A Virtual Linguistic Landscape Analysis of Higher Education Institutions and Their Use of Pronouns of Address in the Hispanic and Lusophone World

Abstract

The use of space, both physical and virtual, has been extensively studied in relation to language, with many researchers considering it a determining factor. This chapter investigates the virtual linguistic landscape (VLL) of universities in ten Hispanic countries and five Portuguese-speaking countries to examine the use of pronouns of address (PoA) on their digital platforms. With the exponential increase in communication through digital means in recent years, computer-mediated communication has become a relevant topic in understanding human interaction through virtual devices. In this study, the authors specifically analyze the use of second-person singular pronouns in the VLL of higher education institutions in Hispanic and Portuguese-speaking countries, focusing on their social media platforms. The findings reveal that tú is the predominant PoA in Spanish-speaking institutions, whereas você prevails in Portuguese-speaking institutions on their social media.