Language and identity in Oman through the voice of local radio broadcasters

Abstract

Oman, a rapidly modernising state, provides a fruitful site for sociolinguistic investigation. This is especially true for the language of Omani radio broadcasters in local channels who through their voice present an identity that is assumed to be a local one. Yet there are sociolinguistic and socio-political pressures that seem to influence the linguistic choices of the broadcasters which lead to their divergence from the local dialect.