Celebratory expressions and linguistic diversity: investigating congratulation patterns among Pakistani Facebook users commenting in English and Urdu

Abstract

AbstractThis study explores verbal and nonverbal congratulatory responses in the context of joyful Facebook status updates in Pakistani English and Urdu. Employing Terkourafi’s frame-based approach, quantitative and qualitative analyses were conducted on 16,165 comments and 16,230 emoji reactions from 140 Pakistani users. Elwood’s taxonomy and Allami and Pishghadam’s refined framework were used for verbal coding, while nonverbal data followed Facebook’s algorithm guidelines and Dresner and Herring’s framework. The findings reveal users’ adept expression of happiness and convivial emotions, showcasing significant language adaptation to cultural norms, especially with the prevalence of English. Pakistani users employ various congratulatory techniques, emphasizing the role of illocutionary force-indicating devices (IFID) in reinforcing positive self-image and commending success. Nonverbal elements, primarily emojis, play a crucial role in Pakistani conversations, signaling speech genres, defining social relationships and negotiating social purposes. The study suggests that future research should explore the longitudinal evolution of emoticons, investigating their potential conventionalization and transformation into established textual markers and providing insights into their linguistic and cultural significance in digital interactions.

Keywords

• Congratulatory responses
• emoji reactions
• illocutionary force-Indicating devices (IFID)
• nonverbal elements
• verbal coding
• Jeroen van de Weijer