Language-power relationship, linguistic identity and the struggle for survival: the case of Asturian in Oviedo, Spain

ABSTRACT The analysis of a community’s linguistic landscape has proven to be an excellent tool not only in portraying, but also in evaluating and interpreting what languages are used in a single place (and what languages seem to be invisible), what the vitality of any of these languages is, and the relative influence that each linguistic variety within that community has and how it relates to the other varieties in terms of power, visibility and functionality. The presence or absence of a language in the public space conveys a message that directly and indirectly exposes its significance versus its marginality in the community. The present study analyzes languages used in the public space of a neighborhood in Oviedo, the capital city of Asturias in Spain, where Spanish is the majority language and Asturian is the regional language. While Asturian is present in some of the official street signs, stores’ signages only utilize Spanish along with other minority languages such as Arabic. Using a mixed research approach, this article analyzes attitudes and power relations among Spanish, Asturian and other immigrant languages used in the LL of a neighborhood in Oviedo, Asturias, while also revealing public perceptions of language hierarchies and prestige in the area.