FOREIGN LANGUAGE ERGONYMS AND SIGNS IN THE LINGUISTIC LANDSCAPE OF THE CAPITAL CITY (TAKING MOSCOW AND HELSINKI AS AN EXAMPLE)

The article presents the results of analysing the elements of the linguistic landscape (LL) i. e. ergonyms, inscriptions and signs of two capital cities – Moscow and Helsinki. The main objective of the study is to track the elements from other languages in the linguistic landscape of these cities. Another task of the study involves reviewing of the methods of linguistic landscape studies and considering the reasons for the penetration of foreign language elements into the LL of a certain city. The LL research methods include observation and contextual analysis. Comparative studies of LL are presented fragmentarily, which determined the purpose of this work: to compare LL of two cities – Moscow and Helsinki, and to analyze foreign language elements in the LL of these two capital cities. Focusing on foreign language elements allows to determine which languages play a more or less significant role in the LL of a certain city. The relevance of the research topic is undeniable as the linguistic landscape of capital cities is constantly changing, and the importance of a comparative research in this area can hardly be overestimated. Research materials include 204 contexts (ergonyms, advertisements) from public places of Moscow and 198 examples of similar linguistic functioning in the urban environment of Helsinki. The contexts were selected using a continuous sample method. The author examines the main approaches to defining the concept of a linguistic landscape, which confirms the theoretical significance of the work. As a result of the study, conclusions are drawn about the foreign language elements which are present in the linguistic landscapes of both capital cities. The degree of spreading some foreign language elements from a specific source language is also considered, as well as the ways of representing foreign language elements in the linguistic landscapes of the cities under study.