International Journal of Linguistics, Literature and Translation
The International Journal of Linguistics, Literature and Translation (ISSN: 2617-0299) is a double-blind peer-reviewed, monthly, open-access journal published by Al-Kindi Center for Research and Development. It publishes high-quality articles across the breadth of linguistics, literature and translation research. With its uniquely broad coverage, all articles are free to access across the globe, allowing authors to share their research and maximise its impact. The journal is led by expert international editorial board members who take an objective approach to peer review, ensuring each research paper is reviewed and evaluated on its own scholarly merits and research integrity. Publishing your work in the International Journal of Linguistics, Literature, and Translation means you will receive prompt and reliable publishing and a global platform for your research to reach its full potential. The journal is published in both online and print versions.
Al-Kindi Center for Research and Development
The Shaping of African Identity in Langston Hughes' "The Negro Speaks of Rivers”
The poem The Negro Speaks of Rivers by Langston Hughes is a very strong representation of the African American identity that builds on the cultural continuity and historical memory. The paper shares a review of the abundant use of metaphors of rivers in the poem as a symbol of the trauma and strength of the African diaspora. Following the speaker in his relations to ancient rivers, Euphrates, Congo, Nile, and Mississippi, Hughes redefines the notion of Black identity as a dynamic and changing tradition that cuts across both time and space. This paper will examine how the symbolic use of these rivers by Hughes is cultural reclamation and spiritual renewal that deals with the theme of displacement, survival, and ancestral wisdom. Based on the postcolonial theory and the diasporic memory and the cultural renaissance of the Harlem renaissance, the paper posits that the poem of Hughes provides a historical continuum, which binds individual experience with a shared legacy. Through analyzing the imagery, tone, and structure in the poem, the present research points to the fact that the work of Hughes is not just a reflection of the past, but is more of a philosophical picture, linking the past to the present, and renewing the African American experience. Finally, this poem is an anthem to identity, personal and collective, that is a historical set of testimonies to cultural survival.
Identity, African American, Harlem renaissance, black, postcolonial, African diaspora
Copyright (c) 2026 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
A Comparative Analysis of Pashto and Dari Verbs
The paper presents the comparative analysis of the systems of verbs used in the two major Indo-Iranian languages and official languages of Afghanistan: Dari and Pashto. The comparison is made on the basis of the examination of different aspects of the verbal system such as verb conjugation, T-A-M systems, agreement forms, and syntactic properties of verbs in the languages. For this purpose, the paper presents the results of the analysis of the material taken from 30 texts written in Dari and Pashto (15 texts per language). It has been found out that Dari makes use of nominative-accusative alignment and rather simple forms of conjugation based on suffixes, while in the verbal paradigm of Pashto, there can be identified features typical for split ergativity, complex stem changes and pronominal clitics used especially in past tenses. Differently from Dari, aspectual distinction in Pashto is marked via the use of prefixes and auxiliaries; auxiliary verbs are used to form tense and aspect forms in Dari. In addition, syntactically there are differences concerning agreement forms (ergative agreement vs. subject-verb agreement).
Pashto; Dari; comparative verb systems; split ergativity; TAM; syntactic alignment; Indo-Iranian linguistics
A Critical Assessment of the Principle of Functionality in Skopos Theory and its Application to Quran Translation
This study critically examines the principle of functionality in Skopos Theory and its applicability to the translation of the Holy Quran. The research explores whether the purpose-oriented nature of Skopos Theory aligns with the linguistic, cultural, and spiritual characteristics of the Quran. Using a qualitative and descriptive approach, one key Quranic verse is analyzed through selected English translations to evaluate how functionality influences the translation process and its final outcome. The findings reveal that while the functional principle enhances communicative effectiveness and audience accessibility, it remains limited in addressing the sacred and immutable purpose of the Quranic text. The study concludes that a strict functionalist approach cannot fully capture the divine and theological intent of the Quran, which highlights the need for a more balanced method that acknowledges both the communicative and spiritual dimensions of sacred translation.
Quran translation, Skopos Theory, functionality, Quranic meaning, translation challenges
Saying More by Saying Less: Conversational Implicature in the Davos 2026 Welcoming Address: A pragmatic study
This study tackled a qualitative pragmatic analysis of the welcoming speech in the Swiss Confederation at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF) by the president of the meeting, Davos, in 2026. This study followed Grice's (1975) theory of conversational implicature-encompassing the Cooperative Principle (CP) and its maxims in addition to subsequent refinements by Levinson (1983, 2000) and Sperber and Wilson's (1986) Relevance Theory. This research paper investigated the implied meaning encoded in the speech beyond the literal propositional content. The paper investigated how the speaker exploits, flouts, and observes Gricean maxims to convey political intentions, diplomatic signals, and ideological values that are not explicitly stated. It is revealed through the analysis that three main implicature functions in the speech: solidarity-building and national identity projection, implicit critique of global political trends (protectionism, AI governance deficits, geopolitical instability), and the strategic self-positioning of Switzerland as a responsible, neutral, and forward-thinking international actor.
Implicature; Gricean maxims; Cooperative Principle; diplomatic discourse; World Economic Forum; Davos 2026; pragmatics
Language Planning and Policy in Education: Exploring the Impact of Organic Laws on Enforcing the Amazigh Language Teaching in Morocco
Language planning is a problem-solving process usually undertaken by national governments and is intended to affect literacy practices within a given society. On the other hand, language policy plays a pivotal role in developing theoretical linguistic policies that target shaping or reshaping the social, cultural, and political identity of nations. Given the interrelation between these two notions, it is significant to state that Morocco has implemented several language policies since its independence. The various reforms to Morocco's education system have consistently highlighted the status of languages in education. Actually, the integration of Tamazight into the Moroccan education system began in 2003. To some extent, Amazigh activism, language research, and the royal will have played pivotal roles in the evolution of both the Amazigh language's status and its teaching. In fact, several studies have tackled Tamazight language teaching and learning from different perspectives. The current study intends to analyze the adapted top-down model of language policy and explore the distinct factors that estimate or underestimate Tamazight across social, political, cultural, and economic domains. Similarly, it seeks to examine the impact of the macro-level decisions on the status of Tamazight in the Moroccan education system. Furthermore, this study aims to determine whether successive governments since Ajdir’s king's speech in 2001 have served or hindered the standardization of this 'national heritage'. More specifically, the overall rationale for this study is to examine the variance between the macro and micro levels of language planning and how this gap affects Tamazight teaching.
Tamazight, Language planning, Language policy, Organic laws, Standardization
Language anxiety in learning Arabic as a second Language: A Case Study of Female Learners at the Arabic Language Institute for Speakers of Other Languages in King Abdulaziz University
The present study investigates language anxiety among female learners of Arabic at the Arabic Language Institute for Speakers of Other Languages at King Abdulaziz University in Jeddah. It aims to identify the level of foreign language anxiety among the learners, and examine the factors causing it, as well as the extent of its impact on the process of learning the Arabic language. To achieve the objectives of the study, a descriptive analytical approach is employed, using the Foreign Language Learning Anxiety Scale "FLCAS" developed by Horwitz et al. (1991) to collect the data. Four sources of anxiety are taken into consideration in this scale: communication-bound anxiety, negative assessment anxiety, test anxiety, and classroom anxiety. A total of (23) female learners of Arabic from three proficiency levels in the institute: the second, the third, and the fourth, participated in the study. The results reveal that the participants experienced a moderate level of language anxiety. They also show that test anxiety is the main source of anxiety among the learners. The study concludes that the institute needs to find alternative assessment methods in order to reduce the negative impact of tests on the learning process.
Language anxiety, Arabic non-native speakers, KAU
Interpretation of sentiments by popular machine models: A study with Saudi student-interpreters
This mixed-methods study explores which of the four free AI applications, Google Translate, Microsoft Translator, Microsoft Bing AI, and QuillBot, are most successful in decoding emotional messages in the Arabic-English language pair. A dataset of positive, negative, neutral, and mixed emotional tones was used for interpretation test with the AI programs, and results were rated by three language experts for sentiment accuracy, contextual understanding, and cultural appropriateness. Findings revealed that AI tools are quite effective in recognizing obvious positive and negative emotions but experience some issues when it comes to ambiguous or culturally specific speech content. Microsoft Bing AI showed the least difference with human judgments and hence found to be the best for Arabic-English emotive interpretation. The results indicate that AI can serve as a resource for Saudi student-interpreters and confirm the importance of human-AI cooperation to obtain the correct context-specific and culturally sensitive interpretation.
AI, curriculum, interpretation, Saudi students, translation
Personality, Distraction, and Revision Efficiency in Translation Training: A Big Five Hierarchical Regression Study
This study examined how Big Five personality traits and self-reported digital distraction relate to revision efficiency among 114 male Arabic-to-English translation students at a Saudi university. Students completed a timed online error-detection task applied to a translated passage containing 17 embedded errors. Personality was assessed using a researcher-developed ten-item Big Five-aligned questionnaire, and distraction was measured through two self-report items on notification disruption and refocus time. Efficiency was defined as correct detections per minute. A three-step hierarchical multiple regression entered duration in Step 1, Big Five scores in Step 2, and distraction indicators in Step 3. Openness and Conscientiousness emerged as significant positive predictors of efficiency after controlling for duration. Distraction indicators showed small negative bivariate associations with efficiency but did not contribute significant incremental variance once duration and personality were controlled. The findings indicate that personality traits predict revision efficiency independently of time-on-task, and that structured revision instruction may be more effective than distraction management alone in translator education.
Translation revision, error detection, Big Five personality, digital distraction, translator pedagogy
Mock Impoliteness in Online Courses: A Study of Liu Xiaoyan’s PEE Classes
Mock impoliteness known as banter refers to the offensive way of being friendly. Many researches have examined mock impoliteness in sitcoms, talk shows and social platforms such as Wechat and Weibo, as well as in live streaming commerce. However, its application in educational settings remains underexplored. Drawing on Liu Xiaoyan’s Postgraduate Entrance Examination (PEE) online courses, this study investigates three strategies in using mock impoliteness: (1) explaining key points, (2) motivating students and (3) engaging in self-deprecation. Through qualitative analysis, the findings demonstrate effective functions of mock impoliteness in alleviating tension and stimulating motivation, thereby enriching our understanding of strategic teacher discourse in digital environments, which may provide pedagogical implications.
Mock Impoliteness, Online Courses, Teacher Discourse
Rhetorical Strategies of Narrating Yemen's History in Walter Harris's A Journey through the Yemen (1893)
Walter Burton Harris was a British travel writer and Times correspondent who travelled extensively in Morocco for more than forty years, from his first entry to Morocco in 1886 until his death in 1933. Besides his journalistic reports, Harris published a number of travelogues during those years. By means of a close textual and critical analysis of the book’s strategies of narrating Yemen’s history, and inspired by David Spurr’s rhetorical study of journalistic and travel writing in his The Rhetoric of Empire (1993) and Edward Said’s analytical framework in Orientalism (1978), this article analyses Harris’s (re)production of Yemen’s history in his A Journey through the Yemen (1893). It shows how the author relies heavily on other authorities to negate Yemen’s history and to affirm his imperialist visions. The aim behind Harris’s book is, I argue, to provide a vision of Yemeni history that is, not to say distorted, extremely subjective and that aligns with his imperialist aspirations for a Yemen under European and, preferably, British control.
Harris, History, Yemen, Narration, Negation, Affirmation, Imperialist Visions.
Copyright (c) 2026 Mohamed Hakki https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
A Study on the Subtitle Translation of the Film Cliff Walkers from the Perspective of Multimodal Discourse Analysis
This article explores the subtitle translation of Cliff Walkers from the perspective of multimodal discourse analysis, using visual grammar as the theoretical framework. The study reveals that subtitle translation is a multimodal practice, where language choices are closely related to visual, auditory and narrative elements. The translator’s adaptation strategies, such as using expressions with cultural resonance, condensing themes in chapter titles, and coordinating with visual and auditory cues, demonstrate a profound understanding of the ways meanings are constructed in different modes. These strategies not only ensure the accuracy of information but also enhance the expressiveness and cultural accessibility of the film.
Copyright (c) 2026 Caiyan Zou https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
From Noticing to Reuse: Tracing Vocabulary Learning Trajectories in English-Subtitled EFL Classrooms
The use of videos with English subtitles has become increasingly common in English as a Foreign Language (EFL) classrooms. Previous studies have demonstrated that subtitles can support vocabulary learning by making lexical forms more perceptually available. However, most research has examined subtitle effects primarily through post-test outcomes rather than through the classroom processes by which learners encounter, interpret, and later reuse vocabulary during instruction. Consequently, less is known about how vocabulary engagement unfolds over time within subtitle-supported classroom instruction. This qualitative classroom-based study investigates vocabulary learning trajectories during English-subtitled video lessons in three Vietnamese upper-secondary EFL classrooms. Drawing on qualitative data from six classroom observations, learner interviews (n = 9), a teacher interview, and learner reflection forms (n = 60), the study traces how learners’ engagement with vocabulary developed across different stages of the lesson. Using thematic analysis, the study identifies recurring patterns in how learners noticed lexical items in subtitles, interpreted their meanings through classroom interaction, and later reused them in post-viewing activities. The findings reveal that vocabulary learning in subtitled video lessons unfolded through a trajectory consisting of three interconnected stages: noticing, interpretive engagement, and reuse. Subtitles increased the visibility of lexical forms, but noticing alone rarely led to sustained engagement. Instead, classroom dialogue and teacher prompts supported meaning construction, while post-viewing tasks created opportunities for learners to retrieve and apply vocabulary in communicative contexts. The study argues that vocabulary development in subtitle-supported classrooms emerges through a temporally distributed learning trajectory rather than through exposure alone. By tracing how vocabulary moves from initial noticing to later reuse, the study contributes to research on multimodal input and classroom-based vocabulary learning. It also highlights the importance of instructional sequencing in turning subtitle exposure into usable lexical knowledge.
Vocabulary learning trajectories; subtitled video; noticing; multimodal learning; EFL classrooms; classroom interaction
Richardson’s Pamela: A critical analysis from feminist and narrative perspectives
Narratology is the primary lens that shapes the reader’s experience of the plot in a novel. In Pamela, Richardson uses the epistolary structure for the protagonist to represent herself as a paragon of virtue, gender performance, albeit with undertones of social ambition. This study uses feminist and narratology perspectives to explore how Pamela constructs her identity through selective storytelling, rhetorical self-presentation, and emotional persuasion. It also examines the critical conflict in her portrayal either as a moral exemplar or as a strategically unreliable narrator shaped by desire for upward mobility. Textual analysis indicates that the epistolary voice functions not only as a confessional space but also as a strategic tool through which the protagonist negotiates power within a patriarchal social order. By analyzing the narrative against the historical context of eighteenth-century female servitude, the research highlights how the character’s literacy, autonomy, and eventual social mobility deviate from the typical experiences of domestic servants, emphasizing her exceptional skills. Key themes examined here include narrative unreliability, gendered performance, social aspiration, and class mobility through visibly moral discourse. Findings suggest that the novel’s apparent celebration of virtue is complicated by the protagonist’s calculated self-projection and narrative control. The study concludes that Pamela is a complex exploration of identity formation, agency, and power dynamics, contributing to broader debates on female authorship, narrative authority, and cultural construction of virtue in early English fiction.
Feminist literary theory; gender performance; social mobility; domestic fiction; class identity; narratology
Representation and Role of Women in the Recent Film Narratives of the War of Liberation of Bangladesh in 1971: A Critical Study
The paper deals with the heroic-patriotic roles and daring encounters of women captured in the cinematic tales and narratives during the 9-month long War of Liberation in 1971 in Bangladesh. It focuses on the movies depicting the barbarity meted out inhumanly to the innocent people of Bangladesh and genocide in 1971 and how women sacrificed immeasurably and contributed significantly to the collective efforts for freedom by combating and resisting the West Pakistani brutality and violence in numerous ways, thus the paper seeks to explore the 1971 Liberation War-based movie productions made in the 90s and in recent times to revisit and relocate the gallant portrayal of women as fundamental and inseparable instrument of resistance that led to our hard-earned victory and independence. The movie narrative and representation of their selfless sacrifice, dominating and undaunted visual presence and performance regenerate and reclaim their roles far removed from the stereotyped gendered status.
Nationalism, gender, representation, independence, stereotyping, resistance, male-gaze
On the structure of b- and raħ as future markers in Najdi Arabic
Tense is a cross-linguistic category that is typically expressed within the verb complex. It can be realized in verb forms/inflections, auxiliaries, particles, or any tense markers that are structurally related to the verb. Tense in general can relate the proposition, statement, action, event or whatever expressed by the verb to three main types of tense: past, present, and future. The aim of this paper is to investigate the underlying linguistic properties of the markers of the latter type of tense in one of the Arabic varieties: Najdi Arabic (NA). The paper mainly focuses on describing the linguistic properties of b- and raħ as future makers in NA. In addition to describing their relevant linguistic properties, the paper attempts to account for these properties using the theory of Head-driven Phrase Structure Grammar (HPSG). The paper also offers a comparison of the NA future markers b- and raħ and their counterparts in Standard Arabic and sheds light on the similarities and differences between them.
tense, future, Najdi Arabic, syntax, analysis
Copyright (c) 2026 Abdulrahman Althawab https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
A Pragmatic Study of Impoliteness in the 2020 Endsars Protest in Nigeria
The study examined impoliteness as contained in protest discourse in Nigeria with emphasis on the 2020 Endsars protest across Nigeria. Previous studies on protest discourse had concentrated on the nature of speech acts and the interactional strategies employed in protest communication. The current study investigates the nature of impoliteness employed in protest-centred communication. Data for the study were obtained from different newspaper reports published during and immediately after the 2020 Endsars protest. The study of impoliteness seeks to shed more light on our knowledge of rapport and communication management. The paper employs Culpeper’s model of impoliteness. This is because the impoliteness model points out the inherent affront, which further enlightens us on the communicative intention in protest discourse. The data for the study were obtained from various social media platforms in the heat of the endsars protest in Nigeria. The study notes that protesters in the 2020 Endsars protest in Nigeria deliberately avoided the withheld politeness approach. This is premised on the fact that the context of the discourse under study provides no affrdances for this impoliteness method. Furthermore, the study finds that protesters often deviate from the main cause of a particular protest due to the need to commit intentinal face threatening acts. This is done by exploring situational context of a particular protest.
Protest; Endsars; Impoliteness; Pragmatics; Language; Context
From Victim to Perpetrator: A Study of Robin’s Trauma in Babel
The novel Babel: Or, The Necessity of Violence: An Arcane History of The Oxford Translators’ Revolution has garnered significant acclaim since its publication, praised for its intricate exploration of colonialism, language, and identity. This paper employs postcolonial trauma theory, with a particular focus on Frantz Fanon’s research on the psychological effects of colonialism, as the theoretical framework to analyze the text. The study zeroes in on the character Robin, examining the trauma symptoms associated with his fractured identity and psychological struggles within the colonial context depicted in the novel. The analysis begins by elucidating the various manifestations of Robin’s trauma, followed by an in-depth exploration of the causes rooted in the systemic discrimination imposed by colonizers, the emotional scars from family-related traumas, and the compounded grief from the successive deaths of those close to him. The paper reveals that Robin’s trauma, rather than being alleviated through acts of resistance, becomes increasingly entrenched, culminating in his tragic demise. This exploration not only underscores the destructive impact of colonial oppression on individual identity but also contributes to the broader discourse on postcolonial trauma in literature.
trauma, Babel, Rebecca F. Kuang, Frantz Fanon, postcolonial literature, colonial identity
Copyright (c) 2026 Xinyi Cao https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Deconstructing the Paradigmatic American Dream: A Dialectical Analysis of Toni Morrison's Beloved
This research critically examined Toni Morrison's Beloved from a dialectical theoretical perspective to dismantle the paradigmatic American Dream. The study investigated how the narrative of Morrison uncovered the myth of the American Dream and unearthed its basis in racial inequality and systemic oppression. By focusing on the dialectical conflict between trauma and resistance, the study underscored the way in which the heritage of slavery haunted the characters, particularly Sethe, and hindered them from reaching the promised liberties. Additionally, the analysis scrutinized the reconstruction of identity and rebuilding of community as fundamental motifs in Beloved, stressing how individual recovery was entwined with communal memory and solidarity. Through this investigation, Morrison's work was staged as a challenge to the exclusivity of the American Dream and as a compelling redefinition of freedom in terms of remembrance, survival, and communalism. The research uncovered that authentic freedom, for Morrison, was not to be found in the pursuit of a fantasized dream, but rather in reclaiming identity and rebuilding social connections.
Toni Morrison, Beloved, American Dream, dialectical analysis, trauma, resistance, racial inequality, identity reconstruction, community, liberation, historical trauma.
Copyright (c) 2026 Dr Mohammad Umar https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
African-American Literature and Slavery in Saudi Arabia: A Literary-Historical Analysis Using Critical Race Theory
Literature and life influence and mirror each other so profoundly that the line between fact and fiction is often blurred. This study examines how the anti-slavery literary tradition of mid-twentieth century shared a complimentary relationship with international slavery abolitionist efforts, most notably the transnational efforts of the British Anti-Slavery Society to abolish Saudi slave trade during the 1950s taking vantage of Bell’s Critical Race Theory. Decolonization of Saudi Arabia at this time led to sustained tensions between human rights advocacy and assertions of national sovereignty which sparked a global humanitarian debate. The primary data in the study comes from two narrative sources: One, archival texts including Saudi diplomatic correspondence, United Nations records, consular reports, and contemporaneous government statements. Two, three contemporary novels viz., Native Son, Invisible Man, and Black Boy are included as samples of a parallel literary tradition in African-American literature within which these political efforts are mirrored. With articulations on racism, bondage, and morality, these texts are treated not merely as socio-cultural artifacts but also as theoretical interventions that informed social and political interpretations of slavery. Analyses indicate collapse of anti-slavery mechanisms despite freedom of Saudi Arabia until transnational and inter-racial coalitions mediated through literary imagination to construct human rights narratives that influenced policy debates on abolitionism an eventually enforced abolition of slavery.
Critical Race Theory, Saudi Arabia, African-American literature, Critical narrative, British Anti-Slavery Society, Transnational activism, Human rights
Copyright (c) 2025 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
From Psychological Constructs to Socio- Cultural Dynamics: Moroccan EFL Students’ Communication Apprehension
Communication apprehension is one of the communicative problems and psychological variables that interfere with Moroccan EFL communicative competence and performance. Although the causes of communication apprehension are well established in literature, they are attributed much more to psychological constructs such as the fear of negative evaluation and low self-esteem rather than to the socio-cultural constructs. From this perspective, the present paper aims at reconceptualizing the construct of speaking anxiety from a socio-cultural dimension. To this end, this study aimed at exploring 78 Moroccan EFL students’ perceptions at the faculty of languages, Art and humanities, Ibn Tofail through the use of a five-point Likert scale and semi-structured interviews. Results showed that both psycholinguistic and socio-cultural factors are two major causes of students’ communication apprehension.
Communicative competence, students’ perceptions, communication apprehension, psyvhological, socio-cultural
Readability in Translation: A Comparative Study of Two Arabic Translations of Charles Dickens’s Great Expectations
Given the lack of research that addresses the problem of readability in translated literary texts, this research came from the standpoint of filling the gap that the translator faces when it comes to translating Great Expectations novel by Charles Dickens. For this research, two translations in English: the first by Dar Alahlya, published in 2005, and the other by the International Language House for Translation and Publishing, published in 2018. The importance of this research stems from finding the errors faced by the translator and linking them to readability and literal translation of texts. This research will contribute to providing an opportunity for future translators to follow the rule of readability in translation. The research aims to provide an overview of the translation of literature by Charles Dickens, compare two translations, determine the strategies used, measure the readability of texts for each translation, and arrive at an appropriate analysis that achieves the use of the proposed readability rule if possible. the research is based on the comparative study of the two Arabic translations of the original text of the novel in English and a comparison of the level of readability in both translated novels.
Readability, literary translation, Catford translation shift, translation quality
Copyright (c) 2026 Narjis Alyami, Mimouna Zitouni https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Pragmatic Functions of Bass in Jordanian Spoken Arabic: A Function-Based Translation Model
This study investigates the multifunctional discourse marker bass in Jordanian Spoken Arabic (JSA), proposing a function-based translation model grounded in systematic corpus analysis. Building on the foundational taxonomy established by Al Rousan, Al Harahsheh, and Huwari (2020), who identified sixteen pragmatic functions of bass in JSA, the present study extends this work by examining how these functions map onto optimal English translation equivalents. Through analyzing 109 annotated instances drawn from 96 minutes of natural conversations in Roya TV's Caravan program, the research confirms and refines the existing functional taxonomy while establishing explicit links between discourse function and translation strategy. The methodology employs dual validation: linguistic experts classified each occurrence with contextualized analysis, while professional translators verified functional accuracy to ensure reliable identification of pragmatic functions and their optimal English equivalents. Findings reveal that the choice of English translation—whether 'but,' 'just,' 'only,' 'so,' 'well,' or phrasal equivalents—is determined not by lexical substitution but by the specific pragmatic role bass plays in context. This study makes three primary contributions: (1) validation and refinement of Al Rousan et al.'s (2020) functional taxonomy through independent corpus analysis; (2) development of a systematic framework linking each discourse function to optimal translation strategies; and (3) practical guidelines for Arabic-English translation of multifunctional particles.
Discourse markers, Jordanian Arabic, Pragmatics, Translation equivalence, Corpus linguistics, Bass
The Effectiveness of Task-Based Language Teaching on Vocabulary Acquisition and Retention in EFL Contexts: A Systematic Review
Vocabulary knowledge is central to EFL proficiency and academic success. Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) has been proposed as an effective approach to enhancing vocabulary acquisition and retention, yet its efficacy varies across contexts. This systematic review synthesizes empirical studies published between 2000 and 2025 to examine how TBLT impacts vocabulary learning in EFL settings, including Moroccan universities. Following PRISMA guidelines, the review identifies effective instructional strategies, highlights limitations, and provides pedagogical recommendations. Findings indicate that task-based, contextualized, and strategy-oriented instruction consistently improves vocabulary retention and meaningful use, while isolated or rote-based methods are insufficient. The study underscores the importance of integrated, research-informed models for higher education EFL instruction.
Vocabulary knowledge is central to EFL proficiency and academic success. Task-Based Language Teaching (TBLT) has been proposed as an effective approach to enhancing vocabulary acquisition and retention, yet its efficacy varies across contexts. This systematic review synthesizes empirical studies published between 2000 and 2025 to examine how TBLT impacts vocabulary learning in EFL settings, including Moroccan universities. Following PRISMA guidelines, the review identifies effective instructional strategies, highlights limitations, and provides pedagogical recommendations. Findings indicate that task-based, contextualized, and strategy-oriented instruction consistently improves vocabulary retention and meaningful use, while isolated or rote-based methods are insufficient. The study underscores the importance of integrated, research-informed models for higher education EFL instruction
Self-regulated Writing: Strategies and Mediators for Chinese Students in UK
This qualitative study explores the specific self-regulated writing (SRW) strategies and their mediating factors among high-achieving Chinese international students in UK higher education contexts, a group that constitutes one of the largest international student populations yet remains largely underexplored in SRW research. Guided by an integrated theoretical framework of social cognitive theory and sociocultural theory, the study adopted semi-structured interviews and thematic analysis with six participants. Results identified three core SRW strategies: outline-making and planning with self-created files, logic-prioritized self-proofreading, and individualized motivational regulation including self-talk, meditation, and self-consequencing. Further analysis revealed that SRW practice is dynamically shaped by the interaction of two categories of factors: sociocultural contextual factors (including feedback quality, in-class writing guidance, and adaptation to UK academic norms) and personal cognitive factors (including self-efficacy and motivational beliefs, with task utility and topic interest emerging as key motivational drivers). The findings verify the integrated theoretical framework’s explanatory power in cross-cultural settings, address the research gap in qualitative investigations of high-achieving Chinese learners’ SRW processes, and further provide targeted pedagogical implications.
higher education; cross-cultural academic adaptation; L2 academic writing; self-regulated writing process; teacher support; self-efficacy; motivational beliefs
Religion, Power, and Social Discipline in Joyce’s The Dead and Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter
This study investigates the representation of religion as a mechanism of social control in James Joyce’s The Dead and Nathaniel Hawthorne’s The Scarlet Letter. Drawing on Michel Foucault’s concepts of power, discipline, and institutional authority, the paper explores how religious discourse regulates individual behaviour and shapes moral life within distinct historical and cultural contexts. Although the two texts emerge from different periods and geographical settings, both depict religion as deeply embedded in everyday practices and social structures. Through close textual analysis, the study demonstrates that Joyce presents religious power in subtle forms, through ritual, silence, internalized guilt, and emotional paralysis, whereas Hawthorne portrays religious authority through overt mechanisms of public shaming, surveillance, and fear of divine punishment. In both narratives, religion functions as a disciplinary system that legitimizes control and normalizes obedience. The paper argues that the relationship between individuals and religious institutions, represented by the church and its clergy, is founded primarily on fear rather than spiritual devotion. By comparing these works, the study reveals how literary texts critique religion not as a transcendent spiritual force, but as a historically situated institution aligned with political authority and systems of power.
James Joyce; Nathaniel Hawthorne; religion; power; discipline; The Dead; The Scarlet Letter
Level, Relationship and Predictive Capacity of Grammatical and Discourse Competence to Communicative Competence of Pre-service Teachers
This study investigated the levels, relationships, and predictive capacity of grammatical, discourse, and communicative competence among pre-service teachers. The descriptive statistics indicated the pre-service teachers were rated moderately competent in overall communicative competence (M=3.50) and grammatical competence (M=3.18). The pre-service teachers were rated competent in discourse competence (M=3.69). The correlation analyses indicated that pre-service teachers showed a strong positive relationship between grammatical competence and overall communicative competence (r = 0.551, p < 0.001), suggesting that an understanding of grammar is a prerequisite for effective communication across various social contexts. A strong positive correlation between discourse competence and overall competence was observed (r = 0.531, p < 0.001), underscoring the need to organize longer stretches of language for effective communication. The linear regression findings presented that grammatical competence and discourse competence were statistically significant positive predictors of overall communicative competence. Grammatical competence predicted a unique variance of 30.3%, and discourse competence was also a unique predictor of 28.2%. Therefore, the study's findings suggest that grammatical competence and discourse competence are both significant, foundational, and vital contributors to a pre-service teacher's overall communicative competence. The researcher recommends that teacher education programs integrate grammar instruction with discourse-based tasks to better prepare pre-service teachers for classroom communication challenges.
Communicative Competence, Discourse Competence, Grammatical Competence, Pre-service Teachers, Philippines
Teacher Performance Assessment: Models and Practices- A Narrative Review
Teacher performance assessment (TPA) in Saudi Arabian higher education has evolved from a narrow, compliance-focused review to a multidimensional system that includes evidence of teaching quality, scholarly productivity, and service contributions. In English language teaching (ELT) units within universities such as English Language Institutes (ELIs), TPA is further complicated by the need to evaluate classroom interactional competence, assessment literacy, curriculum alignment, and student learning evidence alongside research and service expectations. This narrative review synthesizes major models and practices of TPA published between 2000 and 2025, with a focus on portfolios, student feedback, and peer observation, and considers additional evidence sources, including research metrics, supervision and mentoring, professional development, and community engagement. The review proposes a framework based on Umm Al-Qura University’s guide for Faculty Member Performance Evaluation and Development instrument, which allocates 40 points to teaching performance, 45 to scholarly output, and 15 to community service. This framework offers indicators tailored for ELT contexts and combines formative development with summative evaluations. Recommendations for implementation at the ELI across various faculty ranks, including instructors, lecturers, teaching assistants, and faculty members, are also provided, covering training, policy adjustments, and administrative procedures.
Teacher performance assessment; faculty evaluation; teaching portfolios; student evaluations; ELT; English Language Institutes; Saudi Arabia; Umm Al-Qura University; narrative review.
Copyright (c) 2026 Basim Mohammad Salih Nadhreen https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Effects of Google-Assisted Translation on Students’ Writing Performance
This research evaluated the impact of Google-Assisted Translation (GAT) on the writing performance of Grade 11 Humanities and Social Sciences (HUMSS) students at the University of Cebu at Pardo and Talisay (UCPT) during the 2024–2025 academic year. The study aimed to lay the foundation for a proposed translation manual and to assess whether GAT is a useful mediating instrument for improving student writing. A pre-experimental quantitative research methodology was used with a one-group pre-test/post-test design involving 30 students. A standardized rubric that emphasized organization, vocabulary, coherence, and grammar was used to evaluate writing proficiency. To identify significant differences across variables, weighted means and t-tests were used to analyze the data. The findings demonstrated that students' writing skills were at the starting level before the intervention. After using Google Translate, the post-test score increased, which aligns with the approaching proficiency level. When the computed t-value exceeded the critical value, the increase in performance was statistically significant; thus, the null hypothesis was rejected. Furthermore, neither the pre-test nor the post-test data showed a significant difference between male and female students, suggesting that gender did not affect writing performance. The study found that applying GAT greatly improves academic writing, particularly in grammar and vocabulary. Nevertheless, it is recommended that GAT complement, rather than replace, traditional instruction. The study suggested creating a translation handbook and implementing training courses that emphasize the responsible and critical evaluation of translation technology outputs to ensure ethical and efficient use. It is recommended that future studies focus on the most effective methods for leveraging the advantages of machine translation in language acquisition, on ensuring that educational institutions appropriately include translation technologies in the curriculum, and on having teachers assist students in critically assessing translation outputs.
Copyright (c) 2026 Shiela Mae Ybañez, Keverlyn L. Traya, Madelyn M. Dela Cruz, Noraine Zyed B. Calla, Chantal Mae L. Pantilag, Chesska Carla G. Moreno, Eliezer Cabanas, Marciano C. Placencia Jr., Jaypee R. Lopres https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Dilemmas of Human-AI romance: A Perspective from Language Philosophy
With the rapid development of AI technology, human-AI romance has become an emerging social phenomenon, attracting extensive academic attention. Existing studies mostly explore this phenomenon from the perspectives of emotional generation mechanism and ethical issues, while the linguistic essence behind human-AI emotional interaction remains underexplored. This paper analyzes the generation mechanism of human-AI romance from the dual dimensions of AI’s emotional simulation and users’ emotional projection, and further discusses the inherent dilemmas of human-AI romance from the perspective of language philosophy. This study holds that AI romantic chatbots have five main limitations or dilemma: lack of intentionality, “Dasein”, intersubjectivity, empathy, and the ability to simulate “unspeakable” emotions simulation. The study enriches the application of language philosophy in AI research, and provides theoretical and practical references for the development of emotional AI and the guidance of human-AI relationships.
Copyright (c) 2026 Qing Chen https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Verbal Humor in The King of Stand-up Comedy from the Perspective of the Cooperative Principle
Humor has long attracted scholarly attention as an important aspect of language and social interaction. Verbal humor is frequently employed by communicators in various contexts to implicitly convey intentions and ease tension, thereby facilitating smooth communication. Recent research on verbal humor has shifted focus from static, isolated words or sentences to dynamic, multimodal texts, such as talk shows, movies, plays, advertisements, and sitcoms. This study adopts the Cooperative Principle as its theoretical framework, using concepts from Incongruity Theory to analyze the processes underlying humor generation in the Chinese stand-up comedy show The King of Stand-up Comedy. The analysis shows that violating the four maxims of the Cooperative Principle is a common pragmatic strategy for producing verbal humor. The stand-up comedians often employ rhetorical devices such as metaphor, personification, pun, and hyperbole to flout the four maxims, thereby creating incongruities and generating humorous effects.
Copyright (c) 2026 Yunrong Li https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0