| Title |
Digital code-switching in Lithuania: a mixed-methods study of influencers’ Instagram captions |
| Translation of Title |
Skaitmeninė kodų kaita Lietuvoje: mišrių metodų tyrimas influencerių „Instagram“ įrašuose. |
| Authors |
Videika, Ovidijus ; Ryvitytė, Birutė |
| DOI |
10.15388/Taikalbot.2026.23.3 |
| Full Text |
|
| Is Part of |
Taikomoji kalbotyra.. Vilnius : Vilniaus universiteto leidykla. 2026, vol. 23, p. 32-49.. eISSN 2029-8935 |
| Keywords [eng] |
code-switching ; Lithuanian influencers ; social media ; Instagram ; sociolinguistics |
| Abstract [eng] |
Code-switching, the alternation between two or more languages within a single communicative act, has been widely investigated since the 1970s. In the 21st century, with technological advancements and globalisation, scholars have increasingly examined code-switching on social networking platforms. This paper investigates code-switching in the Instagram captions of four most-followed native Lithuanian influencers’ accounts using a mixed-methods approach, offering exploratory insights into digital code-switching in Lithuania. Quantitative analysis provided the frequencies and distributions of code-switching, the languages involved, and its types and functions, while qualitative analysis applied slightly modified classification frameworks proposed by Poplack (1980) and Halim and Maros (2014). The findings suggest that code-switching occurs frequently among the four influencers, with higher overall switching frequencies observed among the male influencers in this dataset, primarily driven by one account, and with English emerging as the dominant language. Within this sample, male influencers more frequently employ hashtag switching and the function of discoverability, while female influencers more often use inter-sentential and free switching. The functional patterns further indicate that code-switching may serve as a means for these influencers to construct different identities and position themselves within broader social and cultural contexts. |
| Published |
Vilnius : Vilniaus universiteto leidykla |
| Type |
Journal article |
| Language |
English |
| Publication date |
2026 |
| CC license |
|
