. As we examine them, we ask: to whom do these communicative
repertoires speak, and to what end? We argue that these resources foster a sense
of collective identity among a very diverse mass of individuals by making the
protest visually salient. The communicative activities the protesters engage in
reconfigure online and physical spaces. Simultaneously, practices transcend traditional
forms of social movement often shaped by the normative ideologies of
politics, ethnicity and gender in the context of Nepal. Protesters projected a positive
self-image by performing their identities as responsible, aware and civilized.
Some of the activities that indexed such identities were that: protesters followed
social distancing rules, they were appropriately masked and they did not incite
any violence. Meanwhile, actors used protests to perform a delegitimation (van
Dijk 1998) function by questioning the competency, authority and morality of the
government in addressing the needs of the country during the pandemic. What is
of particular interest to us as sociolinguists is the rich array of transient visual and
material semiotics that were constructed in diverse spaces as part of the protest
performance.
constructed in instructional discourse for tourism workers. The analysis
of stereotypes is important because it reveals some underlying ideologies
about intercultural communication in tourism. In these contexts,
workers are taught how to communicate in tourist–guide interactions.
The study is part of my larger linguistic ethnography that investigates the role of language and communication in tourism (Sharma, 2016). The
data consists of instructional discourses for pre- service tour guides in a
tour guide training program in Kathmandu, Nepal (see Sharma, 2018 for
more details).
transforming countries in South Asia, Nepal is a case study for understanding the sociocultural, linguistic, economic, and political implications of the spread of the Chinese language. The chapter aims to explore the changes that are reconfiguring Nepal’s economic, educational, and political spheres in relation to the Chinese language. An examination of these changes not only has implications for understanding Nepali society, but it invokes the importance of rethinking the sociolinguistics of globalization (Blommaert, 2010; Gao, 2017). We make the argument that global flows do not only originate in the West and are not solely channeled through the English language. We urge sociolinguists to turn their attention to the flows and networks within non- Western regions, particularly in the context of low-income and developing countries.