Les références diatopiques dans l'argumentation autour du bilinguisme: L’emblème biennois

Anybody asked to name a bilingual city in Switzerland is likely to mention Biel/Bienne first. This bilingual town frequently acts as point of reference in conversation. In this article, we aim at a better understanding of the argumentative role of Biel/Bienne in conversation, to be derived from an analysis of several recordings made with people living in the town. For comparison, conversational reference to other linguistic situations of diatopic character will be considered additionally. Finally, special focus is put on how the linguistic border is perceived. While often considered relevant from a general point of view, it is regularly questioned in interviews with residents of Biel/Bienne.