Language, Security, and Terrorism

A decolonial framework for analyzing the languaging of terrorism

Terrorism and national security are not fixed categories but discursive constructions shaped by political rhetoric, media framing, and institutional language practices. Language, Security and Terrorism, edited by a team of applied linguists specializing in decolonial theory, examines how these constructions produce othering, racialization, and securitization. Drawing on Southern epistemologies, the volume provides conceptual and methodological tools for analyzing how terrorism is named, framed, and contested across geopolitical contexts.

The volume features case studies from diverse Global South contexts examining media discourse, state rhetoric, propaganda, legal translation, protest movements, and lived experiences of violence. It investigates the politics of naming, the ethical implications of linguistic research in military and intelligence settings, and how alternative forms of languaging challenge dominant security narratives. Chapters foreground perspectives from Indigenous communities, survivors, and activists affected by securitizing language practices.

Readers will also find:

• Critical sociolinguistic and decolonial frameworks that analyze terrorism and national security as semiotic and discursive constructions rather than fixed categories
• Interdisciplinary tools connecting sociolinguistics, discourse analysis, security studies, political communication, and decolonial theory in a single volume
• Case studies from the Global South examining how media discourse, state rhetoric, and propaganda construct threats and legitimize security policies
• Analysis of the ethical responsibilities of linguists and scholarship in contexts of military training, intelligence gathering, and national security
• Perspectives from marginalized voices including Indigenous communities, survivors of terrorist attacks, and activists challenging securitizing language practices

Language, Security and Terrorism serves scholars, graduate students, and advanced undergraduates in sociolinguistics, discourse analysis, applied linguistics, language policy, security studies, and decolonial studies. It also addresses researchers and practitioners working on terrorism, national security, legal translation, and media representations of political violence who seek critical analytical frameworks grounded in Southern epistemologies.