Metaphorical constructs and semiotic expressions in the BBC Yoruba Internet memes of English Premier League match results

Research output: Journal contributionsJournal articlesResearchpeer-review

Authors

  • Ayo Osisanwo
  • Matthew Alugbin

This paper explores the deployment of metaphors in the BBC Yoruba-medium football results of the English Premier League, examining how cultural metaphorical choices shape meaning in online sport discourse. Through a discourse analysis of Yoruba-medium football results, the study reveals how metaphors drawn from Yoruba cultural milieu and everyday life are used to create vivid descriptions of game events, players, and teams. The study relies on Lakoff's conceptual metaphor theory, complemented by Kress and van Leeuwen's social semiotic approach to multimodality. Findings reveal that metaphors describe game events, teams, and players, thus, framing the contest in unique and evocative manners, drawing on cultural and shared knowledge to shape the understanding of the game in an adversarial sense. This study, therefore, argues that metaphors are deployed to convey deeper cultural meanings and values, and add creativity to match results. The findings point to the role of language and culture in shaping the experiences of football fandom in sports and media.

Original languageEnglish
JournalLanguage and Semiotic Studies
Volume10
Issue number3
Pages (from-to)415-436
Number of pages22
ISSN2096-031X
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 01.09.2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 the author(s), published by De Gruyter on behalf of Soochow University.

    Research areas

  • BBC Yoruba, culture, English Premier League, football result, metaphor, sport discourse
  • Literature studies

DOI