Promoting tourism in linguistic minority spaces on the web: A study of linguistic and visual resources on tourist websites for dingle, Ireland and Inari, Finland

This article explores the web-based promotion of tourism in two linguistic minority spaces, namely Dingle in the Corca Dhuibne Gaeltacht (designated Irish-speaking region) in Ireland and Inari in Finnish Sámiland. Tourism websites not only mediate the contact between tourist and tourism producer, but may also become part of the touristic experience both before and after the visit. Various combinations of resources are used on websites in order to provide access to information about the particular location on the one hand, and in order to differentiate the location and its particular attractions, on the other. Using a selection of 28 websites (14 from each location), we examine how tourist websites promote Dingle and Inari; what combination of linguistic and visual resources are used on these sites for promotional purposes; whether the relevant minority language is used, and, if so, how.